Llama Life II Magazine has chosen us
as the very first Notable Lama Site award
for which we are very honoured.
This illustrated set of pages answers many questions
that you may have about llamas.
To make this page load more quickly, the questions and photos (there are hundreds of pictures on the site) that were originally on it have been moved to Page One. This current page has abbreviated answers and thumbnail versions of the picture which link to the full-sized photos on page one.
Lower on the page is a list of of the questions on the site, with the appropriate links. You can also search for a specific word or use the links at the bottom of the page to access some of the other pages on this site.
Doing a report on llamas?
This link will take you to a page that has a menu of all photos on the site
to help you to find the pictures you need.
All the photographs on these pages were taken by either
Jane or Brian Pinkerton.
Not really, but there are different kinds of camelids. The “lama” family consists of four branches: Alpacas, Guanacos, Llamas and Vicuñas. Alpacas and llamas have been domesticated for approximately 4,000 years, whereas guanacos and vicuñas are mostly found in herds in the wild.
(Salamanders and calamari are definitely not part of the lama family.)
There are photos of the four species with further descriptions on page one.
For more information see:
Fossil footprints found in California indicate that llamas originated in North America. A great photograph of a fossil llama, approximately nine million years old, which was found in Florida, is shown on The Hall of Florida Fossils web page. The original camelids started out in North America and the animals that moved north and crossed the Bering land bridge evolved into camels, while the ones that migrated to the south became the “lama” family. Most llamas now are native to western South America, mostly Bolivia, Chile, and Peru.
The La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles, California are the richest source of Pleistocene (Ice Age) fossils in the world. A thin film of water covering this bubbling tar bog formed this great prehistoric trap, in which the skeletons of llamas have been found as well as the Imperial elephant, largest of all land mammals, sabre tooth tigers, giant ground sloths, early camels and horses, giant wolves, bison, great American lions, condors and the only skeletal remains of the American peacock ever found. An exhibition of these fossils has been assembled at the museum there.
For more information see:
A few years ago, when we were buying our first females they were quite expensive, but in the last couple of years the prices have dropped considerably. Our motto has always seemed to be “Buy high, sell low” and that is certainly been what we have done. Right now llamas are affordable to anyone. I was looking at the prices of horses the other day and realized that llamas are a bargain. As for sheepguards, a dog will cost much more than a llama and need much more training.
There are always people who will hype up a certain animal or bloodline, and the prices will reflect that. On the other hand there are a number of llamas, particularly older females, that go for bargain prices in auctions and they are being sold off as people cull their herds, getting rid of the problem animals. Find a reputable breeder and ask why an animal seems like such a bargain. Like anything, if you want the highest quality, you may have to pay a little more.
They graze on grasses and browse on leaves, and with their long necks, anything on the other side of a fence is fair game. As long as they have some decent hay and fresh water they are usually content. You will often see contented llamas lying around chewing their cud. A bale of hay will feed an adult llama for a week or so.
There are a number of poisonous plants that are found in yards and gardens that llamas have to protected from. Be particularly aware of azaleas and rhododendrons. We have a list of poisonous plants that are common in British Columbia and the Pacific Northwest of the US on our farm web page.
For more information see:
Llamas don’t particularly like to be shut up in a barn, but we usually keep newborns and their moms in overnight if the weather is either very wet or very cold. The adults are smart enough that if it starts to hail or thunderstorm they will normally run for an open barn or shelter.
Usually a three-sided shelter is sufficient, so that they can get out of a driving rain or get some shade. As well as protection from rain and snow they need to have shade in the summer, even though you will often see them lying in the heat with their bellies facing the sun. Most of them seem to prefer to stay out in the rain or snow, as long as it is not driven by a strong wind. They sleep lying down with their feet tucked under their body, and the wool hanging down on their sides protects them from the cold.
