WOOLLY WORLD ALPACAS PROVE TO BE MORE THAN TAX SHELTER.Byline: Brent Hopkins Staff Writer SOMIS - A rooster rooster its crowing at dawn heralds each new day. [Western Folklore: Leach, 329] See : Dawn rooster symbol of maleness. [Folklore: Binder, 85] See : Virility crows and a shaggy shaggy /shag·gy/ (shag´e) 1. covered with, having, or resembling rough long hair or wool. 2. having a rough texture or surface or hairlike processes. black alpaca alpaca (ălpăk`ə), partially domesticated South American mammal, Lama pacos, of the camel family. Genetic studies show that it is a descendant of the vicuña. named Othello races through his pen, while Brian Weiner's 'Vette sits in the mud. Weiner's a media guy, used to dealing with some of the biggest companies in the entertainment business to produce DVDs. He's been cooking up entrepreneurial deals since he was 19, but never did the 46-year-old think he'd end up a gentleman rancher, piloting his Chevy sports car down farm roads and handing out feed to a herd of fuzzy-headed creatures known as enthusiastic spitters. ``Even owning my own business with 35 employees and millions of dollars, I feel like I'm working for someone,'' he said, trailing the pack of soft-haired beasts. ``Not out here ...'' Technically speaking, when he's treading the fields of As You Like It Alpacas, Weiner is working for someone. But the head rancher and chief executive officer, Claudia Weintraub, is also his wife, so she doesn't ride him too hard. She, too, came from a far different background before cradling her first cria, the soft and lucrative offspring of adult alpacas. Three years ago, she taught high school German and English. Now she's got a four-wheel-drive and the healthy look of someone who works the land. ``I never really imagined myself doing this,'' she said, offering handfuls of food to her shaggy charges. ``I didn't even know this was a business, but it's great.'' The couple got into the business on a lark lark, common name for members of the large family Alaudidae, perching birds of terrestrial habits, chiefly of the Old World and best-known through the skylark, Alauda arvensis. , hearing about alpaca ranching as a way to shelter money from income taxes. Weiner, who owns the Woodland Hills-based media distribution company The Illusion Factory, put in $65,000, bought four animals and figured it would just be a nice way to cut down on the money he sent to Uncle Sam Uncle Sam, name used to designate the U.S. government. The term arose in the War of 1812 and seems at first to have been used derisively by those opposed to the war. Possibly it was an expansion of the letters "U.S. . But as he learned more, alpacas turned out to be a pretty nice little business. Cultivated for their fine wool, the creatures bring in around $800 to $1,000 a year, about what they cost to feed and care for. The real money, however, comes in the breeding. A baby female can bring more than $10,000, a sum that doubles by the time she's a year old. You can buy a new Bentley more cheaply than you can a good herd sire, who can sell for up to $250,000 and can bring home up to $60,000 annually in stud fees. And so Weiner became intrigued. He never seems to do things halfway, producing yoga and self-defense videos and writing and illustrating a children's book. So he elected to become an expert in all things alpaca. The herd grew, with Weintraub drawing on her English-major background to name each after a Shakespearean character. By this summer, Paris, Jacqueline, Charmion, Portia and their cohorts had outgrown the couple's Thousand Oaks Thousand Oaks, residential city (1990 pop. 104,352), Ventura co., S Calif., in a farm area; inc. 1964. Avocados, citrus, vegetables, strawberries, and nursery products are grown. backyard and had to take up residence on a proper spread in Somis. ``It's a whole different lifestyle,'' Weiner mused. ``Having these running around in your backyard is like coming home to Bambi. It's cathartic cathartic (kəthär`tĭk): see laxative. .'' While enjoying that catharsis catharsis Purging or purification of emotions through art. The term is derived from the Greek katharsis (“purgation,” “cleansing”), a medical term used by Aristotle as a metaphor to describe the effects of dramatic tragedy on the spectator: by , he's also been increasing his presence in the alpaca world. He wrote an electronic book on how to raise them and how to benefit from the quirks of the tax code that make them an unusually good investment. And the couple kept buying, increasing the herd to 24 animals worth about $360,000. Within a few years, the Years, The the seven decades of Eleanor Pargiter’s life. [Br. Lit.: Benét, 1109] See : Time newly minted ranchers expect to have $1 million worth of alpacas, a possible segue se·gue intr.v. se·gued, se·gue·ing, se·gues 1. Music To make a transition directly from one section or theme to another. 2. into a full-time job for both. As with everything he does, Weiner figures that As You Like It will eventually be a substantial player in the alpaca industry. ``Watch, he'll be a multibillionaire because of these things "These Things" is an EP by She Wants Revenge, released in 2005 by Perfect Kiss, a subsidiary of Geffen Records. Music Video The music video stars Shirley Manson, lead singer of the band Garbage. Track Listing 1. "These Things [Radio Edit]" - 3:17 2. and I'll be waving to him on the top of the mountain where he's got his mansion,'' said Larry Sobel, Weiner's friend for 30 years who first mentioned alpacas as an offhand off·hand adv. Without preparation or forethought; extemporaneously. adj. also off·hand·ed Performed or expressed without preparation or forethought. See Synonyms at extemporaneous. idea to make money. ``And the whole time, I'll be wondering why I told him about it and didn't do it myself.'' Brent Hopkins, (818) 713-3738 brent.hopkins(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 2 photos Photo: (1) Claudia Weintraub offers up handfuls of food to some of her alpacas at her Somis ranch. Weintraub and her husband, Brian Weiner, raise them for their wool and lucrative stud fees. (2) Claudia Weintraub and Brian Weiner started their alpaca business as a way to shelter earnings from other endeavors. Now they own 24 animals at an estimated value of $360,000. Andy Holzman/Staff Photographer |
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