Charge To All Northeast Llama Packers et al!

By Viv Fulton
Reprinted from The GALA Newsletter, February 2010

"Falling for Camelids" was the theme of the November 2009 GALA Conference. Held in Ithaca, New York, it was the annual conference fulfilling the Greater Appalachian Llama & Alpaca Association bylaw's directive to educate members of the public. Charlie Hackbarth of Mt. Sopris Llamas (now Sopris Unlimited) in La Vela, CO was the keynote speaker sharing his views on where the llama industry has been and where he felt it was heading. This being Charlie's first ever keynote address, we were all just as excited as he was to hear what he had to say. We were not disappointed. Sure, it wasn't the smoothest talk or the most organized we'd ever heard (in spite of his wife Sandy's best efforts), but you couldn't deny the intensity and sheer joy that Charlie has when talking about llamas, llama packing, and for that matter, the whole entire camelid industry. Charlie's focus was really a wake-up call to everyone, and not just llama packers in the Northeast. In essence, the Nike® commercials shout it too -- Just get out and do it!

The whole point of having llamas and alpacas is to enjoy them. It doesn't matter if you're going packing, or going to shows, or going for a picnic with the neighborhood brownie troop. We got them to be with them, to just sit in a chair with our coffee by the campfire listening to them peacefully chew their cud and watch the sun go down. So many people get their first two llamas and do all this, add multiple babies, and suddenly wake up to realize they better hurry up and turn this into a business, as it's costing them money, they haven't sold anything, and they have no time to enjoy them as they had when they got their first. Life takes its toll and the next thing you hear is that there's another bunch going through the local cattle auction, the rescue organizations are getting calls about the animals that owners didn't have time for, and those beautiful bedroom eyes are no longer soft and stress-free.

GALA is made up of not just llama owners, but alpaca owners as well. Charlie's even made scaled-to-size pack systems that are perfect for lunch hikes for these smaller llama cousins. His keynote address, and his and other’s workshop sessions, were purposely targeted to both critters. And so too is the message: we ALL must get out and DO something with our camelids. To not means we will lose wonderful opportunities to connect to something that can only benefit our mental and spiritual outlook on life. As we wind down the calendar year, take the winter months to rejuvenate, and prepare for the next packing season / spring renewal / decade, we should take Charlie's advice and include llamas and alpacas in our plans. Those plans (and subsequently "we") can only be better with their involvement. And this involvement, this connection and joy of ownership, is what Charlie was saying will keep the llama industry strong. It's not the big breeders catering to individuals that expands the industry. It's all of us talking to others in the grocery line, at a parade, at the barbershop or beauty salon, showing by example, our joy in living with those animals that will expand and grow the llama industry. We need to Just get out and do it!

The GALA conference this year was relatively small -- over 125 but less than the 200+ we've seen in other years. However, it WAS one of the smoothest run, more intimate, certainly friendlier, and generally more relaxing than many others I've attended and that's not just my opinion, but a whole lot of other folks' who were there. I was pleased to give a couple talks at this conference, as well, and had the opportunity to speak with many of the attendees. And I was pleasantly surprised to see not only long-time llama owners in the audience, but to see and speak with many who had never swerved from their stay-at-home "business plan" of breeding llamas to sell or from their show schedule, to now hear they were interested in trying llama packing or some other activity with their llamas. Could Charlie's message have really gotten to them? Only time will tell of course. Sadly here in the Northeast, the llama-packing season tends to go dormant as the snow, bitter cold, and adverse weather conditions tend to discourage participation. Will these folks remember their renewed sense of anticipation when the spring weather returns? I certainly hope so.

As the country continues to market real estate in the rural areas to those in the cities, there are fewer and fewer areas open to llama packing, or for that matter, open to hiking with any large animal. Unless the llama hiker has purchased enough property himself to set up interesting trails, or adjoins a like-minded neighbor, those who want to hike with their animals are forced to either travel long distances or to give up the idea entirely. Many llama owners who purchased the animals initially as hiking companions, changed their direction to the show circuit and substituted the performance classes for the natural world. Now, the economy, the subsequent drop in the number of llama shows and other events, and the realization that camelids are not really a get-rich-quick road to financial security, has made many people reassess their reason for having the critters in the first place. Will Charlie's message of Just get out and do it! find a resonance with these people? Will those that bought the animals as hiking companions want to resume that intent? Are they even capable? Some of us still have our first llamas, but they, like us, are getting older too. The last few GALA conferences have had questions about arthritis; the first conferences did not. Is hiking with llamas (and alpacas) still an adequate or viable reason to have them? Can the walk around a farmette's five acres (as the realtors call them) provide enough justifiable joy?

