learning lamas

Downloadable PDF Documents

Lamas are members of the camel (camelid) family. The Camelids originated on the central plains of North America about 40 million years ago. By the end of the last ice age (10,000-12,000 years ago) the camelids were extinct in North America. Llamas were domesticated from guanacos in the Andean highlands of Peru 4,000-5,000 years ago, and were among th oldest domesticated animals in the world.

Primarily a beast of burden, they also provided native herdsmen with meat, wool for clothing, hide for shelter, manure pellets for fuel and offerings to their gods.

Today there are an estimated 7 million llamas and alpacas in South America and about 200,000 llamas and 10,000 alpacas in the United States and Canada.

PHYSICAL FACTS

Life Span: About 15-25 years

Height: 36-48” at shoulder, 5.5-6’ at head

Weight: 280-500 pounds

Average gestation: 350 days

Birth: A single baby (cria) is normally delivered from a standing mother during daylight hours. Twinning very rarely occurs.

Babies: Birth weight is 20-35 pounds. Babies are normally up and nursing within 90 minutes. They are weaned at about six months. Crias should not be removed from mothers to be bottle-fed unless medically necessary and special interaction should be done to preserve natural behavior.

Reproduction: Females are first bred at 18-24 months of age. Lamas do not have a heat cycle, but are induced ovulators (ovulation occurs 24-36 hours after breeding). They can be bred at any time.

Health: Because lamas and their ancestors are specially suited to the harsh environment of their Andean homeland, Nor American owners will find the uncommonly hard, healthy easy keepers and remarkably disease free compared to other livestock.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What are llamas used for? Uses include breeding stock, pack animals, driving animals, wool production, therapy, guardians for sheep and companion pets.

Are the intelligent? Llamas are intelligent and easy to train. In just a few repetitions they will pick up and retain many behaviors such as accepting a halter, being led, loading in and out of a vehicle, pulling a cart or carrying a pack.

Can you use their fiber? Grease-free, lightweight llama fiber is warm and luxurious and popular with spinners and weavers.

Are they good pack animals? Llamas are excellent packers. They can carry 50-120 pounds, but are not ridden except by children. Their two-toed foot with its leathery bottom pad gives them great surefootedness. This foot, and the llama’s ability to browse, give the llama an impact on the environment equivalent to a large deer.

What and how much do they eat? Llamas are modified ruminat with a thre-compartment stomach. They chew their cud like cattle and sheep. Because of a relatively low protein requirement due to their efficient digestive systems, they can be kept on a variety of pastures or hay.

What is their personality like? These highly social animals need the companionship of their species. Independent yet shy, llamas are gentle and curious. Their calm nature and common sense make them easy for anyone, even children, to handle.

What sounds do they make? Llamas communicate with a series of ear, body and tail postures, as well as a shrill alarm call and a humming sound in addition to a variety of other low pitched noises.

Do they spit? Spitting is the llamas way of saying “Bug Off!” Normally used only among llamas to divert annoying suitors, ward of a perceived threat or, most commonly, to establish pecking order at mealtime, an occasional llamas who has been forced to tolerate excessive human handlilng may have developed an intolerance for or fear of humans and will spit if it feels threatened by them.

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LAMAS recommends that you meet as many lamas (and lama breeders) as you can before you make a final decision on whether to buy lamas or which lamas to buy. Become an informed consumer. LAMAS is not interested in promoting any specific breeders or types of lamas but we are interested in making sure that first time lama buyers are exposed to the relatively large amount of information that is available to anyone interested in finding out more about lamas.

ASSOCIATIONS

Lamas and Alpacas of the Mid-Atlantic States (LAMAS)

Membership

PO Box 252
Ashland , VA 23005
Email: membership@lamasorg.com
Website: www.lamasorg.com

This association primarily serves members residing in the states of Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina. It publishes a bimonthly newsletter, has frequent meetings for its members, and supports a larger conference and one or more lama shows each year. Members of this association agree to abide by a Standard of Conduct. You do not have to own alpacas or llamas to join LAMAS. Interest in camelids is the most important requirement. One can get either an individual membership or a double membership that also includes a sponsorship of a veterinary membership. There is a free brochure of LAMAS members who are llama or alpaca breeders, which is available upon request.

Alpaca and Llama Show Association (ALSA)

ALSA is the show association for the lama community. ALSA provides judge training and certification, formats and regulations for halter conformation, performance, youth and fiber classes at ALSA shows. A quarterly newsletter and ‘registering’ your lamas for show points are also provided. There are Regional shows and a National Show combined with a national conference each year.

