Alpaca digestion (including what is alpaca spit?!)

Alpacas are what’s known as semi-ruminants. They have 3 stomach compartments referred to very excitingly as C-1, C-2 and C-3.

These chambers are what allow them to make the most of very little, fermenting and absorbing plant fibres and absorbing nutrients super efficiently.

This is how they survived in the arid lands of the highlands of the Andes and how they survive (thank goodness!) here in the UK when we have no grass!! (Thankfully we have a new hay supplier who promises to keep us in hay always! THANK goodness for random petrol station hay encounters!).

C-1 is basically a fermentation vat. When you get in the way of an alpaca spitting at another alpaca - the awful green gunk they bring up is a result of this amazing fermentation process.

C-2 is a smaller compartment which is transitional, it carries on the fermentation and sorted out food particles. If they’re too big they go back to C1-.

C-3 is a true stomach. This is where the digestive enzymes are released and regular digestion as we know it takes place before continuing on to the small intestine.

Carly x