Rare Gem Camouflage has grown into exactly the kind of male we hoped for when he was born: a striking Harlequin Appaloosa with strong fleece credentials, tremendous presence, and an increasingly exciting production record.
Camouflage is the son of Vintage Cashmere U-Taupe-ia and Running Late’s Peaches and Cream, a female selected for her outstanding fleece traits, phenotype, pedigree, and expressed pattern. Peaches had already demonstrated her ability to produce Appaloosa pattern when bred to Apache Gentleman, producing Rare Gem Night Owl, a classic Appaloosa female later exported to Switzerland.
When Peaches was paired with Harlequin Appaloosa Taupie, the result was Camouflage.
Born November 15, 2021, Camouflage made an impression from the beginning with his eye-catching pattern, substantial fleece, and strong presence. As he has matured, he has become an easy and enthusiastic breeding male — and, more importantly, his offspring are now showing us what he can contribute.
His first crias began arriving in late 2024, and we have been extremely pleased with the results. Camouflage is producing attractive, well-built offspring with exciting color and pattern expression.
Among them is Rare Gem hAppy Down Under, his 2026 daughter out of proven leopard-producing female FDA Warrior’s Georgia, hAppy appeared relatively conservative at first glance, but cria shearing revealed Appaloosa spotting hidden across her belly — another fascinating example of how pattern can express itself in the next generation.
For breeders working toward Appaloosa and Harlequin expression without sacrificing fleece quality or overall phenotype, Camouflage offers a compelling combination of pattern, pedigree, fleece, and now proven production.
We are very excited to see what comes next from this special male.
If you are interested in breeding for rare fleece colors, you can also read our recent article in The American Alpaca Journal: Breeding for Rare Fleece Colors by
Clicking Here
In December 2020, Peaches was paired with harlequin male, Vintage Cashmere's U-Taupe-ia. This pairing resulted in the wildly expressed harlequin, Rare Gem Camouflage! Born 11/15/21-- this handsome offspring is a fleece monster with presence galore... one for the serious appaloosa / harlequin breeder(s) to keep an eye on.