Recently we designed a hay feeder/shelter, where the hay is in the middle, with four triangular shaped areas on the outside. The llamas seem to like this, as they can lie under shelter facing out, with one hundred and eighty degree vision, and not feel trapped. It also cuts down on the arguing about hay.
We have a new page with step by step instructions for building a feeder/shelter like the one shown on page one.
If you have a fast connection you can go to a separate Humm Page with all of the sounds on it, but if you have a slower machine (like ours) then you may want to stay on this page and use the links to download each sound separately, particularly if you only want to hear one or two sounds. They will make a new window just for the one sound and then you can use the back button to return to this page. (Of course, you have to consider the time it will take to reload this page each time.)
Humming
Llamas make quite a variety of sounds. The most common sound is a humming noise. A female will hum (14k) to her cria, which seems to reassure the baby that mom is still around. The crias (18k) have a softer hum. If an animal is not sure about what is going on, such as being penned up, it may issue an “uncertain” hum (51k) or even a “worried” hum (20k).
This is a new mother (27k) calling her cria and this is the cria talking and the mom answering (47k). The baby is about four hours old in these recordings.
Kahaila, who is seven months old, has been weaned for a week or so and mom is on the other side of the fence. They are humming to each other, Kachina first, then Kahaila. (39k) It is not as if they don’t have lots of company, but they sound pathetic. If we don’t separate them the babies will often nurse for a year if their mothers will let them.
Orgling
Males will make a very strange sound while they are breeding which is called an “orgle”. (101k) They will sometimes make this sound if there is an open female on the other side of the fence. A breeding will typically last twenty minutes and will often go longer, with the male orgling continuously. All of the other females will gather by the fence to see what is going on as soon as they hear an orgle. Often the male is quite attentive to the female during the breeding process, nibbling lightly on her ears and rubbing her neck with his front feet. The female, on the other hand, usually looks completely bored and will sometimes eat grass, occasionally looking around at the male, as if to say “Aren’t you done yet?”
Naturally this orgling sound will get the attention of every male on the farm, which can cause a ruckus in some of the other fields. To try to keep them all happy, one day we had five studs all breeding at the same time.
Each male has a slightly different orgle. The previous orgle was Lazo who was actually trying to persuade Beverly to lie down. She didn’t but he was certainly trying, and eventually gave up. The next recording is Conquistador breeding Socorra. (56k) He was also having his toes trimmed at the time. This is often the easiest time to work on the male’s feet as his mind is completely occupied and doesn’t even seem to notice the manicuring.
Alarm Calling
If a llama perceives a danger, such as a strange dog or a coyote, they will make an alarm call (57k) which warns the rest of the herd. In the wild, a male guanaco will find a high vantage point to watch over his herd of females and if he spots a puma, will start alarm calling. Moments later every male in the vicinity will be alarm calling.
Females will occasionally make an alarm call. The next sound is Sarah Barnart alarm calling when she saw a deer grazing on the other side of her fence. The female alarm (102k) is usually not quite as loud as the male’s, but we have a couple of females who can compete quite well with the males.
Snorting
A male llama will occasionally make a snort (10k) sound at another male which seems to mean something like “You are lucky I can’t get over this fence . . .”. Snorting is often the prelude to a fight.
Screaming
If a couple of males decide to have a fight, they will start screaming at each other and can make an impressive amount of noise. A number of years ago some neighbours who live about a quarter of a male away, thought that we were killing pigs judging by the racket going on when one male found a weak spot in the fence. You don’t want to get in between a couple of full-grown males when they get into a fight. These two went through the next fence as if it wasn’t even there. The one-by-four fence boards just snapped off when hit by the llama’s chest. A lot of biting each other’s legs, screaming, and neck wrestling goes into a show like this but eventually they will tire themselves out and they can be separated while the fences are being repaired.
In our “Field of Screams”, Pizarro shares a common fence with his father and every once in a while decides that he should be the boss llama. This is his father, Canadian Ambassador, screaming (14k) at him.
