Halter training

[zebra363]

I put my bad mood to work removing a 2 metre tall, mostly dead bamboo plant outside my house that had become not only an eyesore but also a fire hazard. Three hours of breaking things and swinging an axe and going up and down a hill with a wheelbarrow caused me to feel much better. Outdoor physical labour is a pretty sure remedy for office-based

Comments

[sarren]

Newly shorn? Did I miss a post?

Um, why are you training Zareena to carry small children? Because you can? Or are you preparing for the zombie apocalype?

[cricketk]

How would training Zareena to carry small children be preparation for the zombie apocalypse?

[mr_booboo]

Um, like hello, Cricket. Think about it! *chews gum loudly*

You don't want to be carrying a kid and they run very slowly. So what's easier than whistling llama you prepared earlier and popping the kid on the back and making a run for it to the tank you have hidden in the grain shed.

You are so woefully unprepared. *shakes head*

[zebra363]

Obviously, anyone without a trained llama is woefully unprepared for a zombie apocalypse.

[shayheyred]

Belated birthday greetings to Sherry!

[zebra363]

She's looking good, very nice in fact. You can just see her in the 4th photo, on the other side of the fence. We'll try remating her in the next few months (we want the cria to be due after the hot weather is over and preferably when there's some green feed in the paddocks).

[revbiscuit]

Manual labour always cures me of my bad moods, too. Not there's much call for it on any 'normal' day. Last time I resorted to removing paving from just outside the front of the house with a pick axe. After 3 hours of that I was as relaxed as I've ever got with any amount of yoga, ha ha.

It's interesting to read about your work with alpacas. What do you actually do with them once they're used to being led around?

I don't think I could do enough exercise to handle a 5 day a week office job any more. I'd have to start marathon training.

LOL! Now you see why *I* do it.

[zebra363]

Halter training just makes them easier to handle for the rest of their lives, which is easier both on you and them! Also, it's pretty much expected if you want to sell them as pets and a good selling point in any case. The first three we bought were not halter trained and they're much more anxious around people than ones that are handled more when they're young. Plus, it makes it possible to show them, if they're good enough quality to do that, which we're hoping our youngest cria is. Also, it's just kind of fun! Once they seem calm and obedient enough, I take them across the street to my fruit trees and let them eat the leaves, so there's something in it for them. They're curious animals (more so than horses, which is my point of comparison) and seem to enjoy going out to see the world.

Any time I get agitated over something minor, it occurs to me that I must not be doing enough physical activity if I have the energy to spend on getting upset!

[cricketk]

"Halter training an alpaca is like flying a kite."

That is a fun sentence.

They're all looking healthy and happy.

[zebra363]

They are. The halter training seems to make the young ones more confident in general, too, so they come closer when you appear with the feed bucket! Sherry normally walks straight up and pushes her head in under my hand if you let her, and now Miranda is game to try it too.

[mr_booboo]

I love looking at your alpaca pictures. They've grown.

The little one is seriously cute.

[zebra363]

She's 10 months old, which seems wrong! In another few months we should have two more!