Ideally alpaca and llama halter training should start with weanlings aged 6-9 months old. Younger than that could produce an over handled alpaca who does not respect humans and could go on to develop unwanted behaviour such as rearing up and spitting. It is possible to halter train older alpacas but they usually accept it more quickly if still at an impressionable age.
For the purposes of this alpaca handling article I am going to refer mostly to alpacas, but the technique is the same for llamas. Ideally halter train in small positive sessions which can be start from just a minute or 2 in length every day.
Make sure you are relaxed and before you start training make sure the alpacas are already comfortable with coming into a small catch pen daily for food and checks.
Before handling alpacas, remember they are prey animals who don’t affectionately touch each other and are head shy, so move gently with them and approach from the side with minimum eye contact so you aren’t behaving like a predator. You will then get the best from your alpaca.
During feeding time gradually build up positive associations with the halter being introduced near the nose (food is useful here!) then bringing it over the top of the nose and removing it, then eventually being able to put it high up on the nose and tie behind the ears. Some alpacas will tolerate this process more quickly than others.
It is ideal to halter train with an older alpaca who is already comfortable with the halter or in pairs so they do not feel isolated and have someone to walk with.
When I approach to halter an alpaca I approach from the left side so they can see me, they often take a couple of steps forward so I just let them settle down, then use my right hand on their mid back which usually makes them stand still. I then run my hand upwards on the right across shoulders and neck and gently steady under the jaw with my right hand whilst introducing the halter on the left side.
I halter trained my rescue llama at 14 months of age when he was already taller than me and had never been previously handled. Even after short daily interactions when he would let me handle him, he was not comfortable with the halter approaching from the side, but I found that he accepted me gently sliding the halter up the font of his neck, under his chin and then the nose band just flipped over the tip of his nose with my hands under his jaw. So you may find tying a different approach might work rather than keep reinforcing a negative experience in an older or nervous animal.
Ensure that the nose band is positioned right up on the top of the nose just below the eyes as the alpaca nose is mostly soft cartilage as the bone only extends just in front of the eyes. Alpacas are semi-obligate nasal breathers so they will feel like they are being suffocated if the soft cartilage below the bone is compressed by pressure from a badly fitted halter, and this would cause them to panic. Therefore it is important to position the nose band high up, just below the eyes, and tighten the crown piece just below the ears so it doesn’t slip down. Correct tightness is approx 2 finger widths under the crown piece for an adult, and 1 finger width for weanlings, but also use your observational skills and intuition, and never leave a haltered alpaca unattended.
Our halters also have a second adjustment under the jaw so it fits correctly and a large lead ring through which the buckle can pass if needed. It is important that a haltered alpaca can still eat, drink, ruminate, and of course spit and sulk! Ideally don’t assign a halter to an individual alpaca as it is less likely that you will check it fits correctly each time. Halters can expand and shrink in different temperatures and also allow a few minutes for fleece to compress.
To gain more insight please look at the BAS care sheet here
And for more information about handling your alpacas we highly recommend attending a camelidynamics course. Click here for more information.
As a British Alpaca Society affiliated trainer we run alpaca husbandry courses. These will be listed on the BAS website and on our events page. Please do get in touch to book or if you are interested in extra sessions as we are always happy to add more dates.
Please click here to see some of our nylon halters and here for our leather halters, or for more on how to care for an alpaca here.