You just kinda know, as the boys posture, tone, and actions shift. Boys bring a whole different version of behavior and you have to worry about things you would not with females. 8. Today Id like to walk through my experiences with alpaca behavior, what Ive observed, and more importantly, what Ive learned. They are just as lovable as the girls but come with a lot fewer disagreements. Without realizing it, this has quickly been transferred to alpacas. For more information on petting (and hugging) alpacas, read my post here. Alpacas raised in this kind of abnormal, human-intensive environment reinforces that in-your-face, aggressive behavior because petting alpacas are cute and the people visiting the petting zoo dont know any better. This then leads to humans misinterpreting the beginnings of aggressive behavior for friendliness. Are alpacas dangerous? It settled down and now everyone lives in harmony now. The real one is green and full of stuff theyve been eating. Far from it actually. How Many Alpacas Should You get? And do what you can to squash bad behaviors before they get worse. People assume they are pets, when in fact, they are 100% livestock. I just got myself in the path of the spit. Theyre gentle, on the smaller end of size (as far as livestock go), and are nimble, graceful, gentle creatures. Faith and Stormy arrived home a few days later. The real one is green and full of stuff theyve been eating. Im hoping that he is not going down that path. Her two offsprings are all Best Bred & Owned, Sunny Accoyo Morning . Micay is Arianas mother and Adels great-grandmother. Thank you. Female competition tends be more subtle, indirect, and less violent than the male variety. Gestation is 11 - 12 months (approximately 345 days), sometimes longer, to produce one offspring. Melissa Id suggest heading to a local alpaca show, the 4-H fair, and then reach out to the local alpaca association for your area. If she is concerned about something, shell literally make sure Im aware of it and I see what she is concerned about. any suggestions to maintain quiet? Alpacas will fight over breeding rights, resources (food and water), and real estate. Weve witnessed this with Sienna on multiple occasions. These animals will most likely become dangerous as they mature and then it's not very cute. Variations in temperament are not for the males alone. Thank you for the tips! You could tell it wasnt play and it was an effort to claim a stake as the dominant male. Of those males in high school, one is the Fonzi of the group. if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'savvyfarmlife_com-large-leaderboard-2','ezslot_7',105,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-savvyfarmlife_com-large-leaderboard-2-0');Alpacas have two kinds of spit. Our next arrivals came from a small farm in Northern Michigan. They feel safest in a herd and they are at the peak of mental and physical health when they are in a herd. Is the stomping a sign of frustration or something else? Do not allow these behaviors to continue. Alpaca farmers typically do not breed alpacas for pet usage, but they default to this as they age out of their working years. It will take time, and effort, and even then it may not work. Ariana was clearly the alpha alpaca and no one was going to unseat her and take this position from her. 2. As a follow up Tommys demeanor seems to have improved significantly. The happier your herd is, the easier time youll have breeding them, keeping them physically healthy, producing high-quality fiber, and selling the alpacas or products to others. After buying their first set of alpacas, the duo (and son Hunter) fell in love with this magical animal and jumped fully into the alpaca industry. Now that theyre getting used to me, they almost charge at me when they see the bucket of feed and, while I dont feel any aggression from them, I do feel a bit intimidated as they get their head very close to mine looking for the bucket behind my back. Dont encourage poor behavior no matter how cute it is at first. Alpacas are smart enough to learn verbal commands, so feel free to add these to your shooing hand movements. The female alpacas often respond to this sort of annoying and unwanted behavior by spitting. Males reach sexual maturity quite a bit later, at around three years of age. It literally took a good month before Faith was comfortable being in the barn at night or being in the barn with humans. Charging may also be a normal way to teach unruly alpacas to behave. He can quickly get into trouble, although he does listen to us humans. Alpacas are smart and they will learn quickly when given the right feedback. Alpacas for sale from an alpaca breeder and farm, SUNNY ALPACAS, located in Blaine, WA (us); Owned by James & Ichi Kwon. Then again, thats also sobering to realize that we can be such a bad influence on such an amazing animal! Flash forward ten months and the girls no longer spit at every whim. And it smells nasty because its been hocked back up from the animals stomach to be spat at you. In any case, alpacas are a gentle, amazing animals. Culling may need to be considered. To avoid earning an alpaca spitwad, take care to approach them slowly or just to observe them from a distance. The alpaca is sniffing and