Keeping the herd together

Myke

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I have 3 males, 3 females, one male cria (about 1 year old) and a Llama. I currently have the males together in one pasture, and the females, cria, and llama in a different pasture. I plan on separating them, one male to one female in May for breeding. How long should I leave them separated for breeding? Second, once they are all bred, can I leave them all together in one large pasture while I replant one of the smaller pastures?
Thanks for any advice.
Myke
 

purplequeenvt

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What gender is the llama? If male, is he castrated? I'd get that year old male cria separated asap!

Lamas (llamas and alpacas) do have heat cycles, but they are also induced ovulators. I wouldn't separate your animals into pairs and pen them separately for a while. That could cause some issues when you try to reintroduce the males.

I'd take one male and one female at a time and introduce them. Keep the male on a long lead so you can control him if the female is not receptive. Give them a while and if the female isn't interested (runs away, spits a lot, etc..) in the male, remove him and try again in a few days.
 

Myke

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Thanks Latestarter, that was pretty comprehensive and informative.
purplequeenvt, I do need to separate the cria, he was making an attempt yesterday at one of the females, she put an end to it pretty quick. I do have a small pen that I can separate one male and one female into. I will definitely do that as opposed to pairing them off in separate pastures. The llama is a female, and the people I got her from said she is quite the wet nurse to the alpacas, but she is 17 years old from what they told me.
Thanks for the help.
Myke
 
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