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Blue Licks visitors have close encounter of the llama kind
By WENDY MITCHELL
Sunday, October 12, 2008 7:37 PM EDT
BLUE LICKS BATTLEFIELD STATE RESORT PARK n A sniff of an outstretched hand led to snuggles and neck rubbing as some of the many llamas participating in the Kentucky Llama and Alpaca Association Llama Trek got acquainted with visitors at Blue Licks Battlefield State Resort Park, Sunday.
“They like to smell your breath, as a way of identifying you,” said Jack Keith, as curious visitors met curious llama.
Keith and his wife, Donna brought several of their wooly friends to the trek. Each of the animals had a personality as varied as the variety of colors of wool they displayed; solid colored, paint and speckled wool covered the animals from their banana shaped ears to their mopped tails. While the females in Keith's pen were less inclined to approach strangers, a neutered male readily approached for some attention.
A female visitor giggled as he rubbed her head with his chin.
“This is “Houser,” he was orphaned young so we took him in,” Keith said.
And "in" meant taking the baby llama into their house to bottle feed, in a kiddie pool in the family room. He is even house trained.
“We put a pile of straw outside and when he had to use the bathroom he went to the door like a dog,” Keith said. “He is not sure if he is a llama or a human.”
Living sometime 20 years or more, llama can be used for show or breeding operations.
For Michelle Yeargan of Midway, her llama, Adeline and daughter, Maggie are pets and guard animals.
“They are very alert. They watch everything and are very curious,” Yeargan said.
Curiosity can make for a strange scene, Keith said.
“There was a vehicle wreck near our farm and the sheriff told me every one of the llama came down to the edge of the fence to watch what was going on. It was quite a sight,” he said.
It only takes a horse trailer and a little practice to transport llama.
“They lay down to ride. It seems like they naturally know it makes their ride easier,” Yeargan said.
After KLAA members had lunch, they gathered the llamas for a short walk through the paths of the park to demonstrate the ease of using the animals as pack animals.
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