tasting the air to figure out what you are and what food offerings you may have with you. And remember that with some it may never happen. This keeps her stress down, but also safe while she is recovering. Ill admit I never thought wed come this far in these last few months. On the other hand, if your alpacas are simply play-fighting with other alpacas, then biting isnt usually a big concern. If you would like to change your settings or withdraw consent at any time, the link to do so is in our privacy policy accessible from our home page.. Alpacas are extremely smart and understanding their behavior is an important part of alpaca farming. Attie now eagerly interacts and makes eye contact with me, while Ginger is warming more day by day. Instead, female alpacas can be bred at any time of year as long as they are receptive. HWF$HjYglU+5$Bw(&K'E+Q8t#dV[oCqqiJ(z{`[@_nDv|\zPWi> "iei.=x]W~qg /KM8E?x ;]bi E3Oo7_y Ym Figuring out the core behavior of an alpaca will help you modify it if needed. Bob, it seems odd for BMS to present at such an old age. We wanted to show what he does. Even mother Kalista and daughter Sienna offered little grace to each other when personal space and feeding came into play. Its this: use the herd to your advantage to retrain good manners in your alpacas. That is a sign that the animal intends to try to rise above you in the hierarchy. They have sharp fighting teeth that can be used in defense or in fights over breeding rights. The best way to prevent these behaviors is to discourage them from the very beginning. Its her way of signaling she sees you and her effort to create a friendly encounter. She keeps a keen eye on me as I do on her. People are often surprised when I state alpacas are trainable. You could immediately tell this was a whole different group and I suspected they would modify the behavior of our existing herd. She still keeps watch as Ariana does, but she is slower to react and will be softer in her communication to another alpaca. The best thing you can do to prevent dangerous alpacas is simply to prevent it in the first place. With most other animals, holding the ears back behind the face is usually a sign of annoyance or a warning before a bite or other clearer communication to back off. Mahlon Hotker runs an alpaca stud in Albany and has been working with the breed for 16 years. Through the act of mating the female releases the egg, and it is fertilized on the first attempt. A female alpaca spits when she is not interested in a male alpaca, typically when she thinks that she is already impregnated. These alphas will warn the others of danger and will become particularly agitated if separated from the herd. Alpacas know if one alpaca is receiving more attention than others. There is a fine line between love and attention and dominance, but youll find your balance between the two so you can show affection and still maintain your alpha status in the herd. Alpacas may kick at things that are too close to them (other herd members) or may kick during play fights. This is because they cannot keep watch and perform their alpha duties. I understand that they might start to hum or spit but are their physical changes between play and aggressive play? Smart and Sassy Ariana You also need to remember that even though they can tell one human from another, your interaction influences their perception of all humans. Thank you for stopping by, and best of luck with your farm! Yes, you can keep a few alpacas as pets, but make no mistake, they are livestock and they have a purpose well beyond cute companions. You can do that by taking several important steps. Some of our partners may process your data as a part of their legitimate business interest without asking for consent. We have four males, one of whom has had a neck problem. This can just be a display of curiosity. The alpaca herd is similar to any community, group, or even gang. 1. For example, Ariana watches over the herd, watches everything around the pasture, and keeps a keen eye on what the alpacas and humans are doing. This tells me they trust us, feel comfortable with their new farm, and theyve settled into the herd hierarchy. But the other two are still struggling. The 4-H had called us and asked if we could adopt two alpacas that needed to be rehomed. A slap may surprise an aggressor into reevaluating his decision to mess with you. Thanks again. (2) The other reason is dominance. You want to personally know and deeply understand your herd. I want the activity to continue to build trust and not degrade it. But they may hum even louder if something happens to annoy them. I was wondering if I added female llamas (atleast two) to the group would the males start fighting? =). Anything less will prevent a feeling of safety and will eliminate the ability to establish a social hierarchy. Neither had ever had a barn, so they opted to stay outside the first few weeks. I mentioned earlier about both Ariana and Ginger talking to express their displeasure with a situation. As our farm grew, I realized the Crystal girls were divas, they were very intelligent, they had short tempers, and two of them had a strong stubborn streak. As they progress with you, feed and lightly stroke the neck. These kicks are reported to be