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When and why did it become necessary to form an association for alpacas and their owners? From promoting public awareness to promoting the alpaca industry as a whole, the Alpaca Owners and Breeders Association, or AOBA as it's known, has a rapidly growing membership in the US today. From its inception in 1988, AOBA remains at the forefront of the alpaca industry, growing, adapting and remaining an integral part of the alpaca world.
The first alpacas were imported into the United States in 1984. During the several years that followed that first importation, these original Alpaca owners began to meet and discuss the formation of an association. On June 17, 1988, at Shanty Creek Lodge in Bellaire, Michigan, 38 people gathered in a "special meeting" to discuss the formation (including by-laws and articles of incorporation) of what is now known as the Alpaca Owners and Breeders Association, Inc. (AOBA). The basic by-laws were approved in October of 1988, and finally filed in September of 1990. In June of 1991, the Internal Revenue Service, under 501c(5) granted the association a non-profit status.
The association was formed for the following purposes. (1) To promote public awareness and membership appreciation of the Alpaca's unique qualities; (2) To educate the membership on the care and breeding of the Alpaca; (3) To promote the growth of the Alpaca industry as a whole; and (4) To foster the establishment of the breed outside of its native land by encouraging husbandry and breeding practices based upon, but not limited to, herd health, overall soundness, and alpaca fiber production and products.
The association operates under a committee structure led by a seven-member Board of Directors. All committee members and directors are volunteer positions without compensation. In the short time since the association was formed (beginning with 87 memberships and a known Alpaca census of 392), it has grown to (as of October, 2002) over 3,000 members with over 40,000 Alpacas. During this time, the activities of the association have also increased, some of the highlights of which follow:
" 1988 - AOBA began work on an Alpaca Registry where it was housed until it was subsequently moved to the International Llama Registry (ILR) and operated as a separate branch. It has since evolved into the Alpaca Registry, Inc. (ARI), which functions under the direction of a five-member elected Board of Directors. Actual registry services are provided by the ILR office, which serves as the ARI's contract agent;
" 1990 - the first issue of the quarterly magazine" Alpacas® Magazine" was printed. All members receive this magazine. Non-members may subscribe by contacting the (AOBA) office. Also in 1990, the first Alpaca show rules were developed with the cooperation of the American Llama Show Association (ALSA), which became the Alpaca Llama Show Association (ALSA);
" 1991 - a permanent business office was established in Estes Park, Colorado to administer the activities of the association.
" 1992 - AOBA held its own first Annual Conference in Estes Park, CO. Prior to this time, the Alpaca Conference had been held in conjunction with the annual International Llama Association's (ILA) conference. Since then, the Annual AOBA Conference has grown in size and scope to include shows, educational seminars, vendors, exhibitors, an auction and private treaty sales over a five-day period.
" 1993 -AOBA developed an Alpaca Library. Public libraries have little, if any, information about Alpacas. With this library, members can check out books, videos, magazines, and articles through the mail on a wide range of subjects including medical/health, nutrition/feed, fiber, business management, behavior/breeding, showing/training and much more;
" 1994 - in November, the association introduced its quarterly newsletter, "The Hummer", to supplement the growing need for information in addition to the "Alpacas Magazine. In 1996, the "Hummer" publication was increased from 4 to 6 issues a year;
" 1995 - AOBA formally adopted an "affiliate program" to increase communication among breeders and to facilitate more national alpaca awareness through regional affiliates.
" 1996 - "National" marketing and awareness of alpacas became important to the industry and the first advertising was done in a nationally recognized magazine. This has grown to include advertising in a number of national publications nearly every month. [AOBA has 1,000 members]
" 1999 - To expand alpaca awareness to a larger audience, Television advertising began and has increased steadily to where there is a TV spot run nearly every day of the year.
" 2000 - In the Fall of 2002 AOBA formally adopted it own Alpaca Certified Show system (independent of the Alpaca & Llama Show Association) and created its own Show Division, which became effective January 1, 2001. [AOBA has 2,000 members]
" 2001- A consolidation proposal between the Alpaca Registry, Inc. (ARI) and AOBA was voted on by each organization's membership. The proposal was defeated and ARI & AOBA remain as separate organizations today.
" 2002 - AOBA established a fiber initiative to integrate the promotion of fiber products into the AOBA national marketing program and created the first ever Winter National Conference (January 30 - February 1, 2003), "Fiber to Fashion." [AOBA has 3,000 members]
Since the beginning, the association has developed a number of informative publications on Alpacas, including investment information, fiber, and general literature. Farm & ranch support programs for AOBA members has continued to increase through education, support materials and advertising opportunities including AOBA sponsored websites (AlpacaInfo.com and AlpacaFashion.com)
The committee structure of the AOBA has lead to an active Health & Research group that cooperates jointly with the Alpaca Research Foundation through the Alpaca Registry, Inc. AOBA also maintains a membership with the United States Animal Health Association and the Lama Medical Research Working Group. These groups have approved and funded research projects through veterinary colleges at universities, as well as the Morris Animal Foundation. AOBA's Marketing Committee has developed videos and other publications to better inform the public about Alpacas. In addition, the Marketing Committee has run national advertising campaigns. The development of the Youth Committee has lead to the approval of the first Alpaca 4-H Manual and other youth programs. The Fiber Committee has implemented the first stages of a North American Fiber Co-op, including a pilot program for the processing of North American Alpaca fleece. There are also other active committees in AOBA that handle other aspects of the growing industry.
To further promote the successful future of the Alpaca industry, AOBA cooperates and works with the following national and international associations: The Alpaca Registry Inc. (ARI); International Llama Registry (ILR), the Alpaca Fiber Cooperative of North America (AFCNA), the Alpaca Research Foundation (ARF), Morris Animal Foundation (MAF) the United States Animal Health Assoc. (USAHA); the Australian Alpaca Assoc. (AAA); and many regional alpaca associations.
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