EUGENE – On a short drive up Dillard Road on a big farm between Creswell and Eugene, alpacas are aplenty. Ann and Mike Dockendorf have been operating their alpaca farm at 33005 Dillard Rd. since 2007.
Aragon Alpacas, complete with a classic red barn and the Dockendorf’s renovated 1800s farmhouse, has 12 wool-producing alpacas and one closely related cousin, Sunny the llama. During the farm’s peak in 2015-16, it had 52 of the fluffy animals.
The youngest on the farm is Chaco, a Suri alpaca. Dockendorf said a lot of her male alpacas are 17-18 years old. The average lifespan of the animal is 15-20 years. Her four female alpacas are all 21 years old.
Dockendorf was introduced to this lifestyle in Southern California.
“We went on a motorcycle ride to go wine tasting, and at the vineyard, they were having a regional alpaca show,” she said. “We walked around and asked a lot of questions. I didn’t know what an alpaca was. I knew llama, but I’d never heard of an alpaca before.”
The Dockendorfs knew they wanted to retire on a large acreage, and soon added alpacas to the idea. Nearly 20 years and lots of learned experiences and furry friends later, they run the farm and teach others about alpacas.
Dockendorf said it doesn’t take much work to maintain the animals.
“Oh, they’re super easy. They don’t like to get up early in the morning, especially when it’s foggy. … We won’t put them out until nine o’clock or so, and they’re fine with that,” she said.
The alpacas might be seen munching on grapevine leaves or the London plane tree leaves that the Dockendorfs explicitly planted for them.
“They grow really fast, give a lot of shade, and the animals like them,” Dockendorf said, as Lacey, one of the herd members, chewed the lower-hanging green leaves. Dockendorf explained that they only have bottom teeth on the front palate and molars.
As a veterinarian’s daughter, Dockendorf is comfortable with the care and upkeep of animals. Aside from when family and friends help during shearing time at the end of April, the Dockendorfs run the farm themselves. Farm tours and informative lessons are given to classes, birthday parties, and even visitors all the way from Germany.
The 12 alpacas and Sunny are retiring and living the rest of their lives on the Dockendorf’s farm.
Sept. 27-28 is National Alpaca Farm Days, and although the Dockendorfs won’t be holding a celebration this year, there is always an opportunity to learn about alpacas.
Dockendorf said in previous years, she has honored the national celebration by opening the farm to visitors and providing information about alpacas. She said she’s had around 80 folks visit the farm throughout the day for a past event.
This year, Dockendorf will be out of town for the Western Region Fall 2025 Conference of the Association of Living History, Farm, and Agricultural Museums, which Singing Creek Educational Center is hosting at the Campbell Community Center in Eugene.
Aragon Alpacas acknowledges that the farm sits on the traditional homelands of the Winefelly tribe of the Kalapuya peoples. They share this information out of respect for the Indigenous homeland and for the Kalapuya people who continue to live and thrive in what is now called the State of Oregon.
Appointments to visit the farm can be scheduled through their website at aragonalpacas.com