A male can really scream when fighting or when having something done that he doesn’t like. In this case Lazo was upset (23k) at having his toes trimmed!
Clucking
Females will sometimes make a “clucking” sound at a male over the fence. As far as I can figure, it seems to mean “Back off! Don’t even think about it!” This is Beverly clucking at Lazo (41k). With head up, ears back, tail up, sometimes a female will add some emphasis to it by clucking followed by a snort (78k).
Listen to more llama sounds
Adult llamas are usually between 300 and 450 pounds and stand about five to six feet tall at the head. The newborns are often between 25 and 35 pounds and would be about 30 inches tall. Provided that the mother has plenty of milk, a baby normally would gain about a pound a day for the first couple of weeks. They reach their full growth somewhere between three and four years of age.
For more information see:
Llamas don’t bite for defense. They have a hard plate on the top of their mouth, and the front teeth on the bottom are designed for cutting grass. Males, around the age of three, will grow fighting teeth at the back of their mouth. These teeth should be cut off, as they can cause serious damage to other males if they get into a fight. Go to page one to see photos of the fighting teeth and what they can do.
Yes, the baby teeth will usually fall out when the llama is about two years of age. Normally the adult teeth will push out the baby teeth but we had a two-year-old male that had somehow bumped his face and knocked out both front teeth and it was a month or so before the adult teeth finally showed up.
Ok, so you’ve read everything on our page. If you would like to read it with a southern drawl for instance, copy the complete address — http://personal.smartt.com/~brianp/
— and go the following link:
Language Llama Web Translator
Paste in the URL and select the translation you want to see and press “Go”.
There are four translated examples from this page below:
Drawl:
Yes, thuh baby teeth will usually fall out wheyun thuh llama iz about tew years uh age. Normally thuh a-dult teeth will push out thuh baby teeth but way had uh two-year-old male thet had sumhow bumped his face an knocked out both frunt teeth an it wuz uh month or so before thuh a-dult teeth finally showed up.
Jive:
Dey graze on grasses and browse on leaves, and wid deir long necks, anydin’ on de oda’ side uh a fence be fair game. What it is, Mama! As long as dey gots’ some decent hay and fresh booze dey are usually content. You’s gots’ta often see contented llamas lyin’ around chewin’ deir cud. A bale uh hay gots’ta feed an adult llama fo’ some week o’ so.
Postmodern:
Llamas don’t particularly like to be shut up in the penetrated space of a barn, but the dysfunctional group usually keep newborns and their moms in the penetrated space of overnight if the weather is semiotically either very wet or very cold. The adults are smart enough that deconstructed if the semiotic object starts to hail or thunderstorm they will normally run for reevalution of Manichaeanism and an open barn or shelter.
Valley Speak:
Recently we designed a hay feeder/shelter, mostly, where thuh hay is like wow! in thuh middle, oh, baby, with four triangular shaped areas on thuh outside. The llamas seem to like this, like, wow, as they can lie under shelter facin’ out, oh, baby, with one hundred and eighty degree vision, like, and not feel trapped. It also cuts down on thuh arguin’ about hay.
This search engine looks for a single word or phrase in the site, it is not designed to input a question.
Q&A Page 1 • Q&A Page 2 • Q&A Page 3 • Q&A Page 4 • Q&A Page 5 • Q&A Page 6
Q&A Page 7 • Q&A Page 8 • Q&A Page 9 • Q&A Page 10 • Q&A Page 11 • Q&A Page 12
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When should I re-breed my female?
Llama Body Language
What to look for before and during birthing
Llama Sounds
A brief history of llamas
Knitting pages | Hand knitted hats | Dyeing with Kool-Aid
Llama T-shirts Silkscreened Llama drawing.
New Llama Greeting Cards Cards with acrylic llama portraits.
New: Kits for knitting llama fibre hats Includes instructions and proper amount of fibre
New: Magazine write-up on Patagonia guanaco study trip.
