I know many owners who were attacked by a male llama or alpaca, who was previously a sweet pet, even after gelding, when the animal had not learned to respect humans and thought of them as equals. Males reach sexual maturity quite a bit later, at around three years of age. Excitement can be curbed with verbal, hand, and facial cues that are consistent. Thanks again!! Their behavior was just the opposite of the Crystal Divas and Micays offspring. The real one is green and full of stuff theyve been eating. The first is a warning and is simply a small amount of saliva and air. If their food is highly regulated, as it is on most alpaca . Caryl the females generally mount each other for two reasons: (1) They are simply eager to get bred. Flash forward ten months and the girls no longer spit at every whim. In the most severe cases of Berserk Male Syndrome, offending males must be euthanized for the safety and wellbeing of the humans on the property. 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. The alpaca is sniffing the urine or dung pile to get additional information on the alpacas who used it. When I am in the barn, spitting is usually not present and if I give a look or a no maam they all quickly take note. But the overriding point here is that alpacas are in fact livestock and they become pets out of lack of use. So yes, it is perfectly acceptable to do so. Whatever you want to call it, though, its a problem. Initially the two new youngsters appeared to integrate well into the herd, with the more established alphas of the herd really being very protective and caring towards them. Berserk llama syndrome (usually shortened to BLS ), aberrant behavior syndrome, or berserk male syndrome (as it is more pronounced in males) is a psychological condition experienced by human-raised camelids, particularly llamas and alpacas, that can cause them to exhibit dangerously aggressive behavior toward humans. 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. My family has always loved being outside and gardening. This lack of a herd might be causing stress. Ill admit I never thought wed come this far in these last few months. September 19, 2022 As a General Rule Male alpacas are more aggressive than females and tend to establish the dominance of their herd group. They tend to be rather laidback, especially when they are raised by a large herd that makes them behave. Its totally normal. Screeching - A screeching alpaca is an angry male alpaca who is actively engaged in a fight over dominance or territory. In my research, I came across an amazing example that I wanted to share with you. Llama Characteristics. Alpacas need a herd. It also assumes that aggression is the result of natural alpaca behavior when, in fact, it 5 They hum softly . Looking at the five girls, their personalities, and how theyve changed over the last few months is a great example of nature vs. nurture. The four adult alpacas were quick to spit at each other and had little tolerance for anyone in their personal space. This site also participates in other affiliate programs and is compensated for referring traffic and business to these companies. I fear its getting late for me, my alpacas are just over 2 years old. The first is a warning and is simply a small amount of saliva and air. We and our partners use data for Personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. 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. Sometimes, even with the most amazing preparation, an alpaca will still learn some aggressive behavior. Llamas can weigh approximately between 280 pounds (127 kilograms) and 450 pounds (204 kilograms). Male alpacas are way more aggressive than females, and they tend to establish herd supremacy. They are fun and lovable all wrapped up in one. This and other dominance behaviors can be bad manners in general, or in severe cases, can indicate a real problem with males called Berserk Male Syndrome.. He crowds very close, circling behind and comin. Females mature faster than their male counterparts. So, the owner talked to another alpaca owner and sent her ill-mannered wether to live with a herd of male alpacas (a mix of studs/machos and wethers). As the human it is my job to maintain the appropriate boundaries, so the young alpacas do not confuse me with an alpaca. Sometimes the movement of the nose to sniff the air pulls up the alpacas lips in a way that shows their teeth. Or, in the most extreme cases, talk to your livestock veterinarian. Alpacas do spit, but generally only on each other and only when upset. Usually this aggression is directed towards other male alpacas or llamas - which can lead to vicious attacks on young males when they get old enough to be perceived as rivals. Llama and alpaca belong to the family Camelidae. She verbalizes to me when things are wrong and makes sure I am aware of something she deems important or of concern. But what its called will depend on who youre talking to. I want to walk through their personalities and how these have shifted as time progressed. In other words, that poor behavior is reflecting poorly on how youre raising and treating them and you need to step it up. In my experience, this is a far lesser reason than the desire to breed. Female juveniles will be ready to mate at 12 to 15 months. You could immediately tell this was a whole different group and I suspected they would modify the behavior of our existing herd. 