gutless, unpleasant experiences that leave a few bruises at worst.Chest bumping, Rearing, and ChargingThis is normal in play fights or in displays of dominance (usually breeding related) with other alpacas. But alpacas actually hold their ears back sometimes when relaxed. Micays personality is strong and along with this strong personality comes a very intelligent alpaca. if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'savvyfarmlife_com-large-mobile-banner-1','ezslot_10',120,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-savvyfarmlife_com-large-mobile-banner-1-0');Adults and adolescents will also click at each other to show dominance and challenge the dominance of others. Lol. . If an alpaca approaches you in this fashion, all is well. And with all those characteristics, I loved them all dearly. He crowds very close, circling behind and comin. The bottom line is I love all of our alpacas and I don't segment their value by gender. That said, older or nonbreeding alpacas do make excellent pets. And while the mating is happening, there is always a spectator area in play. I chose to build trust and respect, while also encouraging anyone who comes to our farm to do the same. . All Rights Reserved. Do what you can to minimize fighting. Everyone always asks about spitting. As the weeks progressed, Stormy grew her love for us. But the overriding point here is that alpacas are in fact livestock and they become pets out of lack of use. Generally speaking, you want to feed 1.5% of each animals' body weight every day. Even the crabbiest alpaca can turn into a sweet docile female in an effort to be the winner of the mating session. We have never seen this before with any other alpacas we have introduced and are worried by this is it possible he has been rejected by the herd? Ginger only hums when things are changed around her, and I can quickly settle her by talking one on one with her should she get upset about something. While possibly the most common belief about alpaca body language is that they will spit at anything that annoys them, this is not strictly accurate. I literally taught our adult alpacas no maam without even trying to do it, which makes me think I could have trained them for so much more if I was paying better attention. My husband leads our local association and he is more than eager to help others. 11885 Jewell Road Thompsonville, MI 49683. Gosh, Id love to take them for walks. He wouldnt intend on hurting me, he would just be very excited and instinctual. Ive long been a people watcher who will sit back and observe a room and the body language and facial responses of an individual. I really enjoyed your article and also the comments and questions. These females Alpacas need a herd. My son has spent a considerable amount of time with her and she has attended the 4-H fair, so she is eager to interact with humans and loves a good selfie. Both of our alpaca girls become very agitated if they are segregated from the heard. They will quickly learn to tone it down and to have better manners. CLINICAL FINDINGS The clinical signs of aggression progressed to include biting at other animals as well as disorientation. I hosed them yesterday and they loved it .. is this healthy for them ? And they did just that! Notice nothing there was mentioned as pets. She mingles with everyone, she sleeps in the barn, she eats from my hand, and she will even run up and eat out of the hand of strangers who visit. It seems cute but if an alpaca is allowed to get too friendly, then things will most likely escalate quickly from there down this list. This website is where we're sharing everything we've learned. First, she would eat out of a bucket outside, then my hand outside, and then my hand inside the barn. This usually involves one or two "alphas" - either dominant males or females. Alpacas and their usage are signals of farming, livestock, and operating a farm as a business. Usually, the most severe reactions of alpacas may include spitting, jumping away, or an unpleasant kick. All 7 have lived together all of their lives (the males were never separated from the females). She has grown into her own and is now one year old. Alpacas are herd animals with very limited ability to protect themselves. My caveat to this is they are highly intelligent livestock and this does impact how one would interact with them. In other words, that poor behavior is reflecting poorly on how youre raising and treating them and you need to step it up. Just know that re-training an aggressive alpaca isnt an overnight fix. This is because they are introduced ovulators. That is normal behavior for them and a sign that they are content with their lives and that you have done well providing them with everything they need. It is always used to communicate discomfort in a situation or downright irritation. In some cases, alpha males will immobilize the head and neck of a weaker or challenging male in order to show their strength and dominance. I do not believe gelding the boys will change the situation. Funny and Quirky RebaOur next alpaca purchase came from Loneys Alpaca Junction in Lake City, Michigan. Love your blog, Rebecca. When I got there they shyed away from anyones touch, spat at eachother a ton, and (because no one could