One of the great things about the Alpaca Industry is the alpaca competitions that occur throughout the year across the United States. Some of these competitions happen at county and state fairs and are focused primarily on our youth. 4H and FFA participation by children with alpaca projects are common and families can seek out youth groups involved with alpacas by contacting their county extension offices.

The Alpaca Owners Association has an extensive show system with well trained judges that are certified by the association and must attend clinics and testing to retain their certification. This ensures a highest competency in judging.

There are several categories in which exhibitors may compete:

• Halter Shows where the alpaca is led into a ring, observed in motion, and then examined by the judge and placed relative to the other competitors. Both gait, conformation, and fleece are evaluated by the judge
• Fleece Shows where the fleece that was shorn from an alpaca is judged
• Walking Fleece Shows where the alpaca is brought to the judge, but only the fleece is judged. Walking Fleece Shows fall under the umbrella of Fleece Shows.
• Handcrafter's Spin-Off Competitions where a sample of fleece is submitted, spun into yarn by an AOA certified Spin-Off Judge and evaluated on criteria relevant to the production of finished goods.
• Cottage Fleece competitions are done in conjunction with Spin-Off competitions with the fleece samples evaluated on characteristics that are valued by hand spinners, hand processors, and small scale mill operations.
• Auxiliary Fleece Competitions which are an opportunity for fiber arts and hand-spun or mill spun skeins to be judged
• Performance shows are events where the alpaca and its handler are judged in how well they interact. There are classes where alpacas are led over and around obstacles and classes in showmanship where the focus is mostly on the handler and how well they manage themselves and their animal.

Most county fairs primarily have the Performance classes for youth. Alpaca shows across the United States that are not part of a fair, are usually organized by affiliates associated with the Alpaca Owners Association (AOA) and use the AOA Show System Handbook for conducting their shows.

You can view the entire Handbook by CLICKING HERE.