[AlpacaTalk] Aggressive male
Hi,
I am new to this list and fairly new to alpacas. We purchased our first five last Fall and just brought home an additional five in June.
We have five girls and five boys.
The new males are aged 1+, 2+ and 4+. The oldest is our problem.
The second week we had him, he ran up to me and knocked me down. It happened very quickly and was totally unprovoked. I had actually just dished out some grain and put his bowl on the ground. The next thing I knew, I was flat on my back. I actually hit my head on the ground.
After that, I was afraid of him, so my dh took care of the boys and I took care of the girls. He ran up to the husband and jumped on him once, three weeks ago.
Well, today, we went in to halter the boys to move them to another pasture and barn and he went after my husband, again. Jumped on him...then my husband got on one side of a fence panel and the alpaca BIT him! He also attacked one of the younger males that we had haltered.
We have an appt with the vet on Wednesday and the plan was to geld him, along with a two other males we have, but now the whole family is saying euthanize him. I spoke to the breeder right after the first sign of aggression and she swore he never did anything like that and couldn't imagine why he would do it. I have spoken with several very experienced alpaca owners/breeders and all have urged us to return him to the breeder. The breeder said she wouldn't take him back.....then said she would but no refund. It is a 500+ miles trip and I do not want to spend any more money transporting this animal. I would give him away if someone wanted him but who in their right mind would want him when there are so many nice animals out there. He is conformationally correct and has nice fleece, but that means nothing to me if he is a danger to anyone, which I consider him to be.
Has anyone encountered this? I am not seeking approval for euthanizing him- we have to do what we feel is the best thing for our family, but I would love to hear from anyone that has had to deal with an aggressive male. He is a big boy, too. Weighs about 185 pounds and when he makes contact, he is HEAVY.
Thanks for any feedback.
Laura
R Half Pint Farm
Spotsylvania, VA
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posted by Chaddo at 9:12 PM
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