About Gina
To say that Gina Glasscock grew up around animals is an understatement. Her family had horses in San Angelo, Texas, during her teenage years. Gina’s mom rescued and rehabilitated animals in their home — everything from possums, raccoons, and skunks, to ravens, and even a mountain lion. Her father was an entrepreneur, opening several different businesses, including the popular Dallas bar, Borrowed Money, in the 1980s. This is where he first created “Ladies Night,” and where he discovered up-and-coming musicians such as LeeAnn Rimes and Garth Brooks.
After working for her father for a number of years, Gina herself developed an entrepreneurial spirit, launching P.D. Johnson’s Dog Day Deli with her sister, Angie, in 1998. The sisters successfully owned, operated, and expanded that business for over 20 years. A cancer diagnosis ultimately stopped Gina in her tracks, forcing her to re-evaluate her priorities and her pace of life. She dug deep to figure out what truly made her happy, which, as it turned out, was animals. That pivot would prove life-changing and transformative for Gina.
She purchased her first horse (and then a second), which precipitated the need for land and space for her animals, better schools for the Glasscock’s son, and a close-knit community. In 2005, the Glasscocks settled on their ranch in Maypearl, Texas, 40 minutes southwest of Dallas. Devin continued his successful career at a machining and fabrication facility just south of Dallas, while Gina started her journey on a new path.
The Road to Alpacas
Starting a ranch is no easy feat. The extra space for the horses was great, but in order to keep the Agriculture (Ag) Exemption on the property, the family needed to have “agriculture activities” on the property. Focused on this goal, Gina began researching her options. Should they grow crops? What about production livestock? If they bred animals, which ones would be the best for their ranch? Were there other options? How could they pursue sustainable ranching?
Gina’s research revealed a clear winner: alpacas. She was fascinated by their history and the story of their importation to the U.S. from South America. and studied intensely the genotypes and attributes of alpacas. Gina met her first alpaca after visiting an alpaca ranch at her mother’s request. After further research and traveling to shows and other ranches, Gina invested in the ranch’s first four production females in 2006, and Legendary Alpacas was born!
From these humble beginnings, their ranch has grown into the Legendary powerhouse it is today!
The Legacy of Legendary Alpacas of Texas
Purchasing those first few females started the family down the path of breeding and showing alpacas. In 2007, all of Gina’s hard work and research paid off as Legendary Alpacas won its first Color Champion! This amazing and extremely early success set the pace for the ranch’s commitment to excellence in breeding and showing.
Fast forward to today, Legendary Alpacas is home to over 60 Huacaya alpacas (50+ females and 10+ males), a herd of horse, a clutch of chickens, a rasp of guinea hens, a gang of turkeys, a waddle of ducks, the family’s three dogs – Scarlet, Deacon, and Bishop – and the Glasscock Family! Gina is a member of regional alpaca association TxOLAN and sits on the board as the Vice President in Charge of Education, an acknowledgement of her extensive experience and contributions to the larger alpaca community. She is also the Chair of the Youth Committee for AOA (the national industry association), which reflects her dedication to engaging and educating the next generation of alpaca breeders.
Sustainability
Annually, Gina shears the herd for its fleece, utilizing the fleece crop for products available in the ranch’s store – many of which are designed, hand-dyed, and handmade on-site. She ships out the remaining fleece for sorting and production into other alpaca products and offers an array of alpaca goods in her retail store. The alpacas’ poop “beans” are picked up daily and transported into a pile, where it matures into compost, which the Glasscocks sell and use in their gardens.
Broadening the Legendary Alpacas of Texas Mission
In addition to selling alpacas and selling breedings to Legendary Alpacas’ champion herdsires, Gina offers FibreLux testing and participates in shows and educational seminars to share best practices with fellow breeders. The ranch frequently hosts classes on fleece production, the ABCs of keeping alpacas healthy, and even neonatal clinics to educate alpaca owners on what to look for and how to respond in challenging birthing situations. Gina also hosts educational tours and classes for 4-H students, local schools, church groups, and homeschool groups.
Hospitality
With hospitality in her blood, Gina committed to finding fun and unique ways to engage more people in her alpaca journey. She regularly hosts parties and special events at the ranch, and she converted a separate home next to the gift shop into a rental property, available on Airbnb and VRBO. More recently, Gina became a Harvest Host location, hosting those traveling by RV, camper, or trailer.
