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- Seconds
- Shorter, coarser fleece from the neck, belly and legs. Learn more →
- Shearing
- Annual removal of the fleece, usually in spring. Learn more →
- Show ring
- Competitions where alpacas are judged on conformation and fleece.
- Skirting
- Removing dirty edges, coarse fiber and debris from a shorn fleece before processing. Learn more →
- Spin-off
- When a pregnant female rejects a male by spitting — used as a behavioral pregnancy test (the 'spit test'). Learn more →
- Spit test
- Introducing a male to a bred female; a pregnant female will usually refuse him by spitting and running. Learn more →
- Spitting
- Projecting stomach contents and saliva, mostly at other alpacas over food or mating disputes. Learn more →
- Staple
- A lock of fiber; staple length is the length of a year's fiber growth. Learn more →
- Sternal recumbency
- Lying on the chest with legs folded (normal kush position).
- Stocking rate
- The number of animals per acre a pasture can support. Learn more →
- Sunbathing
- Alpacas lie on their side with legs stretched to warm up in the sun. Learn more →
- Suri
- The rarer alpaca fleece type with long, silky, lustrous locks that hang down. Learn more →