At Finksburg alpaca ranch, 115 smiling, furry faces ready to greet the community

Every morning, Travis McManus, 50, wakes up around 5:30 and heads to a red barn on his Finksburg farm. Once inside he’s greeted by the stares of about 100 alpacas.

He says good morning to each of the fluffy animals, knowing every single one by name. Allie likes to nibble on Travis’s shirt and pants. Dermot follows him as he walks through the pens.

McManus co-owns Black Barn Alpacas with his wife, Yussy. They founded their Finksburg ranch in April as a project born out of a love for animals that grew into a business with about 115 alpacas, a horse and a few dogs and cats.

“We certainly didn’t picture where we are now,” Yussy McManus, 39, said.

‘An organic path’

About four years ago Travis and Yussy were living in Texas, brainstorming plans for their newly purchased 16-acre property. A year earlier they had closed their design firm as they searched for a career change.

They both loved animals and the outdoors but wanted to choose a sustainable and manageable animal to care for on their land. Cattle and horses were out of the question, since they didn’t want to butcher the animals they cared for, and other options seemed too expensive.

The pair remembered some artwork and decor in their home made from alpaca wool, and their conversation shifted.

“We were like, ‘OK, it’s time, let’s learn about alpacas and see what they’re all about,'” Yussy recalled.

Travis called local alpaca farms and volunteered his time to learn about the animals, and as their knowledge grew, so did their herd. Twenty alpacas quickly became 50. In 2020, Travis bought Yussy a young alpaca named Silhouette — also known as Silly Girl — to continue to expand the family.

“I love her so much,” Yussy McManus said. “I highly encourage husbands to think about alpacas, in the right scenario, as anniversary presents because it is the gift that keeps on giving.”

The pair started to breed the animals and purchased some from other farms, including a valuable herdsire named Declan, a male who fathers many of the ranch’s alpacas, such as Dermot.

Veronica Collazo, a friend in Floresville, Texas, was one of the first people to visit their ranch, she said. It was also her first time interacting with alpacas, Collazo said, and she noticed how it appeared as though the animals are “smiling all the time.”

“It was just so therapeutic for me,” Collazo recalled of her visit to Black Barn Alpacas. “I came in with the load of the world of my shoulders, and it was just magical for me.”

Collazo posted on social media about the ranch, and many community members reached out to ask about visiting. Black Barn Alpacas “organically” developed an agritourism site, Yussy said, and the couple opened the ranch’s doors to the public.

Babies, breeding and more

Soon after the shift to agritourism, Yussy’s father, who lived in Maryland, grew ill and died. Yussy’s loss, paired with the struggle of keeping the alpacas cool in the Texas heat, motivated the couple to move their ever-growing alpaca business to Maryland.

Within six weeks, Black Barn Alpacas relocated to a 50-acre farm in Finksburg.

“Everything fell into place,” Yussy said. “I feel like my dad was definitely involved in that.”

On the property, alpacas are separated by age. After reaching 10 months old, young males are separated from the females. Pregnant female alpacas stay in a pen together, and newborn alpacas, known as crias, stay with their mothers until about 6 months of age.

Earlier this spring a new batch of five female crias were born on the Finksburg farm, Yussy said, and the couple said they felt as though they “hit the lottery.” Five females born at once is an uncommon occurrence, and females are more valuable than males due to their ability to reproduce.

Alpaca pregnancy lasts about 11 1/2 months, and it’s best for alpacas to give birth in spring and fall seasons for their testosterone levels, Travis added. Breeding is planned based on different fleece colors that can be produced from the females, he said.

The main reason alpacas are raised is for their fleece. Fleeces are graded by denseness, fineness and length, Yussy added. And while many parts of the fur can be used for sweaters and yarn, fleece from the alpaca’s legs can be used to make other products such as nesting balls or dryer sheets.

Alpaca fleeces come in many different shades, Travis said, such as silver gray and rose gray, and then also true black, bay black and fawn coats. Each color has different levels of color as well, including medium, light and dark coats, he said.

To keep track of every category of color, Travis genotypes his alpacas. This means that he sends a blood sample of his alpacas to be processed, and then he can see what color fleeces they can produce when bred. Every animal is also registered with the national organization Alpaca Owners of America.

Alpacas grow their fleece to between 3 and 8 inches and the Black Barn herd is sheared annually each April. The couple invites about 10 people to assist with the shearing, where they share responsibilities in holding the animals still for shaving, recording fleece colors, and grading fleece quality.

“We make a party out of it, we have fun with it,” Travis said.

Black Barn Alpacas hosts a store where they sell products made from their alpaca fleeces, as well as other products shipped from Ecuador and Peru, where alpaca yarn is woven into socks, sweaters, hats, or toys.

New soil, new goals

“Hands behind your back. Keep your nose out. Don’t approach anything from behind. Don’t pet heads. Let them sniff your hand. Brush their necks.”

These are just a few of the tips the McManuses give visitors before they enter Black Barn’s alpaca pens. The couple hosts tours, yoga time and educational events on the property to spread their love for alpacas. They also bring alpacas to weddings, festivals or other events when requested.

It’s not just about education to the McManuses. The duo wants to focus on wellness by exposing communities to the therapeutic nature of the animals. They also plan to build upon their yearly shearing — an event Collazo and many others flew from Texas to be a part of — and make it a ticketed event, Yussy said.

But above all, Yussy’s favorite thing to do is sit in the grass, alpacas surrounding her, and listen to the quiet sounds of her herd pulling grass out of the ground. Sitting with the alpacas, as peaceful as they are, puts her “in a meditative state” that helps her forget her troubles, she said.

Once the sun starts to go down, Travis and Yussy make their nightly rounds across their Finksburg property. One of their cats, Gunther, joins them, closely following from outside the pens as the couple kisses every alpaca goodnight.

“At the end of the day, we love alpacas, and we want to be able to share them with people,” Yussy said. “We love that people love them as much as we do.”