Scotch Range Alpacas was founded in February 2007 by Robert and Karen Haggard of Summerville, South Carolina. We attended the Carolina Alpaca Breeders and Owners show in Concord, North Carolina, and shortly thereafter, we visited Mineral Springs Farm in Lexington, South Carolina, where we purchased our foundation herd, including 2 bred females and two males.

During our first year, we aquired 2 more geldings, bred female Victoria, and welcomed two male cria. It was a great year! We joined the Alpaca Small Farm Network, met some very special people, and learned a lot from everyone we met.

In our second year, our herd continued to grow with several births and the acquisition of 9 females, a promising young male, and our signature herdsire, Paradise Ridge Aconcagua.

Karen is a hand spinner and will spin any type of fiber available. We had been a vendor at the Southeastern Animal Fiber Fair (SAFF) in Asheville, North Carolina for more than 10 years. One year at SAFF, Karen met an alpaca owner, purchased some alpaca fleece, and got a flyer for an alpaca show coming up in 2007. (Sooo, Robert was asked, "Would you go to the show?" Karen looked at him and said, "Please?") Needless to say, we were extremely impressed with what we saw at the Carolina Alpaca Breeders and Owners show in Concord, NC. The alpaca community made a lasting impression on us.

On a personal note, our boys are now married and on their own, so we are "empty nesters." Our time is now filled with our alpaca farm and other animals. For more than 20 years, we raised sheep and Angora rabbits. We always had animals when our kids were growing up, including cats, dogs, exotic birds, poultry, rabbits, sheep, among others, and still have most of those animals today.

All of our alpacas at this time are Huacaya. Suri fiber is also a joy to spin, and we plan to add a few suris to our herd in the future. It is hard to believe how curious, smart, and interactive alpacas are. They have truly stolen our hearts!