Success at Elderwood

Success at Elderwood Farms has been built over generations, one breeding decision at a time. What began as a small Tennessee alpaca hobby has grown into a nationally recognized breeding program competing successfully across the full color spectrum.

Today, our results include national recognition for the farm itself, homegrown champions, proven producers, and generations of Elderwood-bred alpacas carrying that quality forward.

Awards & Recognition

• 2026 National Halter High Point
  #1 Nationally Among Farms Our Size
  
  
• 2025 National Halter High Point
  #1 Nationally Among Farms Our Size
  
  
• 2026 Mazuri AOA Classic Breeder Cup
  Huacaya Halter
  
  
• 2026 National Fleece High Point Alpaca
  Huacaya Female
  
  
• 2026 Mazuri AOA National Supreme Champion
  Dark Huacaya Female
  
  
• 2025 TXOLAN Breeder Champion
  Among Farms of Similar Size

National Standings

• Highest-Point Alpaca Farm in the Southeast
  2025 • 2026 Show Seasons
  
  
• Top 2-3% Nationally
  Halter • All Farm Sizes • 2025 & 2026
  Fleece • All Farm Sizes • 2025 & 2026

Judge’s Choice

Judge’s Choice recognition represents one of the highest honors awarded at an individual alpaca show. Rather than listing every ribbon earned along the way, these wins represent moments when an Elderwood alpaca was selected above the broader field.

• 2022 Carolina Alpaca Parade, Judge's Choice Female
• 2025 Dominion Alpaca Show, Judge's Choice Male
• 2026 Great Western Alpaca Show, Judge's Choice Female
• 2026 Wisconsin Alpaca Fiber Fest, Judge's Choice Female
• 2026 Michigan International Alpaca Fest, Judge's Choice Female
• 2026 Dominion Alpaca Show, Judge's Choice Male
• 2026 Mid-America Alpaca Challenge, Judge's Choice Female
• 2026 MOPACA Invitational Alpaca Show, Judge's Choice Female
• 2026 Heart of Virginia Alpaca Show, Judge's Choice Female
• 2026 Dominion Alpaca Show, Judge's Choice Female

Awards tell part of the story, but they do not tell all of it. Elderwood’s success has been built through generations of breeding, animals born and raised here, strategic additions to the program, and lessons learned along the way.

It Started With a Sixth-Place Ribbon

Before the championships, before the national recognition, and long before an Elderwood-bred alpaca stood as a National Supreme Champion, there was a sixth-place ribbon.

There were no novice or small-breeder divisions separating us from established programs in the ring. We walked Elderwood’s Aleera Rockford into a class of 11 and finished sixth. We were thrilled simply to make the lineup. That ribbon made us want to get better.

The banners eventually came. Elderwood’s Virginia Lee earned our first championship. Homegrown animals like Elderwood’s Primrose followed. New generations began accomplishing things the generations before them had not.

Years later, an alpaca bred and born at Elderwood would stand at the AOA National Show as a National Supreme Champion. We have never forgotten that sixth-place ribbon. Success means a little more when you remember where you started.

Elderwood-Bred Milestones

• Elderwood’s Virginia Lee – Our first championship banner and the beginning of a maternal line that continues influencing the program today.
• Elderwood’s Primrose – An early homegrown champion who helped prove that Elderwood could breed competitive alpacas, not simply purchase them.
• ELWD’s Wynter Is Coming – Judge’s Choice winner, multiple Color Champion, and nationally recognized homegrown female.
• Elderwood’s Right on the Dot – Homegrown Appaloosa champion whose genetics continue through the next generation.
• Elderwood’s Rumor Has It – Bred & Owned success across halter and walking fleece, carrying Virginia Lee’s line another generation forward.
• ELWD’s Hittin The High Notes – Multi-champion, Best Bred & Owned winner, and 2026 National Invited Champion.
• Elderwood’s Place Your Betts – Proven across halter, walking fleece, and Bred & Owned competition.
• Elderwood’s Polar Wind – National Supreme Champion and 2026 National Fleece High Point Huacaya Female.

Born Here. Bred Here. Proven Nationally.

Elderwood’s Polar Wind was bred here, born here, raised here, and developed here. In 2026, she became the AOA National Supreme Dark Huacaya Female. She also finished as the National Fleece High Point Huacaya Female.

For us, Windy represents years of breeding decisions, generations of animals, lessons learned, risks taken, successes, disappointments, and constant evaluation coming together in one exceptional female. She is a milestone. Not a finish line.

Proven Through Production

Winning demonstrates the quality of an individual. Reproducing that quality across different pairings and generations tells us something more.

• Stillmeadow Farm Blizzard - One of the most influential herdsires in the Elderwood program, producing National Supreme, Judge’s Choice, National Invited, championship, and Bred & Owned winners.
• A.L. Paca's Andromeda Galaxy - A 10x Champion and producer of champions whose offspring have earned Judge's Choice, Color Championships, Reserve Championships, and Futurity recognition.
• Irish Meadows’ Crescendo - Proven producer of Judge’s Choice, championship, National Invited, and Futurity-recognized offspring.
• Stillmeadow Farm Killarney - A Judge's Choice and multi-banner winner whose offspring have continued success including championships across halter, fleece, and Bred & Owned.
• Epic X Celestial Cygnus - An important part of our multicolor program, producing nationally recognized patterned offspring while maintaining the quality standards behind the color.

When quality appears repeatedly from different dams, across different generations, and even in other breeding programs, we pay attention.

Success Beyond Our Pastures

One of the best compliments a breeding program can receive comes after an alpaca leaves.

Elderwood-bred and Elderwood-connected animals have gone on to earn championships and national recognition for other farms. Those accomplishments belong first to the owners who put in the work to achieve them, but we are always proud to see Elderwood genetics represented in the lineup. Good alpacas should contribute beyond the farm that produced them.

Success Across Color

Elderwood is well known for Appaloosa, Harlequin, Pinto, and multicolored alpacas. We are proud of that, but our success has never been limited to pattern.

Our show history includes recognition across solids and multicolors, including fawn, brown, black, grey, and patterned alpacas in halter, walking fleece, and fleece competition.

Our goal is not simply to breed an unusual alpaca. It is to breed an exceptional alpaca that happens to be unusual.

Still Learning. Still Building.

Showing gives us information, not a final definition of quality. Judges have confirmed decisions we believed in and challenged others, and both experiences have helped shape the program.

The sixth-place ribbon mattered. Virginia Lee’s first championship mattered. Every Bred & Owned win mattered. Windy’s National Supreme Championship mattered. The Classic Breeder Cup mattered. Not because any one accomplishment means we have figured everything out, but because each marks another point along the same journey.

There are still animals we want to breed, traits we want to improve, pairings we are excited to see, and another generation growing in the pastures. We’re proud of what Elderwood has accomplished. We’re even more interested in what comes next.