Guard llama

HA! I bet!
My sister is now up to 8 Llamas, and only one of them is friendly enough to come up to you, but then again, she bought her that way.. she doesn't do a whole lot with 'em cause they're a pain to catch.. lol
I'd like to start training my two wethers to a cart this summer, maybe do a little tilling in the garden..

I think my 10 month old LGD pup (??) goes through a bag a month too.. he gets a coffee can full in the am and pm and he also snacks on a variety of road kill :no:
maybe I should save him some of the wether we're going to butcher..??

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Stacy Adams
Zenubi*Creek Nubians
Blue Ridge, Texas

Llamas are smart; if you let them get away with anything once, they will know it. We took over a herd of eleven llamas and they were all slightly wild and hard to catch. Once you caught the older ones that had been worked with at one time, they were very easy to lead. The younger ones had not been touched and very hard to catch. They tame down fast with a hand full of corn and they need to trust you--try to touch them everyday not just when you are trying to catch them to trim hoofs, shots . . .

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JAS
White, South Dakota

My intact Yama will walk up to me and let me pet him (if I have feed). He is a very gentle soul (when not provoked) and will go where ever I ask him to. The guard Yama I have in with my goats was very tame for his previous owners. He does NOT trust me. He got loose (popped through the electric fence) and was a SOB to catch. I now leave a halter and a lead on him.

It's been my experience with Yamas that even the wild ones will calm once they decide that they've been captured. I had my son grab one of the wild women yamas around the neck (ok, he tackled her...). She fought for a few seconds and then stopped. She was so freaked out that she shook all over and then collapsed to the ground, shaking. She was fine. She was just wild and hadn't been touched. They want to get away instead of fight/attack. The stud male took offense over us touching his women and he and I got into a spitting contest. I won.

Anyway. If you are expecting them to act like goats, horses, cows, chickens, rabbits, etc., you are in for a surprise. They don't act like anything other than yamas. They are really neat animals and I enjoy mine. They will run before you can touch them. They do not like having their faces touched. There are some really great websites about yama care. Good luck!

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Radically conservatively un-biased liberal.

http://whitepinesoapworks.com/

Westbrook,

Thanks for the info. :-) I definately agree that LGD's are the best form of protection. I figured that they would probably eat a little more than that. That does bring them down a little closer to the affordable range. However, I will probably not get a LGD right now, because my goats have to pay for themselves, and currently the are operating in the red. Fortunately predators haven't been much of a problem. So far. There are definately coyotes all around here, and I'm sure there are at least a couple of mountain lions. Hopefully next year or the year after, when these goats get back to a positive cash flow, I will be able to purchase and feed a couple of LGD's. I do ocasionally butcher a goat, and my current varmit dog has grown quite healthy eating goat meat.

Stacy,

What I've read about llamas meshes with what JAS and Gailann have said. So far my personal experience is that Larry is a gentle dispositioned animal, just a little skittish. They just seem to need a little reassuring that you are not going to hurt them, and then they can be amazing animals. Not that they can't be a pain sometimes. But then, so can goats. :haha:

Are your wethers full nubian? If you really want a work goat, I would really suggest a Nubian/Boer X.

JAS and Gailann,

I did not get a chance to work with Larry yesterday since I put a halter on him on Sunday. I intend to work with him a good bit, and hope to tame him down and train him in a number of things in the future. I do not expect llamas to act like other animals. They are in a class of their own. Maybe that's why I like them so much. I've always been a sucker for odd personality animals. That's one of the things that attracted me to goats in the first place.

Nick

If anyone is grossed out easily...don't read further!


you have been warned!!!!


Stacy,

All the parts of the goat that you don't use can be saved for the dog. In my case I give a leg to each dog and the head to another. You can freeze them and give to your dog later to snack on (leg, fur, hoof all intact and the the head, the entire head..they have no problems digesting the teeth!). One of the things my dogs love is frozen bunny heads!

I have swipped cud from a goat to give to another goat that needed to replenish their enzymes, but you can take some of the cud from the first stomach and freeze it to give to another goat later on. If you have chickens, give them the intestines...that is if you don't want the dogs to eat them. Mine eat everything and the chickens get the left overs!

I save the liver and hearts, dehydrated them and use as treats for the dogs.

Westbrook, does one hold back food (hay) prior to slaughtering?? which would answer if there would be enough cud in the first stomach if ya do hold back food/hay.. I'm assuming yes to food, no to hay.. (?) that would be a great idea to save some cud this way..!

I'll have to talk to my butcher about saving parts now.. Thanks!

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Stacy Adams
Zenubi*Creek Nubians
Blue Ridge, Texas

Even if you do withhold food there will be some left in the rumment. Usually I just feed as usual, then go out and grab dinner <wink> they always have full stomachs.

Ever swipe cud from a goat? ya gotta be quick or they swallow it!

Do you freeze the hides until you have enough to tan? oops this was a guard llama thread..sorry.

Butchering llama....same for goats as for llamas.

:haha: :haha: :haha:

They do eat llama in South America. I wonder how it tastes?

Nick

Nope, never had to try.. thank God! from what I hear, it's like trying to get something out of a running garbage disposal.. so the idea of getting one the 'easy' way sounded good..

This will be my first freezer goat, so no, I don't have a bunch of hides saved up.. but the thought has occured to me..

and as for llamas, I know a few people who raise 'em and they're all talking about the possibility of puttin one in the freezer.. kinda like us with the boys, only they don't have the market we do... heck, I've eaten just about everything else at one time or another, why not llama??

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Stacy Adams
Zenubi*Creek Nubians
Blue Ridge, Texas