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Suggestions from Texas llama breeders

Contributed by Karen Conyngham, Barton Creek Llama Farm

Suggestions from Virginia llama breeders

Contributed by Dale Graham, Llamarada

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Texas during hot, humid weather

• Avoid stressful situations such as prolonged training, breeding, and hauling unless absolutely necessary.
• Plan your breeding schedule so that births do not occur during hot months. Not only does this cause trouble for mother llamas, but also for the newborns, who can't control their body temperature efficiently yet.
• Know your llamas! Each animal is an individual - recognize the very early signs of heat stress they may be giving you.
• Shear, Shear, Shear! Learn to spin; sell the cleaned fiber to handspinners; put out guard hair for birds to use in building nests in spring; mulch your garden with it; JUST DO IT ! !
• Provide as much shade as possible. Tree shade is great but if not available, then put up shade cloth or build a cover for the llamas' favorite resting spot.
• Provide additional cooling by using large fans (29" or larger), evaporative coolers, pits or areas filled with sand that can be wetted down with cool water.
• Provide ample fresh water for llamas to drink. Supplement it with electrolytes (1 tsp. per gallon). Apple and cherry flavored electrolytes are now available (ElectroDex (TM) makes both).
• Llamas may like to stand in water to cool off; provide a child's wading pool, access to a stream, even a sprinkler attached to a hose and water timer (use a circular sprinker and low pressure to avoid getting anything more than their tummy, legs and feet wet). Misters should be used carefully; a blanket of wet wool will make your llama more uncomfortable than he was to start with.
• Air conditioned barns are not unheard of. At least one room of a large llama facilitiy should have an air conditioner for treating severe heat stress or helping ill animals until the vet arrives. However, llamas that become accustomed to AC must be kept in it for the duration of the hot weather.
• Evaporative coolers are a good alternative to AC. They can drop the temperature in their immediate vicinity by 15-20 degrees and are no more costly to run than large fans.
• Feed your llamas properly and provide mineral and vitamin supplements. In Texas, we feed at dusk to allow the llamas to digest during the cooler, night-time hours. Extra vitamin E is provided along with mineral supplements developed to guard against heat stress. Don't feed "hot" foods such as alfalfa or any high protein supplements during the summer.Note that Southern veterinarians now suggest feeding supplements during the summer months, because a llama will not move around while the air is hot, and thus cannot eat enough grass to feed itself on grass alone. Once a llama gets hungry enough, it may try to graze when this can cause heat exposure. DEG
• Worm at least quarterly. Every other month during warm and rainy seasons may be better - check with your vet! (That is, a healthy llama withstands any kind of stress better!)
• Don't let your llamas get fat! Physically fit animals fare better in extreme temperatures than overweight or thin animals.
• On very hot, humid days, keep an eye on your animals. Check them several times a day, or arrange for a friend or neighbor to do so.
• Signs of Trouble: not chewing cud, drooling, open-mouth breathing, staggering gait, unwilling or unable to stand, will not come to feed. Take the llama's temperature and begin cooling treatments immediately. Normal temperature for an adult llama is 99.5F - 101.5 F. Fever is over 105 F.
• Have a vet and be prepared to call her/him. Have the phone number readily available.

Sources of additional information:

Baum, Karen: "Heat Stress-Prevention and Treatment"; ILA Conference Proceedings 1990; pp F-53-55.
Fowler, Murray E. DVM: "Hyperthermia in Llamas and Alpacas"; Veterinary Clinics of N. America: Food Animal Practice; vol. 10, #2, July 1994; pp 309-18
Rotter, Dottie: Llamas Can Beat the Heat: a Book of Texas Cooling Techniques c. 1991 Pub. R&R Press, 1037 Hidden Hills Dr., Dripping Springs, TX 78620

Virginia during hot, humid weather

• Shear them. The very best shearing takes off everything except the tail fiber (they need that tail fiber for fly flicking). However, many breeders prefer to leave on neck wool, as a llama looks pretty funny without its neck wool.
• Some shearing is better than none, and in some cases, you will see llamas that just have a "barrel cut".
• Put cool materials down where your llamas like to bed down (pea gravel, sand).
• Set up a sprinkler system.
• Put LARGE fans in your barn.
• Provide an area with lots of air circulation. One breeder here in Virginia trucked in a bunch of pea gravel and put it under some large trees on a hill. This created a very cool area to lie down where there is a good breeze most days.
• It is better to keep llamas in an area that is high and airy, even if it is smaller than a lower area with less air cirulation.
• Provide a place for them to get their feet and legs wet, like a stream or a wading pool. While not all llamas will take advantage of this, some really enjoy it.
• Make sure their feed has adequate amounts of selenium and vitamin E. Discuss this with your veterinarian (some parts of the country have excellent amounts of selenium -- others are deficient, as is Virginia, so we have to add selenium)
• Consider buying feeds that contain other additives for preventing summer stress: thiamine, additives that reduce the "heat of digestion", etc.