“Bozedown Alpacas” is a name synonymous with highest quality, reliability and support, ensuring that our customers return time and again.
We are genuinely enthusiastic about the alpacas we breed and sell. Our business is built on providing the best possible advice and service to our customers, supported by a wealth of World Class genetics. We supply prizewinning breeding stock to many other highly successful alpaca breeders and new breeders throughout Europe.
Bozedown has amassed a wealth of knowledge with over 27 years experience in the alpaca industry, which we are always keen to share. We offer a comprehensive range of services, such as stud services, livery, consultancy, and a range of courses, along with a wide range of prize-winning Suri and Huacaya genetics for sale with comprehensive back-up.
Joy Whitehead bought 5 alpacas in 1989, and Bozedown Alpacas was born. Niece Mary-Jo Smith joined her in 2000, and together they have proved a strong team in selection and breeding of both huacaya and suri alpacas. Now with more than 800 Alpacas, Bozedown Alpacas has won a phenomenal number of Champions and Supreme Champions and other show successes over the years. Bozedown takes pride in having been the prime mover in advancing the general quality of alpacas in the UK and Europe.
Our breeding aim is to build improvement into each successive generation for each and every alpaca on the farm!! We produce healthy strong-framed huacayas and suris with excellent conformation and advanced fleece types, and concentrate our breeding aims on further advancements in fleece fineness and fleece weights to satisfy our strongly growing UK fibre industry.
Bozedown is a family run business. It all started with a vision from Joy Whitehead which filtered down the family. Joy’s daughter Claire Whitehead went down the road of becoming a vet and she is now the only Camelid Specialist vet in the UK and has recently opened her own Camelid specific vet practice in south Oxfordshire conveniently located near the family run farm. Joy’s niece Mary-Jo now runs the alpaca herd along with her husband Iain and sister-in-law Kirsten. Mary-Jo is a qualified British Alpaca Society Judge and has had the pleasure of Judging shows across the UK and Europe. Bozedown is very involved in the alpaca industry and are founding members of two of the largest alpaca shows in Europe. Mary-Jo is also involved in helping develop an estimated breeding value system for continued development of these magical creatures.
Iain joined the business with a wealth of knowledge based on his background in traditional livestock farming…. we now have him calling alpacas traditional farming! Kirsten (Iain’s sister) is our stock person and helps with the herd management and implements the breeding programme.
Alpacas are magical creatures that make diversification easy as there are many ways to make alpacas work for you while maintaining a pleasurable lifestyle on a farm. Alpacas are relatively low maintenance animals to look after. There are 4.5 of us looking after 800 alpacas on over 200 acres of grassland covering all aspects from the animal care, grassland management and office work. The one thing alpacas do, is attract attention and so if you have a glamping business, holiday let, B&B, farm shop… well these wonderful alpacas will bring people to you with their beautiful faces and inquisitive personalities.
Alpacas are pleasant animals to be around and we advertise them as the livestock that makes you smile… however, they have many other characteristics as well that you trade from. They are a great herd protector. Alpacas deter foxes from their fields and giving the chance they will kill a fox. Alpacas can live with most animals but they will protect both sheep flocks and poultry. Alpacas herd protective instincts kick in at around the age of 2 and they work in pairs to see off foxes. They can also be used for walks or light trekking and don’t forget that they produce a glorious fibre each year that rivals cashmere and so the possibilities are endless with their fibre. We sell all of our fibre each year and even down to the floor sweepings that get sold to make duvets! However, if you are crafty the endless options are even more limitless.
The alpaca industry is still very much in its infancy and if you like to make a dramatic difference then this industry could well be right for you. There are so many areas that one can focus on. At Bozedown Alpacas our focus is on breeding and providing the very best pedigree stock with a goal of having strong healthy alpacas producing a great yield of uniformly fine high quality alpaca fibre.
We are more than happy to answer all questions so please come and see us at the farm innovation show or book to visit the farm.