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Tips for new llama buyers
Llamas are intelligent, clean, and enchanting creatures and if you think llamas are in your future and are new to learning about them then you owe it to yourselves and them to become as educated as possible before your first purchase.
As important as the animals you buy is the breeder you buy from.
Visit several ranches. Accumulate as much information as possible about management styles, llama types, facilities, etc. As you visit keep these points in mind.
Observe the ranch! Elaborate facilities are nice but not necessary, more important is cleanliness and safety. Observe how well the llamas are cared for, do they appear to be healthy and happy? Do all the llamas receive the same level of care regardless of their monetary worth? Do they have space to spread out and run, with adequate shade, shelter and clean water? In warm climates minimal shelter is needed but plentiful shade and provision for coping with the heat are essential. Are the llamas forced to live in trashy, dangerous, over-crowded conditions? Does the breeder have a rapport with their animals or do they seem to be just merchandise?
Perhaps not everyone will know the answers to all of your questions but the breeder should answer your questions in a clear, honest manner, not dodge them or make you feel stupid for asking. Remember these are the people you will look to for support and to answer your questions down the road, do they seem willing to provide you with long term support? The breeder should freely share names of other breeders where you might go to look, and while many breeders won't directly malign another breeder, they will try to steer you to those breeders who they know to be ethical.
A good breeder should give full disclosures, be willing to discuss faults and problems along with the positive points, and even tell you that some of their animals may not be ‘right’ for you. Every animal has their own set of problem and faults, don't be put off just because a breeder is willing to discuss them openly. There should never be an objection to a pre-purchase vet exam (with a few temporary exceptions noted later). And you should request that the vets conclusions be given to you in private, after all the vet probably works for the person from whom you are buying and has that relationship to maintain.
The longer you have llamas the more your outlook will change, today you may think that you want your ranch and animals to look just like a particular breeder’s, but you really should have at least some variety to begin with. Purchase animals you like from multiple breeders, their different physical attributes, personalities, level of handling and training will give you clues for your future goals.
Your responsibilities
Now that you have scrutinized the breeder, they just may have some questions for you. After you have selected a superior breeder you can't expect them to send their well cared animals into a questionable situation.
Prepare your facilities and line up your vet ahead of time, not all vets work on llamas.Find out what type of shelter is required in your area. Check your zoning and make sure that you can have livestock. Make sure you have adequate fencing, although llamas generally respect fences marauding animals don’t and are the one greatest danger. Know what feed is considered optimal in your area, although llamas don’t require top notch hay you can’t expect them to eat poor quality, moldy fare. Inquire about the correct vaccinations and worming practices for your area. Be prepared to maintain your facilities in a clean and healthy manner. Be willing to call on other llama breeders and owners when you have questions or something you can’t handle. Most llama breeders (not just the one you buy from) should be willing to provide help and information for you and your animal, and the breeder you buy from just may inquire about your knowledge and level of readiness to be a llama owner.
Some breeders may have more exacting requirements, such as not breeding stock that they consider inferior in some manner. They may require you to sign a contract outlining the agreement; be prepared to honor any such commitments. The breeder may request that you delay a prepurchase exam on a female near birth so as to avoid stressing her. In this situation they should allow you to place a refundable deposit contingent on that exam, or be willing to sign a contract stating that they will hold the animal for you. A breeder may also ask that you not move a female near birth until after the event and will probably offer reduced boarding fees.
Selecting your llamas
Having done your homework it’s time to go out and select your new friends.
CONFORMATION: The animal should present a square and balanced appearance, the feet should fall squarely beneath the shoulder or hip without excessive angulation and the top line should be level. The animal should have medium to heavy bone, frail legs can’t maintain support over the long term. The teeth should not protrude. The animal should be in good condition, neither too thin nor too fat.
TEMPERAMENT: The Llama should be inquisitive, alert, and friendly, not nervous and frightened. Stay away from pushy, overly friendly animals.
TRAINING: A llama at the very minimum, should be halter and lead trained and handleable, better yet, for a beginning owner, is one that has experience with a wider variety of situations such as loading in a trailer.
RECORDS: Health records should be available along with breeding, and production records. Inquire about parents and offspring and their soundness. Look at parents, offspring or siblings if they are available.
REGISTRATION: All adult llamas should have Lama Registry Papers, while youngsters papers may be ‘pending’. Currently the official registry is the International Lama Registry. Sires should be blood-typed, and this should be evident on the registration papers.
GUARANTEES: Weanling females and stud prospects should have a breeding warranty. Bred Females should be guaranteed pregnant with specifics on how the situation will be handled if she should fail to produce a live cria within an appropriate time period. Find out if she has had adequate milk in the past, and whether she has displayed any chronic maternal difficulties.
USE: Decide what you will be doing with your llamas. There are many possible uses; companion animals, showing, packing, jogging partner, cart pulling, fiber producers, guards for other livestock, or breeders. The use will determine what style llama and what type wool you look for. The more you look around at various llamas the better understanding you will have of which type of animal will best suit your needs.
We all want to get the best for the lowest price but be prepared to get what you pay for! When someone offers you a bargain animal, there is a reason, make it your business to find out why the animal is so inexpensive. If your ideal animal is too costly don’t settle for whatever is cheapest, you won’t be happy. Try to strike a balance between the price you pay and how close the animal is to what you desire. Know how much you can spend and be realistic, you're not going to get a million dollar animal for a few bucks, know what compromises you are willing to make.
Happy Llama Searching!
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Page design by Cathy Norwood. Last Revised 12/1/96
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