Last week we received an unexpected Christmas present. One of our Llamas surprised us by giving birth to a little baby girl. I think that you call an offspring of a Llama a Cria. Anyhow, it had been raining all night and there it was. Totally drenched by the pouring rain, and no matter how much we coaxed and tried, it stood by her mother who refused to enter the shelter. We had this experience about three years ago when a different Llama gave birth in the middle of a downpour which lasted two days. At that time we loaded the cria into a small wagon and while I pulled with all my might on the handle, Jenny kept the mother from attacking me and the wagon.
This would have probably worked, because the shelter was only about one hundred feet away. However, the gestation period of a Llama is about eleven months and during this time the father Llama is not interest in the female. This all changes the very minute the female gives birth. Within less than 10 minutes the male arrives and proceeds to show his serious interest in the female. You had to be there to understand what followed. I slipped on the wet leaves and fell flat on my face. The cria jumped out of the wagon, the mother Llama ran behind her, followed by Jenny and the male. It took us over an hour to accomplish our task.
Not a fun situation, I assure you.
Now, this time I was not allowed to help. Jenny insisted that I was overdue for another face plant. So, she pulled and pushed the female towards the shelter by herself, while the eager male tried to assist her. Not a fun situation either. Jenny finally gave up, went to town, bought a large dog blanket and bundled the little one up. It worked. (to some degree)
If you think that this is enough of a story, you are mistaken.
Last night , everything started in again, when a different Llama decided to give birth. Jenny named the first one “Misty” because it was born in a rain. The second one is pitch black and Jenny named it “Ebony” . It was a heck of a week, and while I was restricted to do nothing . . . . . I have still not recovered. Go figure.
Unexpected Christmas presents should come without a face plant in the wet ground, but I’m glad you are ok, and Jenny, the crias, and the mama llamas are ok, too. If there are more crias due any time soon, it might be a good idea to find some way to move them that won’t include sliding and falling on one’s face! That would take me quite a while to recover from!
I’ve never been around llamas and do not know their temperament nor personalities. I’m glad things turned out ok, and you increased your livestock population.
Hi Judi,
Thanks for your suggestion of finding a way to move crias .
Any suggestions?
Llamas are peaceful and gentle, except when it comes to protecting their offspring, or being in heat. . . .
We also have a few Alpacas, and they are even more gentle than the Llamas.
It is a pleasure to feed them as they are extremely inquisitive and try to explore your pockets.
What are Llama or Alpaca treats? Something like Horse treats, Apple slices will do the trick.
Why do we have Llamas and Alpacas?
A friend of mine told me to change the subject when somebody asks me.
There you go.
Thanks for your comment, Judi. Watch your email, as I will try to contact you.
All the best,
Horst