It should not be brushed out, cleaned up, or folded. The 2-millimeter sample used for measurement in the Laserscan is cut close to the base of the staple to measure fiber that has grown side by side under the same environmental conditions. These conditions include level of nutrition, pregnancy, lactation, and stress caused by sickness or trauma. The coat of a recently shorn animal generally has not been exposed to highly variable environmental conditions, so environmental influences on varability of fiber diameter will have been minimized. As an animal matures, its fiber tends to have a higher or coarser micron value.
Males frequently possess a higher micron value than females.
The level of nutrition affects fiber diameter results because overfed animals produce higher micron values than those on a maintenance diet. This does not mean that animals should be underfed to produce finer fiber. The safer course is to maintain alpacas on a thrifty but nutritious diet that maintains a healthy body condition to produce fiber that lives up to its genetic potential, by following the animal husbandry practices suitable for your farm's location and the advice of a veterinarian familiar with camelids. The alpaca samples included in our Laserscan database since June 1994 indicate that a broad genetic base exists in the U.S. alpaca population. A diverse genetic base creates opportunities for selection of desirable traits, including fiber fineness.