Trial run

[Rock Chuck]

First time out for these youngsters. The 1st black on in the top pic is the only one old enough to handle a full load (4 years). Two are 3 yr olds and will be mature next year. The white one at the rear is only a yearling. I have high expectation for him in a few years. He's really shaping up.
We hiked about 2 miles up a trail with water jugs in the panniers for weight. We only had a couple train wrecks, mainly at water crossings. 3 of the 4 handled the water just fine. Then there was the other one.....(the appaloosa). He has a habit of taking a wild jump across water. When there are other llamas tied behind him, that's a definite no no. I have some work to do on that one.
We didn't know what to expect when we had them strung together. For the most part, they'll stay single file on a trail, but if we stop, they try to scatter. Next trip, we'll stuff the panniers full of blankets for bulk as they need to learn to negotiate trees and rocks with wide loads.

We won't have a mature pack string this year because all of our females are bred but next year we should have at least 4 mature trained ones. We're really looking forward to it.

http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n267/rockchuck/trialrun3LR.jpg

http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n267/rockchuck/trialrun4LR.jpg

[ncboman]

That's cool.

Have you checked out how they act around a dead animal?

[Bill Gunn]

Wow, that is really neat !!

Kinda makes sitting on a couch with the family cat kinda lame, don't it !!!

Keep us posted...

[Rock Chuck]

Not yet, but from what I've read, llamas typically don't react to blood smell like some horses. I have stomped a few mice in the barn that didn't bother them though. :biggrin:

[bill m]

That makes me want to get started. Great Pics. Thanks.

[Rock Chuck]

Like wild eyebrows?

http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n267/rockchuck/MaggieseyebrowsLR.jpg

[bill m]

Are these guys like camels; if they lick you, you'll stink forever?

[Rock Chuck]

Spitting is over rated. They will spit on occasion, but 99% of the time it's at other llamas. The problem is that their aim is lousy and you might be standing too close to the target. They don't like to have their feet messed with so when working on them, you need to tie them close so they can't get a shot at you. I have a couple that I can just pick up their feet and work on them. I also have a couple that I tie to a gate with 2 ratchet straps around their middles so they can't lay down. With those 2, you don't want to get down range of their mouths.
They have 2 ways of spitting. Usually it's just saliva. But when one is really PO'd, it'll hack up some stomach contents and let fly. That's the one that stinks. It'll wash off easily, though.

That black one with the eyebrows in the last pic has permanent PMS. She's the only one that's really got me. My wife doesn't like her but she's proving to be a very good packer so I"ll put up with her being a general bitch. I'm finding out what she doesn't like and just avoiding it. It's no different than horses or other animals. They all have different personalities. Sometimes you get one that always has a hard on for the world but does a good enough job that it's worth keeping.

[Altjaeger]

Thanks for the report. I look forward to hearing more.

[Rock Chuck]

A couple more things I've learned (I'm pretty new at this):
We live in a high desert area and we've been in a drought for a year. Since yesterday, we got the first serious rain that we've had in a year, which taught me something about llamas - they don't get wet. The top inch of hair will mat and it all runs off. 30 min after the rain quits, they'll be dry enough for the dust to fly when you pat them. In an hour they'll be completely dry. And there's plenty of dust as they love to roll. Every pasture will have a wallow they'll all use it every day. If you try to prevent it, they'll roll in hay, weeds, and anything else they can find. After you've tried to clean out that mess so they don't get saddle sores from the burs, you'll be glad for the dust.

Next, you can't herd llamas. You can only herd A llama, which can get tedious if you need a bunch caught. They like to play games and will avoid being caught. They just like the chase. They're pretty funny to watch because they'll run, buck, jump straight in the air, and generally show off while you're trying to catch them. The males in particular have a weird jump with the head going one way and the hind legs going the other. It's all in play. I wish I was fast enough to get a picture of one doing it.
It's essential to have some kind of catch pen in a corner to run them into - and note that I said CORNER. Running them though a gate in the middle of a long fence will give you more exercise than you normally like.
If you try to run in several, there'll always be 1 that will stop. When you go to get it moving, you lose the rest. They go in all directions. When you get 1 in the catch pen, run like hell to get the gate shut and catch and tie it. Then go after the next one. If you pause to hopefully get in another one, the 1st one will ALWAYS come back out and take off again.
Normally, they'll play with you for 5 min, then they'll just walk into the pen and game time will be over. I have 6 and generally I can have them all caught in under 10 min, but they have to have their fun.
When herding them, keep your arms straight out from your sides. Sometimes carrying a long stick to extend your reach helps, too. Somehow, they seem to see your total width, not just your body. With your arms out, they see a 6' wide body instead of an 24" wide body (well, 36 " in some cases). If you have a long stick, they seem to see the end of it as extra width in your body. It helps quite a bit in turning them and keeping them from running past you, especially if you sort of wave it up and down so they can see the end better.

I've never worked with animals that learn so fast. I've found that a lesson given 3 or at the most 4 times is a lesson learned. Sunday when we were trailing them, I needed to adjust the saddle on the appaloosa as it had slipped in one of his wild creek jumps. I tied him to a small bush and we went around and around in circles. It took me a long time to get the saddle adjusted. Today, I decided that we were going to get saddled in an open field if I had to spin around enough to puke from dizziness. So it began. He went around 1 time, then just stopped and stood while I saddled him. I'd expected a rodeo, but he'd learned his lesson in the hills.

[bill m]

We'd all have a laugh if you could video your round-up.
Do you ever have a moment when you say to yourself, "What did I get myself into?"

[Rock Chuck]

I've worked horses, cattle, sheep, pigs, and even a couple goats in the past. I can honestly say that I've had more fun with these yammers than with any of the others. They just learn so fast and are are so interesting to work with. They're completely different than anything else I've done. We have 3 bred females that are due sometime this summer. I've handled a lot of animal births over the years, but the breeding and birthing process with these things is very different than anything else.

[Rock Chuck]

I lied. I said you can't herd llamas. I've figured out a way.

I moved the whole herd to a new, larger pasture. I'd built a catch pen, but building it and getting them in it are 2 totally different things. I got to thinking that a temporary fence to greatly reduce their running room would be nice, but I can't set up a fence every time I want to catch one. Then I remembered a 100' rope that I use to tether them out. I tied it to one corner of the catch pen. Then I stretched it out toward the middle of the pasture. I worked several of them around to where they were on the side of the rope where the pen gate was, then I pulled it out tight, about 4' off the ground. I walked an arc toward the fence, then slowly took in the rope as I walked down the fence toward the pen. I had them in a reducing 'corral'. They treated it like a fence. They'd rush the rope, but I'd just shake it a little and they'd back off. It worked far better than I'd hoped. In just a couple minutes, I had the whole bunch worked into the pen. Only 1 actually tried to get under it. He put his head down and ran for it but I just dropped the rope on his head. He stopped and backed up a step, then I pulled the rope up hard against his neck. He didn't try it again.

I don't think this would work on animals that aren't broke to lead. They respect a rope. An untrained one would just run through it.

[bill m]

It's simply amazing what we can do when there is a need. Good thinking!

[postoak]

You're just doing this for the fun of it?

[Rock Chuck]

The first time I load an elk on a string of these critters, it'll pay for a whole lot of pain. I'm too old to backpack elk quarters any more.