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Llamas are very social, so our llamas are happy living together. It is such a joy to hear them humming to each other, communicating in their own way. Some of them will act aloof, but their curiosity gets the better of them when visitors talk to them.

Llamas are members of the Camelid (camel) family. Ten million years ago the first camelids lived in the central plains of North America, not too far from GraysLland Acres. Some of them headed to South America about 2.5 million years ago, where their descendants became llamas. Others relocated to the Middle East, where their descendants became camels. The end of the Ice Age signaled extinction for the camelid in North America.

Llamas were domesticated in Peru over 5,000 years ago, making them one of the world's oldest domestic animals. They worked for the herdsmen as beasts of burden, and also provide meat, wool, hides for shelter, manure pellets (or llama beans) for fuel, and even sacrificial offerings. Llamas are still important to the agricultural economy of the remote highlands of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile and Peru. There are about 7 million llamas and alpacas in South America.

In the United States and Canada there are an estimated 125,000 llamas and 11,000 alpacas, making the llama a viable agricultural entity. Some llamas are kept as guard and companion animals, but the main products of llamas in North America are fertilizer (llama beans) and wool. The wool of llamas is very fine and soft, comparable in fineness to chinchilla and merino wool.

Myra holding llama yarn

I shear my llamas in the spring, for two reasons. The most important reason for the llamas is that it keeps them cooler in the Oklahoma summers. The important reason for me is that when I shear them I get this wonderful fiber that I can make into yarn and then I can knit wonderful hats and scarves and sweaters from my own llamas' wool.

Even without all their wool, llamas need to cool off sometimes in the summer. Since I do not have a pond for my llamas to get in to when they need to cool off, I use wading pools. It is fun to watch them try to lie down in the pools, or to put their front feet in one and their hind feet in the other. My gelding has started standing in the water tub.I still haven't figured out how he gets all 4 feet in, but he does. This means I have to change his water daily. I also have a misting system up in their loafing sheds and if the temperate is going to be over 90 degrees I turn it on. They know the sound and will come in and put their faces up to catch the spray. This might not be necessary, but it is fun to watch them cool off.