This short commentary is intended for both the GALA and PLTA (National Pack Llama Trial Association, Inc.) newsletters, so my audience automatically includes both the "choir members" and the 'congregation." To those of you who don't know about PLTA, let me tell you a little of how that organization can help you Just get out and do it! with your camelid friends. The PLTA started out as an organization whose primary intent was to set up and document participation in events called pack trials that were tests of a member's llama's packing abilities. Starting in the West, the organizers looked at the typical llama packers out there to see what attributes needed measuring. The trials utilized pre-determined elevation gain, distance, weight to be carried, and a series of obstacles that could be standardized, theoretically at least, across the country. This was all fine for a number of years; if you didn't have the elevation gain in your part of the country and still wanted to evaluate your llama, you traveled the extra distance to where there was a trial with the requirements.

But times have changed, and so, too, has the PLTA. The organization is no longer made up of just "serious" llama packers, but others who want to hike with their llamas. PLTA has recognized that its membership needs to be made up of everyone who hikes with a llama, whether or not they do it over a mountain range or on the flat area around a lake or along the seashore. The organization is national in scope; so too must their membership be, and subsequently, the services provided to that membership. We need to address the feasibility of running pack trials in areas with minimal or severe elevation gain, with no water obstacles available, or other conditions not typically found across the country, but that are "typical" of a given region. Some adjustments have been made in the regulations; others need individual study.

And what about those that just want to hike with their llamas without the testing regulations of the formal pack trials? Well, PLTA has addressed that with their new Mileage Club. This new service was spurred on by the Southern States Llama Association who, in turn, were interested in setting up a camelid hiking club similar to the American Volkssport Association® walking clubs. Basically the Mileage Club recognizes the mileage that a member hikes with their llama, irrespective of elevation gain, weight carried, or obstacles negotiated. Here's a justifiable excuse to Just get out and do it! It's a great opportunity for those handlers and llamas who may not be the most physically fit, whether due to age or health conditions, and for those on the other end of the spectrum -- the younger and beginners. PLTA provides pins, certificates, and recognizes the successful completion of Pack Trial accomplishments. They do so also for Mileage Club achievements. Go to the website www.packllama.org for more information. And Charlie's message? Let it be your new mantra for the new year. It's not just a charge to the GALA community in the Northeast. But bring back the enjoyment and just plain fun reason for having your llamas, regardless of where you live. And if hiking with them is at least some part of that, then all the better. As Charlie would say -- Just gel out and do it!

Winter Fun With Llamas

By Bev Henry

The packing season is over and the high country is buried under several feet of snow. This is no reason for your llamas to get fat and lazy. The winter months provide a welcome rest for hard working commercial strings of llamas. Most of us, however, do not have the opportunity to work our llamas all that much, and the critters welcome a little exercise to break the monotony of winter.

Crisp blue and silver days, with bright sunshine and fresh powder snow, provide a perfect opportunity for a little fun. Llamas seem to enjoy frolicking in the snow as much as we humans do.

When we lived in northern BC, winter occupied about eight months of the year, so we learned to make the most of it. Our home, on the shores of a small lake, was across the water from about fifty miles of little-used wilderness trails. These trails had been constructed by the local ski and snowmobile clubs years before.

Any time after Christmas, the ice was safe to walk on; we always waited until the first snowmobiles had crossed. On sunny weekends we'd fix a lunch, take a few llamas and bike across the ice and up the mountain trails. Packed snowmobile trails were perfect for winter hiking. The llamas seemed to have good traction with their flexible footpads and sharp toenails for gripping.

We often turned the llamas loose for a little fun. The trails were a welcome change for them, as we had limited space at home for our first few geldings. Once we had crossed the ice, we would turn the llamas loose. It was a very safe area with no roads nearby, and we rarely met other trail users.

The boys loved to go blasting off at a gallop, exploring the route ahead and then racing back to see what was taking us so long. I often thought they were like a bunch of kids let out of school for Christmas holidays.

