Local alpaca farm on ‘The View’

Four new animals added to the herd

By FRITZ MAYER

NEW YORK CITY — After discussions about the sexual orientation of Vice President Dick Cheney’s daughter and the defeat of the minimum wage bill in the senate, the women of the television show “The View” turned their attention to a less controversial topic: alpacas from Sullivan County.

Rob Bruce, who, with his wife Michelle Amour, owns the Rosehaven Alpaca Farm in The Beechwoods area of Callicoon, is also a stage manager on “The View,” and has been one for 10 years. On January 25, Bruce took a turn in front of the cameras to show off two of his alpacas.

Bruce explained about the process of raising alpacas, which are prized for their fleece, and was rewarded with a gift of four brand-new alpacas from the show’s producers. That was not an insignificant gesture¾ the farm’s web site, www.rosehavenalpacas.com, lists alpacas for sale at prices ranging from $5,000 to $35,000 each.

Amour said, “It was absolutely stunning. We felt like we won the lottery.”

Amour, who produces television shows, said the couple stays in their home in Callicoon three or four days a week through the winter, and the rest of the time they stay in their house in Rockland County, closer to their jobs in the city.

When they are away from the alpacas, Jerry Murphy, the farm manager, runs the operation.

According to information on the web site, the alpaca, which is native to the Andes Mountain region of South America, have been raised in the United States only since 1984. The site explains, “Alpacas are prized for their luxurious fiber and gentle personalities. Their size makes them easy to handle; a mature alpaca weighs only between 135 pounds and 185 pounds. They require very little land in comparison to other livestock, with a 10 per acre ratio. They are, also, easy on the land because they have soft, padded feet rather than hooves. Also, they don’t require fine grass or grains, making them an inexpensive animal to feed.”