Twin Creeks Llamas Our Llamas

Our Llamas

Llamas have a very dignified and regal presence. They are extremely intelligent, very graceful, and carry themselves with elegance. A gentle companion for old and young alike, they are relatively easy and inexpensive to keep and easily trained.

One of the most endearing things about our llamas is their curious nature. Many people compare the personality of llamas to that of cats, and in many ways we see that in our llamas. Most of our llamas are shy and aloof, but their curiosity wins out when they are confronted with something new and different, or when strangers come to visit.

Each of our llamas has a unique personality. Coffee Bean has learned to open doors, Napoleon can unzip a hay bag with his nimble lips, and Domino loves to drink water from the hose spray nozzle. Santiago enjoys going for a job, but Jesse likes to stroll leisurely along the trail. Some of our llamas enjoy working for a grain reward, and others, like Santiago, are very proud and refuse to be bribed.

Understanding what motivates a llama and learning all of their quirky behaviors is what makes being around them so much fun.

Santiago

Napoleon

Coffee Bean

Domino

Prince

Jesse

Pete

Training Our Llamas

Our first 4 boys, Santiago, Coffee Bean, Napoleon and Domino have been with us since 2001. When we first started looking for our llamas, our goal was to find llamas with the right temperament and conformation that we felt would take well to packing.

Domino jumping over ramp We have 20 acres here on our farm, and have created about a mile of trails that we use to train the boys. There are creeks to cross, and the occasional fallen tree to go over or under. We have also built an obstacle course in the pasture that we use in their training.

Coffee Bean on ramp We occasionally enter them in shows and competitions where they get to compete against other llamas and are judged on their ability to safely maneuver around and over obstacles and obstructions. Our boys have won several ribbons in these competitions.

We have also entered two of our boys in a packing trial sponsored by the Pack Llama Trial Association where they are tested on their natural ability and acquired training under realistic trail conditions.

We have been very satisfied with our selection of llamas. All of the boys have taken naturally to carrying a pack and walking in the woods. they each have their own individual personalities, but they all are smart, gentle, and enjoy hiking with people.

DOB April 28, 2000. Coffee Bean is half brother to Santiago. They had the same father and were born a week apart. They continue to be best of friends. Coffee Bean is our most laid back llama. He's easy going and will follow you anywhere. He has huge Bambi eyes that will melt your heart. Coffee Bean is a prankster. He loves to steal ball caps right off your head. He’s learned to open the door to the tack room and flip the lid off the grain barrel. You’ve really got to keep a close eye on him to keep him out of mischief. Coffee Bean loves to eat and he especially likes pine needles. He will stop along the trail to grab a mouthful any chance he can get. He's a real sweetheart if a bit of an imp. Coffee Bean also came from Shangrila Farm Llamas.

DOB May 8, 2000. Santiago is our lead llama, referred to as the "alpha male" in a llama herd. He is always the first to come to the fence to greet visitors. He’s a good-looking fellow with great conformation. He's easy to spot as the alpha llama because he always stands tall and proud. He easily carries the heaviest packs which are the coolers with all of the food and usually insists that he walk first in line. Santiago is very protective of the rest of the herd. He is always the first to give the alarm call and will often stand guard while the others eat their grain if he has heard or seen a wild critter about. He's also insists that he gets first choice of the food bowls. Santiago came from Shangrila Farm Llamas in Callaway, VA.

DOB July 9, 2000. Napoleon is a sweetheart. His coloring is what is called appaloosa. He is mostly white, but is covered in spots of brown and black. He is very eager to please and will do almost any thing you ask of him, particularly if there is a food treat involved. He enjoys hiking but prefers the level terrain. Sometimes, on an incline, he'll stop and look at you as if to ask, "Are you sure you really want to climb this hill?" He loves to be brushed, and will often come over and nudge us if he sees us brushing one of the other llamas. Napoleon loves attention and willingly accepts hugs, even from strangers. Napoleon came to us from Nancy Sottosanti at Persimmon Hill Llamas in Luray, VA.

DOB October 20, 2000. Domino is also an appaloosa like Napoleon. He has absolutely gorgeous coloring and thick luscious fiber. He's our largest llama, but a big pussycat. He loves to play "sprinkle toes" with the garden hose. I give them the opportunity to play in the water spray on hot afternoons, and he is always the first one in line. He also gets a kick out of drinking water from the spray nozzle. Domino doesn't go on hikes with us anymore. He hiked with us for 3 years, but we could tell that he didn't really enjoy it. He was always a bit edgy and wary of things in the woods, like squirrels and turtles. So now we let him relax here in the pasture. Domino came from Shangrila Farm in Callaway, VA.

DOB October 28, 1998. Prince came to us in 2004 from Graustark Llama Farm in Bluemont, VA. He was in their 4H program for 2 years and so is used to being handled by young people. He is the oldest, but one of the smallest llamas on our packing team. He has very unusual coloring, black with silver mixed in. Prince is a bit shy at first, but he quickly warms up to his hiking partner. He is not a complainer, and follows wherever he is led. He is a very smart and willing llama. He is particularly good for young people, or people who have never been around large animals. He is very gentle and easy to handle.

DOB April 6, 1999. Jesse also came to us from Graustark Llamas and had also been working with the 4H group. In herd rank, Jesse is the last in line. Don't feel sorry for him though, he likes it there. Some llamas were meant to be leaders and some to be followers. Jesse definitely likes to follow. He's last into the barn for his grain, and he walks last in line on the trail. That's an important attribute, though, because some llamas don't like to walk in the back because they feel too vulnerable. Jesse is a chow hound, or chow llama, I should say. He stays on a perpetual diet to keep him fit and trim. Jesse is shy, but very endearing. He is quite a bit smaller than our other boys, so is well suited for the younger/smaller person.

DOB Sept. 29, 2001 (Sol Orr's Pete Rose). Pete is our newest guy. He came to us in March 2006. Pete is our smallest llama. He's jet black and has the shiniest and softest fiber. He's very popular with the kids. He came to us from the Graustark Llamas 4H program. Pete is super sweet. He is very curious and loves to greet visitors with llama "snuffles". That's a typical llama greeting where he puts his face close to yours and blows soft warm air in your face. He had been entered in performance competitions with the 4H kids, but had never worn a pack. We introduced him to a pack before his first hike with us, and he wore the pack all day like he had been born to it. We love Pete and you will too.