One bright and sunny New Year's day we were heading up the mountain and had turned the youngster, Rowdy, loose to burn off some energy. He was somewhere ahead of us. We heard a snowmobile approaching and hoped Rowdy had enough sense to get off to the side. The snow was deep and trails were narrow, wooded, and uneven, so snowmobiles never traveled very fast. We came around a bend to see a young man on his machine at a dead halt, face to face with Rowdy, who wasn't about to yield an inch. The look of stunned disbelief on the man's face was priceless.

He was expecting moose, he said. For a few brief seconds, he had feared he was still suffering the aftereffects of wild partying the night before. We all had a good chuckle, shoveled out a passing lane, and continued on our way.

Another favorite winter pastime for the llamas and us is sledding. My carting team took to this like ducks to water. A child's sturdy molded plastic sled, a few lengths of plastic conduit pipe, a few fittings, and Voila! A llama open sleigh. Often we'd have a lineup of neighborhood kids waiting for a turn when we hitched up a llama and sleigh. It was a great way to meet the neighbors.

So don't let winter slow you down. Put on your thinking cap, look in the garage at the kids' old winter toys -- maybe something could be put to use. Or get out the packsaddles and panniers, the camp stove, hot chocolate and cookies. Dig out your winter long johns and hit the trails for a day of adventure. Even overnight camping trips can be a delight with proper winter equipment.

The hushed silence of the woods after a fresh snow; the startling rifle crack of freezing pitch pockets in the tall sentinel pines; the sudden flurry of a grouse exploding out of the powder snow -- wonderful ways to refresh your spirit after a hard week at work. The sparkling rainbow prism of hoarfrost on wild rose hips, mysterious tracks through the bush and the llamas' quivering noses and ears thrust keenly forward at every bend in the trail all add a little spice to those long dreary winter months. There's a whole new season out there just waiting for you and your llamas.

Hmmm… just think what fun you could have with a two rope and skis...

Bev Henry has been involved with pack llamas since 1997 and is now breeding athletic pack stock along with husband Barry in Barrier, British Columbia, Canada. Bev and Barry are focusing on preserving the old style Ccara llamas. Bev comes from a background of a lifetime training and riding performance horses, is an amateur outdoor photographer, and an artist who interprets her images in pencil and watercolor.

An Interview with Tina Shoup, Moondance Farm, Westford

By Karen Nicholson

Tina, please give us a little background on your farm.

We have 8 llamas (5 females, 3 geldings), one Angora goat, 3 horses, 4 dogs and 4 cats. The majority of our animal family are rescues. We bought our first llama as a guard llama for our handful of sheep and goats in 1998, two more within a year and then five more three years later.

Can I ask you right off the million-dollar question? How do you see the industry developing in today's economy?

In order for the industry to develop, we probably need to find our "niche," whether that is breeding, fiber, trekking, showing, agri-business, etc. Perhaps a lot of us don't know how to go about doing this. My sense is that, 13 years ago in the llama industry, there were a number of breeders in Vermont who regularly exhibited at shows, had periodic get-togethers with their llamas for obstacle courses or treks and who had generated an excitement for the growing industry. Over the years, this enthusiasm and involvement seems to have declined and I'm not savvy enough to know why that is. It may be as simple as some of the original breeders/industry leaders in Vermont moved on with no new folks joining the ranks to take their place.

I would have to agree with two points you made: that the industry as a whole and each individual farm needs to find their niche; and second, that when founders move on it is up to the next generation to be innovative and breathe new enthusiasm into an industry or business.

Perhaps learning more about your farm will help others contemplate their niche. How did you become interested in camelids?

Years ago, I was looking for something unusual to do for my husband's birthday and came across a farm that was offering llama treks. We hiked with our llamas through the woods and stopped by a quiet beaver pond. Our hostess then spread out an incredible gourmet lunch for us. The whole afternoon was so peaceful, serene and connected in the way that only our animal friends connect us to this earth and to each other. The whole time, I couldn't stop thinking, "I could do this....I could do the trekking and I could make the meals. I just need the llamas."

You've got the llamas now but share with us your background ...

My animal background… I've always had animals. In fact, the more room I've gotten over the years, the more animals I get. Now that we have a 170 acre farm, my husband would tell you that if he didn't stop me, I would take in everything furry that needs a home. In my professional life... I have a background as a registered nurse. My nursing skills have also proven useful with our critters.

So you have had a lot of experience with farm animals, what steps did you specifically take to prepare for getting camelids?