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. To view the purposes they believe they have legitimate interest for, or to object to this data processing use the vendor list link below. From roughhousing around the paddock to wanting to mate the ladies, the boy alpacas are a handful. Why wouldnt you sit on the ground near a mature breeding male? CLINICAL FINDINGS The clinical signs of aggression progressed to include biting at other animals as well as disorientation. 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. Although alpacas can be aggressive, they are extremely intelligent, easily trained, and able to form strong bonds with humans. We put them in our barn and you would be amazed at what happens at night when no humans are around. I chose to build trust and respect, while also encouraging anyone who comes to our farm to do the same. 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. Based on my research, even the best alpaca owners may accidentally get kicked on rare occasions. I learned several things quickly by watching them. And they did just that! They learned my stern mom look meant to tone down the behavior and cease the spitting. The next point of confusion involves alpaca herds and the need for maintaining this balance. Thanks for your articles I really love reading them. As a follow up Tommys demeanor seems to have improved significantly. Aggressive alpacas are atypical and may need to be culled. Now that Ive taken you through some recent experiences Ive had with alpacas and their individual behavior, Id like to talk about alpaca behavior in general. I think this led to his feeling of dominance over me and then he started acting up. The alpaca industry has not embraced the internet, so there is a lot of old and incorrect information online. This can just be a display of curiosity. Cannibalism: Crushing Piglets: Breeding-related Problems. I also knew had to wait until they felt comfortable in their new home to truly see their personalities. Both were born on our farm this summer. The alpaca is sniffing and tasting the air to figure out what you are and what food offerings you may have with you. As long as nothing disturbs the peace, theyll graze and meander all day. . If you let an alpaca bump into you and you tolerate other rude behaviors, it will take that as submission from you and strive to rise above you in the herd hierarchy. Since the Alapaha is a large animal, its weight is at 70 to 90 pounds for males and females weigh at 55 to 77 pounds. At what age is best to start getting my a harness on them? They are just as lovable as the girls but come with a lot fewer disagreements. Ariana was clearly the alpha alpaca and no one was going to unseat her and take this position from her. An aggressive alpaca is an anomaly caused by overexposure to humans that may require intense retraining, re-homing, or culling. In all of my experience with alpacas, Ive never met an overly aggressive one. But well go into that in a bit. Can you elaborate more on this subject? These alphas will warn the others of danger and will become particularly agitated if separated from the herd. Males also hum to females they are courting. In some extreme cases, there have been alpacas that became so aggressive that they had to be culled. They feel safest in a herd and they are at the peak of mental and physical health when they are in a herd. He was displaying early signs of aggression like spitting, kicking, and charging despite castration. From there you will be able to pet the neck without food. The bred females tend to stand back and just watch as if this is the entertainment for the day. People are often surprised when I state alpacas are trainable. In that case, its a sign that resource access needs to be addressed. They may pretend to bite while playing fighting. Something went wrong. We're learning as we go what works and what doesn't. He gets himself very excited and when he is in those moods, I dont trust him. Petting zoos are a common source of too-aggressive alpacas (that have to be culled). It could be a sign of anxiety from the conflicting desire to eat from your hand (like the others) and the persistent fear of humans. They have no teeth, horns, or hooves. Pregnant females will give off a different sent in their urine than an unpregnant female. This is because they no longer have the option of breeding and producing offspring. 1 0 obj<> endobj 2 0 obj<>stream The real one is green and full of stuff theyve been eating. I quickly stopped the behavior and have done my best to not encourage it moving forward. The females will still have the desire to breed and the gelded males will still have the ability to breed. Just like people, not every alpaca is an extrovert or touchy feely. And baby Adel? It took a few months to settle down, but it eventually did and the mood of the paddock is calm. Alpacas have teeth that constantly grow throughout their lives, like rabbits, and while they should rub against each other in such a way as to maintain the correct shape and length, it is possible for teeth to grow out of whack after some time. They would rather pleasantly interact with you before spitting at you. Do you have any experience or advice on what I can do to discourage / stop this behavior. Do you have any tips on how I can get closer to them and allow this to happen? 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. But go read this next (and before you buy an alpaca). Some of the information weve been given has had slight variations, while other information has completely contradicted the best practices of another farm. They had 5 males (intact) and 2 females. He said while they were normally fairly gentle animals, aggression was not unheard of. 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