Female alpaca have one goal in life, to raise their young. The average female alpaca weighs between 120 - 150 pounds.
Females are "induced ovulators," which means that the act of mating and the presence of semen causes them to ovulate. Occasionally, females conceive after just one breeding (which can last anywhere from 5 minutes to well over an hour; the males are "dribble ejaculators,") but occasionally do have troubles conceiving. Artificial insemination is technically difficult because the act of breeding stimulates ovulation - but it can be accomplished. Babies conceived from artificial insemination are not able to be registered with the Alpaca Registry.
The gestation period is between 11 and 12 months, most commonly between 335 - 345 days. Females usually have single births and human intervention is sometimes needed. The newborn (called cria) weighs between 15-19 pounds, with delivery occurring usually during the daylight hours, more often in the morning. The newborn cria is usually standing and nursing within 90 minutes of birth, and will continue to nurse until weaned at 6 months of age. Twins occurs about every 10,000 births. The time between breeding and rebreeding can be as little as 3 weeks.
The average life span of the North American raised alpaca is around 20-25 years, During its life time a female alpaca can produce 15 or more offspring.
