# Llama owners any advice for a newbie?



## TheCaseFamily00 (Aug 21, 2011)

I purchased a Llama at a sale yesterday and am new to them so any advice would be great. Would it be ok to put him in with the minis? I had been considering buying a llama for quite awhile and had talked to my vet prior to make sure he takes care of them.Your thoughts and advice would be great




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## shorthorsemom (Aug 21, 2011)

Hi, My sister in law has had many llamas for many years and has had no problems, she loves them. There is an annual llama show she never misses.





... People should read about ABS when owning male llamas. That is the only tip I can think of right now.

http://www.gentlespiritllamas.com/html/articles/berserk/berserk1.htm


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## kaykay (Aug 21, 2011)

We had a female llama for years. She was a lot of fun. She was out with the minis and ate hay with them. She was very protective of her herd. We had to go out of town once and forgot to warn the person feeding that she didnt like strangers and would spit. I guess she spit all over him LOL. Yeah I should have warned him.


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## chandab (Aug 21, 2011)

I know little about llamas, would like to have one, but hubby says absolutely NOT. Congrats on your new addition, and you know the rules, no posting announcements without pictures.


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## Charlene (Aug 21, 2011)

if your vet treats them, s/he should be able to advise you about vaccinations, de-worming, foot trimming, etc.

as for behavior, llamas don't spit unless they are scrapping with each other or they feel threatened. it is NOT true that if you just walk up to a fence where a llama is standing that you will get spit on unless the llama has been mistreated and is nervous or feels threatened.

if you're lucky, your llama will be tame and easy to catch. that isn't the case with most of them. they are "standoffish" animals and it's best if you have a small corner where you can make a catch pen. once you have your hands on the llamas neck, it will normally stand still for you to halter it. do NOT leave halters on llamas turned out in pasture or even dry lot. same thing as with horses, they can get caught on things and i don't have to spell out the end result.

if you live where it gets warm in the summer months, you will want to shear your llama. if you google, you can see the different "cuts" people use. oftentimes, you can shear just the belly to keep him cool.

llamas LOVE LOVE LOVE little wading pools in the heat of summer. my llamas used to lay right down in them to cool off.

if you bought your llama at a sale, chances are s/he isn't very tame. like horses, nice llamas that are tame and well bred are sold privately. at one time, they were considered exotic animals but they are so plentiful, i don't think that's the case any more.

have fun with your llama. once you gain his trust, he will be a lovely pet and yes, they can be turned out with horses. my two llamas lived with both big and mini horses without a problem.


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## TheCaseFamily00 (Aug 21, 2011)

He was very comfortable with me about 5 feet away,so i got a small amount of feed and he was very comfortable eatiing from my bucket. I will take my time and earn his trust. I will post pics,thanks everyone.


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## ~Dan (Aug 21, 2011)

Hi






I have been a llama lover for many years, and have worked with and shown them for many years. I think your llama should be able to go out with the minis. I have heard of some intact males used to guard sheep and goats crush ewes and does that were in heat when they tried to breed them, but I have never heard of any issues with horses.

It is probably too late to shear now, but around the end of April/early May next spring have her sheared, nails trimmed, teeth checked by the vet, etc. You can find a shearer and someone to do nails by you on Google most likely. Having a set of stocks helps greatly when vaccinating and trimming your animals nails. Around here on the East Coast we have to worm monthly year round against a type of parasite carried by slugs and snails called Meningeal (sp?) Worm. They can stay dormant for up to 3 months in the animals system so you still have to vaccinate in the winter months. We do an IM injection for our herd, I'm not sure if you can use an oral paste for it, I would research it and ask your vet.

I would however separate the llama from your horses at feeding time. A llama herd is much more docile than a horse herd. Most llama quarrels are usually solved with a switch of the tail, a lift of a head, or the ears being laid back, and rarely, spitting. You do not see llamas kicking the crap out of eachother over food like horses do from time to time (boy am I glad mine are over that



), so seeing as the fact llamas have soft padded feet, no upper teeth so they cannot bite, and their only real natural defense, I could easily see a llama being pushed out of the hay pile by bossy horses.

Other wise, I can't think of much else but enjoy your new llama!! They truly are great animals. They are so wise and gentle, great with kids, and just over all great pets. So many think that they are horrendous animals that will just attack you and spit on you, but when you walk through a barn full of them, you become so calm and they are just great animals (how many times have I mentioned that? lol).

My linkHere is a great link for a web store filled with llama tack and supplies that we have done business with for years, they are great!!

My link And this is a GREAT book for any llama or alpaca owner, old or new, definatly a reccomended read, I have it in my llama library!!

Well, that is all I can think of for now. Oh, and I can't wait to see pictures of your new friend





Dan.


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## Field-of-Dreams (Aug 21, 2011)

We've had them for years and they are very fun. Is yours gelded? If not you might look into it. How old is he? If he's young and not gelded I would definitely do it.

If you have white tail deer on your property you MUST deworm your guy every month with injectable ivermectin. We lost several llamas to meningeal worm and it is an awful way to die. It paralyzes the llama and they cannot rise and walk. NO cure.

Other than that they are pretty self suffient. Easy keepers, potty in one place, and they hum....


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## TheCaseFamily00 (Aug 21, 2011)

Thinking about calling him Thunder.Thanks for all the great input



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## Miniv (Aug 21, 2011)

If your new llama is an intact male, PLEASE GELD him. This is a safety issue.