We joined GALA and VLAA about a year or so before we bought our first llama so we tried to educate ourselves about llamas and llama care through these organizations. We also went to a couple of shows where llamas were exhibited and we asked a myriad of questions from those who bred and raised llamas.

It's now 13 years later, what advice would you give to those just getting started?

Part of that would depend on their reasons for getting into the industry. If they are looking for pets, companions or guard llamas, I would advise them to do as we did by educating themselves first, then visit farms and talk to others who have llamas. You need to educate yourself first so that you can know enough to ask the appropriate questions of those who have the experience in this industry. If they are looking to breed llamas, I would probably advise them to talk to an experienced breeder who runs their farm as a business.

After 13 years, what would you say sets your farm and herd apart from others, what is your niche?

Right now, I don't think anything in particular distinguishes our farm from any other where the llamas are loved and give a sense of purpose to those who share their lives. This will change if we are able to realize my dream of running a small B&B and offering llama trekking on our farm.

I'd have to disagree. Something really important distinguishes your farm from others. All these years that you have had the llamas, learned about them and learned from them have prepared you to launch into a business related to them should you decide to do that. You won't have both learning curves at the same time — the llamas and the business! You'd be selling what you know and love.

With that said, where do you see your farm going over the next 5 to 10 years?

I would love to be able to breed a few of our girls and add some new babies to our herd. Unfortunately, two years ago we lost the only two babies we have had. That whole experience has been so painful for us that, so far, we have been unable to muster the courage to breed our girls again. So, I would hope that at some point we are able to try this once again. Also, I would still like to realize my dream from years ago to run a B&B and do llama treks on our property. I just have not yet figured out how to make this happen as long as we are both working full-time off the farm.

Again, you have gained a wealth of knowledge and experience with the llamas over the past 13 years, what has been your biggest lesson learned?

It is impossible to come up with one big lesson learned over the past 13 years, as there are many. However, the biggest lesson we learned this past winter concerns "negative energy balance.” I had never even heard of this condition before our favorite llama (please don't tell our other llamas that we have a favorite!) became ill and we came far too close to losing her. (Perhaps this topic should be an article for a future VLAA newsletter.) It is when a llama (or alpaca) can come into a state of negative energy balance when they become stressed by social, environmental or disease processes. As I understand it, the stress causes them to become anorexic (eating very little) and thus drop weight. If the negative energy balance is not recognized and aggressively treated in the early stages, the outcome may be fatal.

Many of us rely heavily on our veterinarian or other camelid owners for information and advice, what was the best advice you have received?

Again, I do not think I can narrow this down to THE most helpful advice over the 13 years we've had llamas. The advice we received this winter from both our vet and from Lindsay and Geoff Chandler concerning negative energy balance is what comes to mind right now, as it is the most recent issue we've had. We have to be very aware of our llamas’ body condition underneath all that wool - especially going into the winter months. In addition, we have to spend time observing our llamas - including the subtleties of their normal behavior. Because llamas are so very stoic and do not generally exhibit overt signs of illness until their situation is dire, we must know what their normal behavior is. If we think their behavior is abnormal for them, if we think they are not eating normally, if we think they are not as active as they normally would be or if they are not chewing their cud like they should, we must listen to our gut and act before things become critical. I've found that my gut is nearly always right when it comes to our animals.

We've all heard it over and over - take time to observe your camelids and listen to your gut instinct too so that you'll catch illness early on. Thanks for the reminder!

One last question, people take an interest in and buy camelids for many reasons and with many intentions. If you could change one thing about the industry, what would it be?

That folks would take care of the llamas they have and less rescue would be needed. I'm not talking about those who have devastating circumstances befall them and they must responsibly sell their herd. Rather, I mean those who either through ignorance or impulse acquire llamas without the commitment to care for these animals for life. As our vet says "we are their stewards while they are on this earth." I really take that to heart.

Tina, I do hope you are able to pursue your B & B/Llama Trek dream someday as I think that your passion for these creatures is infectious and to share that with your guests would be invaluable. Good luck and thank you for the interview!

This interview was conducted by Karen Nicholson of Stepping Stone Farm Alpacas in Stowe, Vermont. Her family has a herd of 9 colorful alpacas for fiber and sale of offspring. Karen writes for VLAA, NEAOBA and other livestock publications. If you have comments about this interview contact: stowealpacas@gmail.com