Do Llamas Spit? The Truth

Storey's Guide to Raising Llamas: Care/Showing/Breeding/Packing/Profiting

The most frequent question people ask about llamas is, "Do they spit?"

 

 

The answer is yes, they do. Spitting in some animals is a survival response when threatened by predators or mishandled by humans. They also spit mostly at each other during feeding. Here are some amazing facts that may be help the public to understand more about these exotic creatures.

 

Llamas get a bad rap from people who get spit on by walking up to a guardian llama in a field or attempting to cuddle with one in a petting zoo.

• A Guardian llama is used for alternative herd management in guarding sheep. The noises they make and their ability to spit with dead aim for a distance of 10 to 15 feet can discourage predators whether they be animals or human. This why we never approach a llama in a field. it is his job to guard that area and he is chosen ( usually best is a gelded male) for this job specifically for this purpose. Not all llamas are guard animals. 
•  Llamas are herd animals require another llama, sheep, goat, to occupy the same space with them. Llamas generally do not like to be touched like horses or dogs do. They are usually in a survival mode when approached by strangers in a petting zoo because they are in a corral alone. Most llamas unless trained do not like to be touched. They appear aloof. This is their way of survival instinct. Do not take it personally.
• Domesticated llamas are trained to accept the handling for their care such as toenail clipping, haltering and grooming. Ask before you touch a llama. The handler will instruct you how to best approach him or her.
• Llamas are a 4 legged work of art.
• They make fine eye level companions. What do you do with a llama? Well that is another story for next time....

Starbuck

 

Below is a video of our llamas about spitting from You Tube on our new
You Tube Channel Little Utah Farm.


 

There are many animals in the wild who spit for survival.

• The spitting cobra utilizes muscle contractions to squeeze glands in its mouth to accurately shoot venom at possible predators to protect itself. This process gives an appearance of spitting. The spitting cobra has been known to shoot venom for a distance of more than 6.5 feet.
• The archerfish hovers near the surface of the water, watching for bugs. When it sees one, it spits a stream of water out of its mouth to where the bug is sitting on a plant. Once hit by the water, the bug is likely to fall off and land in the lake for the archerfish to swallow for dinner. The archerfish has mastered the angle at which it must shoot water to knock down a bug.
• The male scorpion flyuses spit during its mating ritual to attract a female mate. The sticky saliva is spit onto leaves for the females to devour as a distraction during mating. This distraction helps the male to survive after the mating has completed.
• Spittle bugs wrap their bodies in a foamy spit to keep from drying out when they are young. The foam also insulates them from heat and cold. These spit-covered youth, known as nymphs, can be found along the stems of small plants.
• The mighty walrus spits a forceful gush of water at the mud on the bottom of the sea or ocean floor to uncover clams from hiding. This trick is useful for the walrus, which has limited eyesight. Walruses are also known to spit out water when playing around.
  
  Read more: What Animals Spit? | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/info_8444945_animals-spit.html#ixzz2AKVVD8vR

 

Thank you for visiting Little Utah Farm

Luna Llena our baby llama is almost 4 weeks old

She plays happily with the herd and there is a co-operative community emerging as a result of her presence

Hope you all have a great day !
Deborah MOON

 

 

Born On The Full Moon

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Little Utah Farm

 
I really would rather have Googled this event before it happened. It is times like these I am thankful for Mother Nature's help.

Ricky our grandson, came in and told me to grab my camera and get out back. "Grandpa says to hurry!" he coaxed. "Well... just a minute" I said." "No Gma, Grandpa says to come NOW!" I was thinkin' it was a cute pose with one of the dogs or an egg laid in an unusual place. As I walked across the back yard I felt something quiver in my solar plexus. I saw Paul at the gate of the corral, looking inside. "Deborah,  come look at this" he said calmly.

I looked into the corral and Gaia our new female llama had her back to us and what did I see but what looked like to me shiny black rubber tubes coming out of her. I was blank. I just didn't have a reference inside my brain to figure it out right away. Waaaa ! It finally kicked in. Gaia was having a baby!!! A baby llama was arriving to Little Utah Farm.

I was as shaky as Ricky, Ethyl and Fred on the I Love Lucy show when Lucy comes out of the bedroom to announce "Ricky, It's time." Everyone runs around dropping clothes out of the suitcase and in a state of panic.

This was a complete surprise. We knew not of her pregnancy when we bought her at Ron Harding's Farm. The herd she lived with was wild and free roaming around in 80 or more acres. . Gaia was  very young when we got her last December. She was around a year or or year and a half.. No way to tell. Our 4 boys are gelded and so we had no idea we would ever have a baby. We did give it some thought but dismissed the idea.

Shouldn't she be laying down? Will the others llamas hurt the baby? Wonder if something happens? Waaaa ! Then I gathered myself and called my llama friend, Christina Dunlap, in California. She owns Not Home Alone Pet, Livestock and House Sitting Service. "I need you" I spoke into the phone trying not to scream. She reminded me to take a deep breath and assured me usually nature would take it's course. She is really smart and kind with animals and also teaches first aide for pets. She continued to give me an outline of what to expect. I am thankful and appreciative for my friend, Christina, who by the way, was one of the two women who introduced us to llamas at the Pomona County Fair in California about a decade ago.

• It seems to take forever for the baby to be born. It will present itself usually feet first then head. Whew * This is exactly how it went.
• Llamas do give birth standing or in prone position.
• Check to see if the baby's nose is obstructed by the membrane. Check * The baby was breathing freely and the head was dangling as Gaia walked around the corral.
• We did separate the boys from mother and baby. We easily herded the adult gelded males into the corral. Mother and baby were in the nice green pasture.
• Gaia sat down a few times and each time the cria ( a baby llama) gradually slipped out more.
• Once the shoulders come out the cria hangs at the flank or hips and as she hung we held our breath. Then we all watched in awe as the cria plopped out onto the pasture floor.

In moments the baby was moving and wiggling about and Gaia saw her baby.

• Llamas do not lick or dry off their babies. The babies thrash about to stand and the membrane is rubbed off. In 30 minutes baby was standing and falling....standing then falling... standing.
• In the wild the female llamas all gather around the mother during the birth to protect the baby and mama from the intact males. Llamas are ready to breed once they give birth. After the birth and when baby is standing and nursing the `aunties` step away for mother and baby to bond.
• The placenta was delivered in an hour. it was interesting like a giant hunk of liver. Paul buried it deep in the back.
• Babies need to have colostrum in the first 24 hours of life which they get from the mother's milk.it has antibodies to protect the baby. Udders on a llama are so tiny they are difficult to see. Many people give the crias colostomy from goats milk kept in freezers for this purpose. There is also a wax plug in the teats which some people remove to make sure the milk is flowing. Llamas give only 2 oz of milk at a time.

Our new addition to our farm was born on the day of the Harvest Moon, September 30,2012. We named her Luna Llena ( pronounced loona yena) which means Full Moon in Spanish.

Watch Video:  7 minutes: of the mother, Gaia and the birth of her new cria llama, Luna Llena. Baby and mom had a good experience and are doing well and fine.