607 California Avenue
Pittsburgh , PA 15202
412-761-0211 (voice)
412-761-0212 (fax)
Email: alsa@nauticom.net
Website: www.alsashow.org

VETERINARY CARE

In Virginia and North Carolina, we have access to excellent veterinarians who are interested in working with lamas. If you have questions about finding veterinarians in our area, LAMAS publishes a list. Before lamas can be brought into Virginia, they must test negative for Blue Tongue, Brucellosis and TB and, if staying in Virginia, must be permanently identified. Contact the Virginia State Veterinary Board for more information. For North Carolina, contact the North Carolina State Veterinary Board.

LlamaWeb maintains a list of veterinarians in the US who work with llamas and alpacas. See it here: www.llamaweb.com/Vet/Location.html

REGIONAL HEALTH CONCERNS

While lamas are relatively healthy, our major health concerns in this area are meningeal worm (carried by white tail deer) and heat stress. Both issues can be dealt with in advance, but can be problems if ignored. Frequent wormings, especially with ivermectin, can help ward off parasitizing by the meningeal worm. Shearing, providing cool and airy shelter, and knowing the signs of heat stress can help our lamas through the hot, humid weather. It is also a bad idea to bring lamas from a cooler area here between June and October. They just can’t acclimate fast enough. Breeding for babies between July and September is also avoided to reduce heat stress. For more information, contact your veterinarian or a respected lama breeder.

REGISTRATION OF LLAMAS & ALPACAS

If you buy a llama, you should know that there is a registry for llamas, alpacas and guanacos. This is now a closed registry for llamas and there is a separate closed registry for alpacas. If you should buy an unregistered lama, you might find it difficult to register and also difficult to sell its unregistered babies. The registry aids in tracking the heritage of the animals that we buy. The registry can also be a computer source to locate progeny, trace lineage, etc which will aid you to find specific llamas. Registry forms can be obtained from the Internet site.

International Lama Registry
PO Box 8
Kalispell , MT 59903
406-755-3438
Email: ilr@lamaregistry.com
Website: www.lamaregistry.com

WEBSITES ABOUT LAMAS

LAMAS (www.lamasorg.com) has a detailed website that introduces you to the association and its members. A current membership list and many links to mor lama information is available.

LlamaWeb (www.llamaweb.com) is another site with regional and national links and information provided by Dale Graham.

Llamapaedia (www.llamapaedia.com) is another source with practical medical articles provided by Greta Stamberg, DMV

www.rockisland.com/~newmoon/llamas/index.html is another resource

MAGAZINES ABOUT LAMAS

There are several publications about llamas which offer different perspectives about lamas and the lama breeding community.

Llama Life II is a glossy ‘newspaper’ which also has articles on training, etc but also tends to air issues of interest and concern to lama owners. $20/yr. for 4 issues.

5232 Blenheim Rd
Charlottesville , VA 22902
805-734-3633
Email: llamalife2@aol.com
Website: www.llamalife.com

Llama Banner – a magazine that deals with llama shows, sales, ‘A day in the life of a llama breeder’ etc. $24/yr for 6 issues

PO Box 1968
Manhattan KS 66502
785-537-0320
Website: www.llamabanner.com

LamaLink.com is a monthly magazine, “your connection to the lama world”. Includes short articles and classified advertising. To get on mailing list or place articles and ads:

LamaLink.com
470 Riverside Road
Kalispell , MT 59901
406-755-5473
Email (subscriptions): subscriptions@lamalink.com
Email (editor): editor@lamalink.com
Website: www.lamalink.com

BOOKS ABOUT LLAMAS

LAMAS has a lending library for members that has an extensive list of llama books and videos for beginner and experienced llama owners. Contact Beth for availability.

Beth Rowe
Forest Hill Llamas
Rt 1 Box 119
Staunton , VA 24401
540-886-0265
Email: foresthillllamas@yahoo.com

Sources for assorted lama books, videos, dvds and supplies

Useful Llama Items , 5458 Razorville Road, Byron, IL 61010 – 1-800-63LLAMA

Website: www.useful-items.com

LLAMA EVENTS

The LAMAS Annual Conference . This is a good regional get-together which also provides information and education of regional interest and exposure. An annual banquet and fund raiser with a “Silent Stud Service” auction are usually held with the conference. Medical research funds are raised at these functions. A Futurity Halter Class is held annually with the produce of the “Silent Stud Service”. LAMAS supports the Virginia State Fair Llamas Show in September. This show combines conformation, performance and fun classes with ALSA show status. It is a great opportunity to see a lot of different llamas and llamas owners at the same time. There are several other llama shows and wool festivals in Virginia, Maryland and North Carolina throughout the year. Consult the LAMAS newsletter for current dates.