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34 34 Franklin WL: Biology, ecology, and relationship to man of the South American camelids, in Mares MA, Genoways HH (eds): Mammalian Biology in South America, Vol 6. Linesville, PA, Pymatuning Laboratory of Ecology, Univ. Pittsburgh Spec. Publ., 1982, pp. 457–489.
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2 South American Camelid Behavior and the CAMELIDynamics Approach to Handling
Marty McGee Bennett
New Smyrna Beach, FL, USA
This chapter focuses on behavior and handling in llamas and alpacas. Chapter 23 discusses behavior and handling for camels. Veterinarians as well as camelid owners often have the assumption that patient restraint precedes any work with the patient. The fallacy with this mentality is that for animals that run as a primary defense, the scariest part of the procedure may be the restraint itself. In many situations, if the restraint is skipped, the handler will be pleasantly surprised at how cooperative many animals become. Animals known as the most difficult to treat are typically those fearful of restraint. These commonly become tractable if you do not begin with holding them still. It may seem illogical that you can skip the restraint and simply do the procedure but in fact with some handling skills and an appropriate facility you can often do exactly that.
Running is a camelid's first line of defense, and when that option is taken away, the animal will resort to avoidance behaviors such as rearing, kicking, spitting, biting, and lying down. If the animal is permitted to remain in control of his balance, given the option to move around within a small area, and kept calm, most medical procedures can be accomplished. If the working area is too large, the handler has no choice but to hold the animal still, which will lead to fear‐driven behaviors. Much of what the author suggests depends on working in an area NO LARGER than a 12 × 12 (ideally smaller) box stall. With painful, lengthy procedures, it may be more practical and humane to use a sedative.
Owners often base their opinions of veterinary care not only on health outcomes but also on how the veterinarian and veterinary staff handle their animals. The thing owners remember and admire about their veterinarian is most often how well they handle the animal. The approach to handling will have an impact on the owner and the animal's behavior long after interaction with the animal.
Animals often sense when the veterinarian or owner is in a hurry, upset, angry or impatient. An animal that is anxious will become unreasonable when it is not offered an opportunity for him to process his situation. Restraining an animal by pure physical means can be difficult, dangerous, and increases stress in the animal. Offering time for the animal to process its situation can make a remarkable difference in the animal's attitude.
I make no assertion that it is possible to make an animal's life totally anxiety or pain free. Into each life a little rain must fall. It is the sum total of the experience an animal has with humans that forms his overall impression. It is often said that animals know when you are trying to help them. I believe that to be true.
– Marty McGee Bennett
Camelid Behavior
When working with any animal, being able to read and predict their behavior is vitally important. Llamas and alpacas are different and less familiar to people than dogs, cats, horses, and other barnyard animals. South American camelids also spit, which, while not injurious, is daunting for people who do not have familiarity with these animals, carrying a psychological punch that is out of all proportion to its actual impact. Many of the techniques and principles discussed in this chapter can be applied to many farm animal species, however, the focus in this chapter will be on South American Camelids; see Chapter 23 for a discussion about Camel behavior and handling.
Table 2.1 is a list of behavioral indicators that can help a veterinarian, owner, or handler assess the state of agitation and fear possessed by their camelid patients. Being familiar with this list can allow one to determine that an animal is becoming more agitated and frightened or that a frightened animal is calming down. These indicators are more useful than the precise meaning of ear position or body posture. It is useful to keep track of these indicators and work toward making the patient become calmer (Figure 2.1a and b).
Table 2.1 Behaviors typical of South American camelids when calm and fearful.
| Calm camelids | Fearful camelids |
|---|---|
| are quiet and stillwill blink regularly (A slow deliberate blink indicates an animal that was tense and is beginning to relax.)will stand in balance on all four feetwill breathe at a normal rate (10–30 respirations per minute)the animal's weight is evenly distributed, and his feet are square under his body (Look carefully at the animal's feet. An animal is in balance when ALL pressure is removed from the lead or around the neck and the animal does not move away.)will eat or ruminatewill hold its tail lightly against the bodywill swallow on a regular basiscarries the neck slightly forward of the shouldersmoves its ears regularly and holds them looselywill watch the handler with interestwill walk (not run) inside the confines of the holding pen | will lean or pull against the handler, lead rope, catch rope or the side of the chute indicating he is out of balancethe animal's weight is not evenly distributed (head up, neck angled back, back dropping down in the rear)will lay down and get back up repeatedlywill seek to escape by leaping forward, pulling back, rearing or may try to crawl under or through an openingwill stomp their feet and/or kick.will hold tail over the back, clamp it to the body or arch it up and over the backwill stare fixedlywill spitwill refuse food or consume food rapidly w/o chewingwill throw head around (Sometimes this is in a distinctive pattern called “orbiting” in which the camelid looks straight up and then whirls the head around in a circle. This is common in high‐strung animals. You may observe this behavior in the pasture when there is no human interaction. These animals also commonly pace along a fence line and orbit at the same time.) |
The behaviors of humans in proximity will directly affect the behavior of the patient. It is necessary to overstate the importance of modeling calm behavior as you work with animals. If the handler is holding their breath, out of balance, or agitated, the animal notices, and this will cause the animal to be more anxious. Standing in a relaxed way, breathing normally (if not deeply), and standing with shoulders canted away from the animal communicates a relaxed, non‐threatening disposition (Figure 2.2).
Most humans are heavy handed. It is typical for a handler to put 3–5 pounds of unconscious pressure on a lead or on the animal as he or she works. This weight is uncomfortable and frightening to the animal. The handler should be responsible for the weight of their own arms and