Light Wool

Llamas were domesticated in Andean South America from the guanaco and have carried loads there since before the Spanish arrived. The North American herd is a recent thing by comparison, and it is shrinking.

There were almost 145,000 llamas in the United States in 2002. By 2017 the number had dropped below 40,000.

That decline is the single most useful piece of context for anyone buying one now. It means fewer breeders, fewer shearers who know the coat, and a market where good animals and neglected ones both turn up.

Adults weigh 287 to 600 lb and stand 5 ft 7 in to 5 ft 11 in at the top of the head. Lifespan is 15 to 25 years and some pass 30. A cria is born at 20 to 31 lb after about 350 days.

The coat is what defines the division. Body wool is minimal, neck wool short, legs smooth. Most animals are double coated with moderate density but short length, and most show guard hair clearly longer than the undercoat. Fleece cover falls away quickly below the elbow and stifle and is very short below the knee and hock.

Llama undercoat runs 20 to 40 microns. On a light wool animal the guard hair has to be separated out before the undercoat can be spun.

Llamas are more independent than alpacas and less tied to a herd, which is exactly why they work as guardians and as pack animals and why they are easier to keep in small numbers.

They are handled in a halter, and a llama that leads well is a different animal to own from one that does not. Halter training is the thing to ask about, not an afterthought.

They spit when displeased, usually at each other. They have nails rather than hooves.

Males reach sexual maturity at around three years.

Packing, mostly. A llama carries about 25 to 30 percent of its body weight for 8 to 13 km, and llamas make better pack animals than alpacas because they are bigger.

Guarding is the other common job: llamas are kept with sheep, goats and alpacas to see off predators.

Carting, 4-H and show, and companion and therapy work all account for animals too.

Company. Another llama for preference, and failing that the stock they are guarding. A llama on its own is a llama with nothing to do.

Annual shearing, toenail clipping, teeth checks and a parasite plan.

That plan has to name meningeal worm if you are in the eastern United States. White-tailed deer carry it and are unharmed by it, snails and slugs pass it on, and in a llama it shows as uncoordinated movement, lameness, and then paralysis and blindness. Treatment is repeated high doses of anthelmintics with steroids and supportive care, it is very hard to treat, and it can fail. It can only be confirmed after death. Prevention is deer-proof fencing, clearing thick ground cover, and keeping animals off ground where snails and slugs sit.

Fencing that keeps deer out is doing two jobs at once, which is worth remembering when you cost it.

Light wool is the low-maintenance end of the species, and that is a real advantage in a hot climate or for an owner who does not want to deal with fleece. It is the wrong animal to buy for fiber.

If you are buying for packing, buy on conformation, feet and condition, and buy an animal that has actually been packed. Age matters: a llama is not ready for full loads as a two-year-old.

If you are buying a guardian, buy a gelding. An intact male is not the animal for that job.

Ask whether it is halter trained and who trained it. With an animal of 300 lb or more this is not a refinement.

Ask about the coat by name. A seller who cannot tell you which wool division their llama shows in probably has not thought about the fleece, which matters whether or not you intend to use it.

Recent sale prices on HoofnHorn, where there are any, are further down this page.