[Alpacasite] Re: Misbehaving Alpacas at Shows

Jeanne,
I am under 5 ft as well.
I can show our weanlings and have shown our boy up until this fall.
He is now 16 months old and just too strong for me to show. He is
fine until another animal gets excited. He likes to come in the ring
fast and I have to hold him back. At home, he is wonderful to walk
on lead, but at a show is another thing! I wish more ring stewards
would ask if you needed help and would also stand on the other side
of the judge(s). The poor animals have two or three strangers coming
at them from one side and of course they move to the other side. I
don't hold my animals in a death grip either. I think that scares
them more! I stand on the left side and have my right hand on the
back at the neck to keep him from coming up at me, but I can get out
of the way very easily, without loosing the lead. My left arm is
around the front of the neck, to block the front as an escape avenue.
(We had several animals get loose at the last show. A lot of new
people showing and they play with the clip on the lead.)
I am lucky to have a great mentor. She has showm me many tricks of
the trade and is a wonderful friend as well. She has shown me how to
stand and the best way not to scare the animal, but have control of
it. It would be wonderful if more people had mentors like this.
Mike is over 6 ft tall, so he has no problem with showing larger
animals. So, when I can't show them he does!
Good Luck
Mike & Reynne Hostetler
Louisville OH
-- In Alpacasite@yahoogroups.com, "Jeanne Byington" <pikapaca@y...>
wrote:
>
> Let me just say that when I walked into the show ring, I was SO
> nervous! How can one keep calm when it's your first show, you're
> thinking that the alpaca next to you is better, praying that your
> alpaca doesn't act up too much in the ring, hoping that you don't
> make a faux pas (like saying that alpaca's name in desperation to
> get it to calm down), or a million other things that are going
> through your mind. AND, try not to have your alpaca pick up on
> that...HA! These are livestock! Not foo-foo dogs that can sit at a
> simple glance. Yes, some get really scared, some can stand there
all
> nice until the judge lifts its tail, some kick when their legs are
> touched. But, if you want to have livestock shows, you learn to
> handle those types of situations with grace. I don't and can't do
> most of the holding techniques. I'm under 5' tall and a yearling
can
> take me for a ride. When my girl was acting up, I'd walk her in a
> small circle so she could see what was going on, and then have her
> face me to have her attention centered on me again, and what I
> wanted from her. Putting her in a "death grip" would certainly have
> put her over the edge, and dragged me along for the ride. The
> handlers at the show that I was at were great. They wedged the
> alpaca between them, with one hand at the base of the neck, between
> the shoulders so it couldn't jump up too much (or at least think
> twice about doing so) while I held her head. I think once one
starts
> acting up, it's some kind of subliminal signal to the rest that
> something ain't right in paca world. A nice domino effect. Plus,
the
> obstacle course was being run at the same time and everytime a pole
> would fall or something would bang, the whole group would jump at
> once and then not be able to settle down. But of all things things
> I've learned....spit happens....no matter what you do, think or
say.
> So, when it does, I try to handle it with a little grace, dignity
> and VERY soft swearing under my breath.
>
> Jeanne
> Chaffee NY
>
>
>
>
> --- In Alpacasite@yahoogroups.com, "mpcpneilp" <mpcpneilp@a...>
> wrote:
> >
> > Jeannie and Laurel,
> >
> > This is an interesting and important topic. Laurel has brought up
> > many good tips. The thingy wacket issue is much like a right of
> > passage for exhibitors. I think most of us make this mistake
> sooner
> > or later.
> >
> > That being said I have a different perspective. Contrary to what
> Jude
> > Anderson has said, you CAN'T TEACH AN ALPACA TO ACCEPT HANDLING
AT
> A
> > SHOW. In fact, in handling alpacas the real teaching that is
going
> on
> > is that the handler is learning what drives an alpaca crazy an
> learns
> > not to do those things.
> >
> > Alpacas do not have the same temperament as llamas. Some of them
> will
> > be spooked in the scary environment of the showring and there is
> > little or nothing that can be done to calm them down. If this
> > happens, often the best thing to do is scratch them from the show
> > yourself.
> >
> > Also, containing an alpaca as Laurel has described will work some
> of
> > the time. If the alpaca is really spooked however 3 people will
> not
> > be able to hold them still, and the process of trying can make
> said
> > alpaca even more crazy (that flight response thing).
> >
> > There is no simple answer here. Just be aware that some alpacas
> don't
> > have the temperament for the showring.
> >
> > My 2 cent,
> >
> > Neil
> > A Paca Fun Farm
> > Mt. Airy, Maryland
> > Sugarloaf Mountain, Maryland
> > www.apacafunfarm.com
>

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