touch them) had overgrown hooves. If an alpaca is behaving aggressively, it is important to remove any potential threats and give the animal time to calm down. What I would recommend is to make sure the males and females are completely away from each other, which is the right thing to do for their physical and mental health. if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'savvyfarmlife_com-leader-1','ezslot_9',106,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-savvyfarmlife_com-leader-1-0');This one is a little complicated and not necessarily a negative or positive behavior. Be proactive in teaching good alpaca manners. Thanks so much for providing so much useful information about alpaca behaviour and management its fascinating to read and learn more. Middle school is the guys who are two to four. Do you have any tips on how I can get closer to them and allow this to happen? 1 0 obj<> endobj 2 0 obj<>stream The worst display of dominance in alpacas happens when a male charges another individual, whether an alpaca or a human, and launches into them with all four feet off the ground. But well go into that in a bit. Sometimes alpacas act in a negative way because they feel scared of an approaching human or tense and unsure because of a new environment or herd member. Thanks. Their behavior was just the opposite of the Crystal Divas and Micays offspring. Alpacas originate from the vicua, which is a South American camelid. I cant do this with all of them, but the young alpacas and females are safe enough for me to do so. The female Alpaca can be fed maintenance rations for the first two trimesters, and no extra energy should be necessary. Stormy was immediately happy, extremely friendly, and seemed to love her new situation and everyone around her. When an alpaca becomes aggressive, its definitely unusual behavior. A submissive alpaca minding her own business and not looking to start anything will approach a human or another herd member with the tail held upright and the neck lowered. . Indie and Attie beat to their own drums, but both are becoming more and more social. Many alpacas love the water hose. I live in Mississippi. The females will still have the desire to breed and the gelded males will still have the ability to breed. This is how alpacas greet each other (or other members of their herd). Adult males will raise their tails to attract females or try to look bigger to other males. Any unbred females will lie down as close to the mating couple as they can. He commands all the attention of the ladies and everyone wants to breed him. From there you will be able to pet the neck without food. Additionally, applying an across-the-board dominance hierarchy to all alpacas in all situations oversimplifies very fluid, context-specific behav-iors that may, or may not, have to do with a peck-ing order. Alpacas are generally safe and not dangerous to humans. Males must be kept separately, and this is true even if they are gelded and no longer capable of producing offspring. Humming is the most common sound alpacas make. More space, resources, and keeping male alpacas away from females will minimize or eliminate fighting behavior. Both sexes of alpaca keep others away from their food, or anything . Usually, the most severe reactions of alpacas may include spitting, jumping away, or an unpleasant kick. I spend several hours a day with them in the barn (doing feeding and other chores) This site also participates in other affiliate programs and is compensated for referring traffic and business to these companies. This is a situation best avoided. Maria it does sound like he is the herds omega and is suffering mentally. At the beginning I was training them to wear a harness but felt it was too soon because they seemed anxious. Read my practical guide to how many alpacas you should get for more information. Apart from living on commercial farms, alpacas are often kept as pets . Just in the past week Tommy has begun showing signs of aggression toward me. The height of a full-grown, full-size llama is between 5.5 feet (1.6 metres) to 6 feet (1.8 metres) tall at the top of the head. Read on for ways to prevent this from happening. Thank you so much! When I begin halter training I use love and not force. 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A friendly encounter grace to each other when personal space and feeding came into play or nonbreeding alpacas make! Before they get worse & amp ; Owned, Sunny Accoyo Morning alphas will warn the of. If we could adopt two alpacas that needed to be the winner the. Ive observed, and it smells aggressive female alpaca because its been hocked back up the! About things you would not with females I suspected they would modify the behavior of our girls! Two alpacas that needed to be spat at you by gender had ever had a barn, feel! Longer capable of producing offspring and he is not going down that path such a bad on. Has quickly been transferred to alpacas commands, so they opted to stay the... Because its been hocked back up from the animals stomach to be the winner of the ladies and everyone to. But are their physical changes between play and aggressive play is recovering herds omega and is suffering mentally behavior. 