We have had a number of llamas over the last 15 years.....currently have three females. And yes, they are fine with our horses - big AND small. We've also witnessed them being aggressive towards a coyote and strange dogs, which is why we keep them.


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## LAZY J MINIS (Aug 21, 2011)

I HAVE AN ALPACA MALE(GELDED) HE IS WITH MY MINIS AND IS A GOOD PROTECTER AGINST DOGS,COYOTES,AND UNWANTED HUMAN VISITORS. STRANGERS CANNOT GO IN THE PASTURE WITHOUT ME OR MY HUSBAND, HE WILL CHARGE AND SPIT. OTHER WISE HE IS SO GENTLE AND FRIENDLY.IF WE ARE THERE HE IS CURIOUS ABOUT PEOPLE AND WANTS TO MEET THEM. I TAKE HIM TO SCHOOLS AND DAYCARES,NURSING HOMES,IN PARADES AND PETTING SHOWS. PEOPLE ARE SURPRIZED HE IS SO FRIENDLY AND CURIOUS. HE IS A GREAT PET AND WATCH ANIMAL FOR MY HORSES.


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## TheCaseFamily00 (Aug 21, 2011)

He is intact and will be gelded asap,my animals are always fixed



. I love love this forum I can always count on good advice here.


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## jayne (Aug 21, 2011)

How could you not name him Chip!? He looks like a big chocolate chip cookie!!


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## TheCaseFamily00 (Aug 21, 2011)

Lol Jayne he does



I was going for a little more manly.I kinda like Apollo also,I'm horrible with names.


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## Miniv (Aug 22, 2011)

We had a spotted male like that and we named him Domino. (Domi for short)


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## TheCaseFamily00 (Aug 22, 2011)

MINIV ,I had a appy horse named domino



. I'm glad to have some positive comments etc .Has everyones experiences been mostly good? Everyone I tell seems to be kinda negative,they seem very gentle to me.I really appreciate all the advice,keep it coming.Do you shear them yourself,clippers,hand shear thoughts? A lady who lives in our town has alpacas and she has someone come do her shearing in the spring and she said she would do mine if I need her to. Do you give your llamas treats,what do you suggest if any?


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## Field-of-Dreams (Aug 22, 2011)

Our llamas LOVE banana peels! Just the peels! Jane was walking in the field one time eating a banana and Honey came up and snatched it right out of her hand! It was hysterical!

We have a set of the big Oster Clipmasters for the llamas. Our females are wild and unhandled but our male is tame and we clip him every spring.

Our llamas have never been anything but kind. Except when I stole Ricci's cria to do his umbilical stump. She spit on me AND tried to stomp on me but I escaped. Once we were done we gave the baby back and she glared at us....she was realy the only wench.


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## TheCaseFamily00 (Aug 23, 2011)

What about salt and mineral, can you use horse or goat? I will try the banana peels



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## Field-of-Dreams (Aug 23, 2011)

Our girls just use the big blocks the Minis use.


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## ~Dan (Aug 25, 2011)

Case Family, as far as minerls go, I would research Still Water Minerals on Google. We have always used them and they are popular in the llama community. The issue with the compressed salt blocks used for horses are not adequte for camelids (llamas and alpacas) because camelids have attached tounges unlike a horse, goat, or cow so cannot lick their young or compressed salt; free choice loose minerlas are best.

Dan.


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## New mini (Aug 26, 2011)

I raise alpacas but do not have a llama. He is a beautiful looking animal. You have gotten wonderful advise here. I did not realize that there were llama people on this site. They are wonderful gentle animals and I love my alpacas.


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## jacks'thunder (Aug 26, 2011)

This is Thunder and Willson. Hubby and I purchased these guys from a local auction. We felt bad for them so we started the bidding and we ended up being the only ones who bid! LOL! They said they came from a petting zoo, but all we know is they were old! Sweet critters though! They have both passed but now we have a 4yr old named David. He's chocolate brown and is an awsome watch guard. I think Thunder and Willson were just happy to be here and just lived out their days being free critters. Now David is alert and highly active, not nearly as social to humans as the other 2. But I continue to work with him and clipped him this spring. Man, he was not happy about that but I borrowed a stantion(sp?) and him and I got through it! LOL! He makes the funniest noise when he thinks his pasture mates are in danger. Kinda like a _Whoop Whoop Whoop _noise. It's very cool to know that he'll let us know if somethings around. The other 2 just payed no attention to anything so I had never known that noise before. I'll go see if I can get a picture of Dave so you can see him. He's a goood guy!

Good luck with yours!

Here's David! Hopefully it will load! I have a new camera and I'm not sure about picture size yet!


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## TheCaseFamily00 (Aug 26, 2011)

Thank you all for sharing your stories and advice I really appreciate it. So far my Thunder seems to be really settling in.When he gets his meal I hold his pan part of the time so I can pet him,he seems to tolerate me



. I'm mostly working on trust right now. He laid down and ate part of his meal so I knelt beside and he let me gently touch his side,felt good that he was trusting enough to lay down. I had the halter and gently touched him with it as he ate,I have no idea if he has ever had one on. I really want to get the vet out to have him gelded asap but would like to get the halter on him first. Thanks for the advice keep it coming


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## TheCaseFamily00 (Aug 26, 2011)

Love the pictures



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