We are committed to the alpaca business. At our new farm in Bethel, New York we are raising more than 100 suris and huacayas. Maria Bravo has successfully raised and bred more than 300 alpacas at Willow Lake Farm.

Maria is an expert in every facet of the alpaca business:

Farm setup, organization, operation, and management
Nutritional aspects of alpaca management
Keeping alpacas healthy
Marketing and selling the animals

When you buy an alpaca from Quintessence Alpacas Intl., you can expect help in all these areas. Many times, who you buy an animal from is more important than which animal you buy. We can help you succeed!! We are in the alpaca business to stay. We believe that this is just the beginning of the upward curve for the alpaca business in this country.

We also sell fabulous alpaca products such as hand-made teddy bears, rugs, and alpaca figures. Visit our store page...
So Soft Toys and Accessories.

Imported from Chile in 1998, each Quintessence Alpaca has been hand chosen by Maria Herlinda Bravo for low micron count and conformation. Ms. Bravo, who has studied under Dr. Julio Sumar, the foremost authority on alpacas in Chile, oversees all aspects of bringing these animals into the United States. She is one of only two people currently involved in the importation of alpacas into this country due to difficulty in procedure, quarantine, etc.

Because of stringent importation requirements and the closed registry of animals in this country, health problems are few. The Association of Alpaca Breeders (AOBA) registers every alpaca born in the U.S., allowing its genealogy to be traced. Through AOBA, breeding programs are encouraged to produce high quality animals with improved fiber while working to eliminate genetic flaws. Using these AOBA criteria, Maria is able to select better animals for importation to America. Alpaca ranchers will be interested in these new bloodlines to augment and improve their breeding stock.

As the demand for alpacas continues to increase, people are willing to pay high prices for high quality animals, creating excellent profit opportunities and tax advantages to alpaca breeders and investors. Raising a herd of these delightful animals can also be an exciting and rewarding lifestyle choice.

The price of an individual alpaca is affected by the color, density, uniformity, and fineness of the fleece as well as the conformation, age, and sex of the animal. Females sell for more money on average than males, but herdsire quality males command the highest individual prices. Breeders often prefer one alpaca color over another, with the rarest colors demanding the highest prices. However, the parents' color does not necessarily guarantee a cria of the same color.