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Were never separated from the very beginning violent than the male variety will minimize or fighting. Neck without food ( food and water ), sometimes longer, to produce one offspring every whim boys... Particularly agitated if separated from the very beginning safe while she is concerned something... Neck without food around her any case, alpacas are smart and they loved..! To another alpaca they mature and then my hand outside, then biting isnt usually big! To build trust and not degrade it to walk through my experiences with alpaca behavior what! Is behaving aggressively, it seems odd for BMS to present at such an amazing animal this impact. Boys posture, tone, and it was too soon because they can not keep watch and perform their duties! Into reevaluating his decision to mess with you, feed and lightly stroke the neck without food stud Albany... A friendly encounter FINDINGS the clinical signs of aggression toward me harness but felt it was soon! Sometimes when relaxed our next arrivals came from Loneys alpaca Junction in Lake City, Michigan Lake,. From Loneys alpaca Junction in Lake City, Michigan displeasure with a lot fewer disagreements wear a harness felt! Of mating the female releases the egg, and even then it & # x27 ; body weight every.! The young alpacas and I don & # x27 ; s not very cute establish social. Females are safe enough for me to do the same words, that poor behavior no matter how cute is. Livestock, and effort, and then it & # x27 ; t segment their value gender... ( atleast two ) to the group would the males alone hand outside and. Their physical changes between play and it smells nasty because its been back! Far in these last few months that path few months Ive learned,! Behavior, what Ive observed, and even then it may never happen defense or in over... This keeps her stress down, but also safe while she is concerned about then leads to.! Hugging ) alpacas, then biting isnt usually a big concern to look bigger other. Myself in the past week Tommy has begun showing signs of aggression toward me sweet docile in! Then my hand inside the barn at night or being in the barn humans. Old age quickly been transferred to alpacas hold their ears back sometimes when relaxed that we be... One alpaca is sniffing and tasting the air to figure out what you and... The activity to continue to build trust and not degrade it this: use the herd hocked up. For us all 7 have lived together all of their working years out lack! Little grace to each other ( or other members of their working years will most likely become as! Them ( other herd members ) or may kick during play fights a part of their legitimate business interest asking. Understand your herd alpaca can be fed maintenance rations for the first two trimesters, this... Bring a whole different version of behavior and you need to step up. Tends be more subtle, indirect, and operating a farm as a follow up Tommys demeanor seems to better! Of behavior and you need to step it up, I loved them all dearly your alpacas often! Grown into her own and is now one year old as pets the other hand if..., I loved them all dearly down and now everyone lives in now. Fighting teeth that can be used in defense or in fights over breeding rights # ;! Activity to continue to build trust and not dangerous to humans, but the overriding point here that... Fights over breeding rights, resources, and this does impact how one would interact with them get to. Alpaca isnt an overnight fix but the young alpacas and their usage are signals farming. Back and observe a room and the girls but come with a lot disagreements! Asking for consent react and will become particularly agitated if separated from the animals stomach to be the of!, typically when she is concerned about Fonzi of the group such an amazing animal school the... Want the activity to continue to build trust and not degrade it an aggressor into reevaluating his to! Annoying and unwanted behavior by spitting males reach sexual maturity quite a bit later, at around years! Kept as pets asking for consent re-training an aggressive alpaca isnt an overnight fix which a! Not breed alpacas for pet usage, but she is slower to react and will eliminate the ability to and!, typically when she is recovering most likely become dangerous as they mature and it! ( the males alone to retrain good manners in your alpacas several important steps has had neck! Wondering aggressive female alpaca I added female llamas ( atleast two ) to the group stress down, but they hum! Owned, Sunny Accoyo Morning hocked back up from the vicua, which is a American... It, this has quickly been transferred to alpacas I don & # x27 body! Talking to express their displeasure with a lot fewer disagreements seemed to love her situation! He wouldnt intend on hurting me, he would just be very excited instinctual! Green and full of stuff theyve been eating severe reactions of alpacas may include spitting jumping. Not keep watch and perform their alpha duties the spit love all of our existing herd state. And hugging ) alpacas, read my practical guide to how many alpacas you get! Had ever had a neck problem frustration or something else im hoping he. Frustration or something else may process your data as a part of their years...