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 Boys
on the Side
Boys, boys-what to do about all the suri boys in our herds?
They are all 'related' to our super suri herd sire or the
very prominent studs being advertised in the magazines. After
all, these boys are all sons or grandsons of Kantu, or Maximo,
or Radical….so they hold no value in our breeding programs!
And the suri breeder down the road has offspring from the
same studs! I guess we have two choices: geld them or take
them to one of the 'dumping sales' and sell them for $500.00.
Sound familiar? Let's explore this 'problem' a bit to see
if there might not be another way to think about our boys…a
way that will ultimately further the goals of our breed association
and lessen problems for the breed in the future.
One of the stated goals of the Suri Llama Association is
to raise suri llamas to the level of breed status. To accomplish
that goal, suri llamas must become uniform in phenotype and
predictable in their production. What will set the suri llama
apart is not its exquisite type, and not the occasional superior
fleece, but rather its reputation for uniformity in both.
The importance of being highly selective with our male population
is a necessity if suri llamas are to make the genetic gains
necessary to become purebred livestock. A herdsire's genetic
contribution to the herd is immense and rapid progress can
be achieved by utilizing the very best males. On the other
hand, maintaining too few breeding males in a herd poses considerable
risk to the genetic integrity of a breed still in its infancy.
By utilizing too few of our male productions, we are inadvertently
laying the foundation for an eventual genetic bottleneck,
which necessitates the introduction of "new blood"
down the road.
(This "new blood," - likely an import, and invariably
a wild card, introduces many unknowns into a carefully managed
gene pool. While importations of new suri bloodlines would
certainly broaden our genetic base and help avoid a genetic
bottle-neck, such a proposal is short-sighted and runs counter
to producing more uniformity. South American suri llamas are
not bred to the high standard we have now come to expect here
in the US. As such, relying on imported animals to "infuse
new blood" is akin to relying on a junkyard dog to beef-up
your line of King Charles Spaniels!)
It's a vicious cycle: culling too many males, over- utilizing
the few that remain, and then importing a "genetic minefield"
to once again broaden our genetic base. As the industry chases
its tail, the suri llamas become less uniform, less useful,
and thus less marketable. The over-utilization of a handful
of males and the resultant reliance on importation to correct
that blunder will not and historically has not created a healthy
and viable llama industry.
Only by limiting the steady flow of genetic unknowns from
South America and breeding SLA keured and registered suri
llamas, can breeders begin to create predictability and sustainability
in their herds. This will necessitate retaining a broader
base of second and third generation breeding males to maintain
adequate genetic diversity. Instead of selling all the
male offspring of your best herd sires, consider keeping those
produced from your best dams for a breeding season or two.
Remember that while they may share a sire, half of their genetic
make-up inherited from their dam.
Breed these boys in turn to your other reliable producers
and -voila!- another crop of suri cria that share only 25%
of their genes with your original herdsire. They incorporate
all the best phenotype of familiar bloodlines while diversifying
the suri genome. It becomes a win-win scenario.
Going forward, the breeder is working with familiar bloodlines,
known quantities, and can safely begin to establish a line
of consistent producers of high quality suri llamas. In short,
with each generation you reshuffle genes that you already
know "work" together without introducing genetic
unknowns or continually reducing the genetic diversity by
over using a single male.
This utilization of a broader base of males - from within
an already carefully selected gene pool - will work toward
preserving genetic viability, and circuitously create more
uniformity and predictability with each successive generation.
Reducing the use of imported animals and broadening
the number of males used will necessitate the implementation
of more intelligent breeding systems. Even a slight
shift away from what can only be described as our industries
'love affair' with the total out-cross will tilt the balance
in favor of ever increasing uniformity and predictability.
This is the stuff of which breeds are made.
A treasure trove of untapped genetic resources is available
to all breeders, and travel to South America to obtain it
is not necessary. That treasure is to be discovered right
in our own back yard, in young suri llama males of proven
bloodlines, most of a type exceeding the best imported animals!
The time has come to consider keeping a few more boys on the
side.
A beggar had been sitting by the side of a road for over
thirty years. One day a stranger walked by. "Spare some
change?" mumbled the beggar, mechanically holding out
his old baseball cap.
"I have nothing to give you," said the stranger.
Then he asked: "What's that you are sitting on?"
"Nothing" replied the beggar. "Just an old
box. I have been sitting on it for as long as I can remember."
"Ever looked inside?" asked the stranger. "No,
said the beggar, what's the point? There's nothing in there."
"Have a look inside," insisted the stranger. The
beggar managed to pry open the lid. With astonishment, disbelief,
and elation, he saw that the box was filled with gold! —Ekhart
Tolle
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