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Selecting Your Animal

• Sources.
  • Breeder/Livestock Auction/Rescue Organization/Production Sale.
  • I highly recommend buying an animal from an established breeder and NOT going to a livestock auction or a rescue organization for your very first llama. This is because a reputable breeder is less likely to sell you an animal with behavioral problems or one with medical issues. Remember, however, there is no guarantee that you won’t be taken advantage of by an otherwise “reputable” breeder, or get a llama with unknown medical problems. Llamas sold at livestock auction are frequently “problem” animals or owned by people who had NO idea what they were doing. That is a generalization, of course, because if you know what you are doing, you can get a great animal that way too. But here in VA, where the llama population is relatively small, I would venture that most llamas at our livestock auctions are those owned by people who just really don’t know what they are doing. The llamas are wormy, sickly, malnourished, the intact males are sex starved and aggressive, the females mistreated as reproducers, etc.
• Be prepared to shop around.
  • Prices vary considerably from breeder to breeder. This is because of an evolving market that started about 15 years ago (when llamas were prohibitively expensive) to the current day where specialty niches “du jour” are just emerging. Prices can reflect show standings, fiber quality, or ignorance on the part of the breeder.
  • Buyer Beware! An unregisterable llama should only run a couple of hundred dollars. A bred llama offered to the first time buyer should not be due in the heat of summer. A true show quality llama should be competitive at a national level. If the breeder touts a great show record as justification for a higher than average price, question them on the animal’s show record. Local shows are relatively small and the Regional competitions are generally poorly attended because Regionals are the last chance for competitors to qualify for Nationals and most animals that do well at the Nationals will qualify for their entries LONG before the Regionals are scheduled. The most expensive animals are those that are doing well at the largest shows in the country like the Grand Nationals (which can have 900+ llamas competing), the Celebrity shows, or the Ohio State Fair Llama Show. An animal that has placed very well (ie, Grand or Reserve Champion or at least in the top 10) at any of those shows is probably worth the asking price, but realize that could be in the range of $10,000-$30,000. And realize that if your goal is to continue showing that animal, unless you know what you are doing, it is unlikely that you too will do as well in the show ring with your show-quality llama.
  • An intact male should not be offered as a guard llama. In fact, a reputable breeder should not recommend that you buy an intact male at all until you know what you are doing.
  • A breeding dam should be sound and should not have a history of problem births.

Livestock insurance. Don’t complete the sale, particularly when purchasing an expensive animal, without first obtaining some insurance. You’ll need a veterinary inspection to satisfy the insurance company. (See the Livestock Insurance page for more information).

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