Show Judges

 

Amanda VandenBosch

Amanda VandenBosch has been raising alpacas, both huacaya and suris for 32 + years along with her family at Flying Dutchman Alpacas, LLC in Bend, Oregon, USA. Amanda travels worldwide as an International Alpaca Judge, judging and teaching on all aspects of alpacas, fiber, and end products. She has been active with many organizations and is co-author of "Art & Science of Alpaca Judging" and "Innovative Fleece Assessment Judging System" along with many research projects related to the selection, health, and well-being of the alpaca. Proud co-hosts of 16th Annual Education with a Destination Event and Stanford Livestock International, Ltd export services complimented with alpaca retail store Alpaca by Design. Amanda is passionately involved with the non-profit organization Quechua Benefit in Peru.

Amanda is an alpaca enthusiast in all aspects from selective breeding decisions and raising of high-quality alpacas to a passionate educator known for her interactive clinics and sharing of knowledge with fellow alpaca enthusiasts worldwide.

​

Diana Timmerman

Diana Timmerman is an AOA Halter, Senior Fleece Judge, Judge Trainer, and Instructor in the United States. Diana received her Certification as an International Alpaca Judge trained in Peru at the International Alpaca Judging School (IAJS) in 2004. She has actively judged in Canada and the United States since 2001. Diana has over 35 years of experience breeding, showing, and raising alpacas and other breeds of livestock.

Along with her husband, Tim, they established Aussie Acres Alpacas in 1994. They became known for their ability to successfully produce grey and sought-after Huacaya breeding stock. Both Diana and Tim were honored to share those grey genetics worldwide. Diana’s love for alpacas and her commitment to fleece education was the inspiration that led to the purchase of The Alpaca Breeders Fiber School, LLC. Diana also serves as an alpaca industry consultant, educator, Fiber Sorter, Grader and, continues working on her Wool Classer status and is always available for consultations.

Diana currently serves on the AOA Judges Advisory Committee (JAC), AOA Judge Training and Certification Committee (JTCC) as Liaison and served on the Advisory Board for the Mid-America Alpaca Foundation, the Board of Directors of Alpaca Breeders of the Rockies and past leader of the Leading Llamas and Alpacas 4-H Club. 

Diana was born in Germany. At eight years of age, she moved to Colorado with her parents. She earned an Associate Degree in Occupational Studies with an emphasis on Medical Billing and Coding and maintains her Paralegal and Medical Billing and Coding certifications. Prior to acquiring alpacas Diana was employed as a Paralegal for the Weld County District Attorney. She has one son, Jeff, and grandson, Alden Ray.

​

Heather Thordarson 

Heather Thordarson is originally from Portland, Oregon but now resides in beautiful Central Oregon with her husband Kristian and two sons, Kolbe and Hunter.  Heather has an extensive background in animal care and training that began with managing a large-scale boarding and training facility for dogs. After that, she worked her way up the ranks at Guide Dogs for the Blind in Boring, Oregon, before a recurring injury forced her to step away from a fulfilling career training both the dogs and visually-impaired clients.

After marrying her husband in 2013, they opened a 30-stall boarding and training facility for horses on their property and shortly thereafter, purchased their first five alpacas. Heather quickly realized that raising alpacas aligned much better with her family’s lifestyle after having her sons in 2015 and 2018 and they began to pursue building an alpaca herd that would be competitive at a national level. While taking a deep dive into everything alpaca-related, Heather realized she had a knack for parsing out individual traits and selecting and breeding high quality animals. This led her to start pursuing an apprenticeship in the AOA Judge’s Certification Training and she was accepted into the program in 2023. 

When Heather isn’t working on the farm or at shows, she enjoys travel, reading, and cooking for her family and friends. She has also volunteered at several dog rescues as an adoption coordinator, went to China to rescue dogs from slaughterhouses and has fostered and adopted several rescue dogs with challenging personalities. She also loves anything to do with fiber arts.

​​

​​Show Photographer

 

Paulis Musteikis from Paulius Musteikis Photography is a professional portrait and headshot photographer based in Madison, Wisconsin. He has been a full-time freelance photographer for 10 years. Paulis enjoys working with and photographing people. He has a curious mind and likes to push the limits and break the rules. Originally from Lithuania, Paulius has lived in Wisconsin for more than 20 years.

​

​​