Last summer I watched a 4-Her tugging on an older female that was used for breeding the first 9 years of her life. Now she was expected to deal with the public, kids and obstacles! Watching the 4-Her crying and the llama humming, made me wonder what the whole point was. To make matters worse, the audience of about 30-75 fairgoers watching was left with the impression, "Who would want one of those stubborn things?" I cannot tell you the number of times I have been judging 4-H members at a fair and witnessed the great deals they got from breeders or owners that did not want them anymore.

I think that the llama industry as a whole would agree that a major part of the llama industry is being driven by 4-H. Watching a child with a llama is truly a wonderful experience! Why then do we keep trying to give these youth inappropriate animals that we have culled from our herds or don't want anymore?

Not everyone in the industry is doing this, and I do realize that llamas do need to be culled from breeding herds for various reasons. But instead of culling animals that are borderline crippled, not trained or older (out of style), why don't we give these youth (or sell them) quality llamas? By quality, I don't mean the $20,000.00 Bolivian you have ear-marked for Celebrity. Quality meaning, a pleasant temperament, good structure and maybe even a nice fiber. These 4-H youth are representing you the llama market every time they go to a nursing home, fair, show or other events. When we send them into the public eye with an untrained or unhappy llama, it has a terrible reflection on the llama community.

Most llama 4-H leaders will tell you that they receive several calls a month or year from people that got these great llamas that they can't halter, do anything with or sell, but would like to now give them to youth in your 4-H group. After all, they would make "Great 4-H Llamas!" There is a place for these animals, but not in 4-H. I am not saying that 100% of the time these animals are not good 4-H animals, (there are always exceptions to the rule) but most of the time they are not going to create a positive experience for 4-H youth.

As with any experience that a child chooses to do for their extra-curricular time, we want it to be positive. In this day in age where there are so many things out there that kids get into trouble doing, 4-H is a great outlet for youth! Where else can a young person learn to keep a record of their expenses and do verbal presentations on various educational items? Youth also go through the automatic learning process when they care for an animal, 4-H helps them to gain confidence and learn responsibility. I was one of these 4-H members and let me tell you, some of my best childhood memories (and friends) are from my 4-H experiences!

Many a llama breeder laments about the state of the market and how you just can't get any money for your llamas anymore. The 4-H market is still very strong and in our area, we find that people don't mind paying for quality animals that are TRAINED. Yes, people want animals that not only look good, but are trained. When people buy their kids a horse for 4-H, they look around their area at barns that specialize in trained horses for showing etc. Why don't we do this with llamas?

By starting a new or young kid out with a trained animal, they are able to build up their confidence and learn that first year. Then if they need the challenge, get them one to train. Training at the very least should mean that the llama is halter/lead broke and able to have all it's legs picked up. After my many years in 4-H, I have come to several conclusions about how to help youth be successful.

Start young/new kids out on older geldings/females that have been through and know the 4-H program. At a young age (7-10), one bad experience can ruin the child's interest in being in llamas. Assure their success and positive attitude by giving (selling) them a bomb-proof gelding or female to start with. A new kid and new llama in some cases ends up being too much with all the learning that goes on that first year in the program. It can burn the new member out or make them lose interest in being in the 4-H group.

Don't let children in your group use intact males over two. Yes, I realize some people have very nice, well-trained intact males. With the market being more reasonable, a lot of youth are now using females. It only takes one time for a child to not be paying attention and have the male knock somebody down in the process of trying to breed (we had an incident with this a few years back). Remember too, that many of the 4-H situations at shows etc. require you to double up on stalls or to trailer together. If you have all geldings and females, it cuts down on your work of trying to get everyone there.

In our 4-H group, I have been assigning (or selling) our new/younger members to llamas that are trained and/or they belong to the group or are leased. One couple this last year, had a nice male they had used for breeding and performance for several years. As he was very well-trained and a nice animal, I gave them a tax write-off (4-H is non-profit in Washington and we are able to do this) for the value of him. He has been gelded, and we now have a seven year old primary boy that is learning with him his first year. Last year, we were able to borrow 19 year old Senta, a gelding (my childhood 4-H project) out of retirement for an 8 year old in my group. Senta had been through myself, another young child, a Down's Syndrome boy, and now this girl (pictured at top). He was a gold mine for this child. She had her best 4-H year ever and now is ready to move onto something a bit more challenging! Making this first year positive, helps to spur the member on for many more years of fun!

Use a training sheet for youth in your group. It is hard for 4-H members to know what they need to work on or what they should be be doing with their llama projects. I have a training sheet that I use with animals I am training and also have given to the members of my 4-H group to use. I am willing to share it with anybody as I would love to see all llamas trained not only in 4-H, but for sale and enjoyment. You may access and print your own copy of this sheet by going to the following internet address:

http://www.nas.com/~jnkllamas/jnktrainpg.htm

So where do you go about finding these types of llamas? It is good to first check with your local llama 4-H leader. They are working with youth and llamas and may even know someone who is selling an older animal that has been used in the program. Before buying from someone that only breeds, look at a lot of farms and ask the basic questions about llamas. "Why is this llama a good candidate for 4-H, May I halter she/he myself, Can I pick up all of her/his legs, If this animal does not work out for 4-H will you help me find another, Has this animal had any public relations or obstacle work?" You should take someone that knows llamas to look at them with you. Have this person help you figure out which llamas will fit the use you want. Whenever possible you should try to support people that are donating their time and resources to 4-H. If they have the animal you are looking for, buy it from them.

There are a lot of llamas for purchase or free right now. It is important to consider the use of the animal prior to just acquiring a llama. By carefully selecting your llama project, it will give you years of enjoyment. Many of the best 4-H projects were selected by doing research prior to actually buying them. Educated buyers know what they are getting into and are going to be more responsible with their purchase.

So what do you do with those other culled llamas that are not cut out for 4-H? If they are healthy and semi-handleable, there are people who just want pasture ornaments or fiber animals. There are also people that don't mind going through the learning curve and are willing to work with and put some training into older or rescue animals. Some llamas can be worked into jobs guarding against coyotes, but this does not always work with rescue animals. Other options are available in some instances for llamas who need homes, but there are others that still are unwanted.

4-H is a wonderful outlet for all of us to have our llamas displayed. Please think carefully prior to just giving or placing an animal with a young 4-H member. As a community we can all benefit from the many aspects of 4-H, so let's make sure it is POSITIVE for everyone!

Web Site:JNK Llamas
Email Niki: jnkllamas@nas.com
Copyright © 1998 Niki Anderson Kuklenski .