Bring the family to the next Shearing Day celebration, when Island Alpaca Farm shears their newest alpaca babies, or cria, from their summer birthing season on Friday, August 27 from noon to 3 p.m. at the farm near the blinker.

In this fleece-to-fiber transition, observing expert shearers work their clippers through the baby alpacas’ fabulous fleece. Admission is $5 per person.

The Island Alpaca fleece is especially fine and soft this year. All but one of the baby alpaca’s were sired by Island Alpaca’s Estrada, and are revealing unusually low fiber diameter averages (diameter of the hair follicle). The smaller diameters are the finest and softest fleeces, resulting in the softest alpaca yarns.

Hollow-core alpaca hair is lightweight, giving more insulation and warmth with less weight. Alpaca fiber also is moisture-wicking and hypoallergenic.

For those interested, this event will enable you to understand better the alpaca as an overall investment, either as pets or for breeding purposes. Find out how best to get started, setting up farm facilities, alpaca nutrition and herd management, financing and fleece. Yarn, clothing and accessories are for sale, and refreshments will be available. For details, call 508-693-5554.