Llama Baby!!!

This morning I was loading hay and went to let the girls (does, ewes, llama...) out to pasture and saw a foot sticking out of the llama!! Yikes! Our male llama left about 11 months ago, so he must've bred her right before he left!

This was our first llama birth, but thankfully I've read a fair amount online about llama births (and I've attended a TON of other animal births). She pushed his head and front feet out, and she let me come over and clean his nose off so he could breath. A few minutes later, she pushed the rest of him out. Normally she doesn't like me near her very much at all (unless I'm feeding her grain!), but she let me clean him off and make him a bed of hay, because he was flopping *everywhere* and getting covered in dirt, which was kind of freaking me out a little!! I stayed calm tho (thankfully), because word had spread and several neighbors had come over to watch :)! And llamas don't lick their babies (crias), so it was good that she let me help. So when I was done cleaning him off and she wanted me to back off, she let me know ;).

he's so skinny!

and yup, it's a boy...

So, that was really exciting! We've seen him nurse several times now and Mama Llama is being very watchful and protective of him! I've gotta get off of here and do a few things, have a busy night, and I gotta make the cria a coat!

Have a great day!

Suriyah