New: Magazine write-up on Pacific Crest Trail llama hiking trip.
What do you do with a llama?
Letters and drawings from children after a farm visit
Llama Trivia Pages:
| Trivia Examples | Metal Llamas | Musical Instruments | Miscellaneous | Pictures & Postcards |
| Cartoon Llamas | Llama Toys | Pottery Items | Variations on Dalai Lama name | Llama Cartoons |
| Paintings & Prints | Jewellery | Fabric Items | Pictures & Postcards | Music Groups |
|Jewellery | Table Oddments | Postcards | Paintings | Prints | Miscellaneous |
| More Llama Postcards | Llamas in Advertising | More Miscellaneous Llama Stuff |
| Still More Llama Postcards | Llama Stereoviews | Old Llama Books |
| Trading Cards | Still More Llama Postcards | Llamas and Carts |
| Llamas and Carts | Llama Crests and Signs | Christmas Llamas | Even more Llama Postcards |
| View-Master pictures | Postcards | More Postcards | Still more Llama Postcards |
| Llamas in Advertising | Miscellaneous | Trading Cards | More Trading Cards |
| Zoo Postcards | Postcards from Peru | Stereoviews of Alpacas | More Llama Stereoviews |
| More Llamas in Ads | Llamas on Posters | Llamas in Puzzles | Llamas on Pins |
| Things made from Llamas | Pictures & Postcards | People Riding Llamas | Postcards, Machu Picchu |
| Postcards, Sacsauhaman | Postcards, Cusco | Llamas in Zoos | Llamas in Zoos |
| Llama Modes of Tranportation | Llama Forms in Nature | Trading Cards |
| Prints with Llamas | Prints with Llamas | Paper Currency with Llamas | Coins with Llamas |
| Ads with Llamas | Peru Postcards with Llamas | Peru Postcards with Llamas |
| Peru Postcards with Llamas | Peru Postcards with Llamas | Bolivia Postcards with Llamas |
| Bolivia postcards with llamas | Bolivia Postcards with Llamas | Llama Stamps, Peru |
| Llama Stamps, Peru | Llama Stamps | Unusual Llama Stamps |
| Llama Fibre Items | Circus Llamas | Christmas Llamas | Argentine Postcards |
| Argentine Postcards | Chilean Postcards | Zoo Postcards | Lama companies and people |
| Llama Stereoviews | Llama Wine Labels |
New Online Jigsaw Puzzles (Click on a thumbnail below.)
New Litle known facts about famous paintings:
Famous paintings with llamas.
Barn Toulouse A selection of some of our favourite paintings:
Barn Art Our llamas are housed in an art gallery. Art worth spitting on!
Llama Photography Lesson Tongue (or cud) in cheek.
New
Digital Disasters New camera. New ways to crop photos.
New Favourite Llama Photos.
New! Stereoviews:
3-D llama photos
| 3-D photos around the farm | 3-D llama hike photos.
Photos of the llamas and farm in Spring | Rain | Fall | Snow
Hiking Pages Llama hikes in and near British Columbia
Pacific Crest Trail - Shulaps Range - Taylor Basin
Tatlayoka Lake - Lone Valley - Warner Lake
Just for fun: Llama pages in Spanish translated by computer to English:
Queen of the Andes • Andean Camelidaes • On the camelidos ones • LAMA (French to English)
Articles from Llama Life II Magazine:
18 things a new llama owner should know • Informing the new lama buyer
Llama Book Store
There are many other pages with llama photos and information
on our Llama Links page.
If you have comments about this page
or if there are things you think we should add,
New! E-mail of the month
We try to reply to all e-mails,
but if we have not responded to you, check the Llama Bean Award page
for a possible explanation.
This page is presented
courtesy of:
Brian and Jane Pinkerton
29343 Galahad Crescent
Mount Lehman
British Columbia
Canada V4X 2E4
Phone or Fax: 604-856-3196
