We are NOT LLAMAS
Alpacas arrive in exotic debut
Megan Strickland
Bowen Tryon interacts while he shows his alpaca.
Megan Strickland
Shelby and Bowen Tryon prepare to walk their alpacas through an obstacle course.
Megan Strickland
Showing alpacas can be tiring. Bowen Tryon yawns as he waits for a judge.
Megan Strickland
Megan Strickland
Megan Strickland
Megan Strickland
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RONAN — Most folks have favorite animals in mind that they want to track down at the Lake County Fair, but this year an exotic, first-time exhibit had folks making friends with some uncommon South American pals.
Brother and sister duo Bowen and Shelby Tryon showed their two alpacas this year, with much curiosity from the public.
“Everyone has been pretty excited, but they have a bunch of questions,” Shelby said. “Lots of people think they are really cool.”
Shelby said the biggest misconception people have about the alpacas is that they are llamas.
“The llamas are so cute, look at that face,” Macy Simpson said as she perused the fair. “I want one.”
Simpson was accurate on the cuteness, but wrong about the name.
“They aren’t llamas,” Shelby said.
While she’s only had her alpaca since June, she can tell you the big differences between the two critters. Llamas, Shelby explains, are also members of the camelid family and are also from South America, but they were bred for packing. Alpacas are similar, but were bred for fur production.
There are two different breeds of alpacas, Suri and Huacaya. The Tryons have Huacaya, which are supposed to have a fluffier coat than their Suri counterparts.
“Its pretty fluffy,” Shelby said.
The alpacas are kind creatures, despite a public misconception that they spit a lot, Shelby said.
“They don’t spit unless you really make them mad,” she clarified.
Nevertheless, spitting was people’s top concern as they approached the pens.
“Don’t spit, I come in peace!” one little girl exclaimed as she and a gaggle of her friends approached the display with her arm outstretched. Another mom got her enamored toddler son to break away from the alpacas by telling him: “You better quit, because llamas spit.”
Shelby said the animals like being petted, if you do it in a quiet way. Because alpacas are prey animals that are prone to anxiety if not controlled properly, the Tryon kids had to learn how to be calm to show them.
“You have to be pretty calm because they can sense your fear,” Shelby said.
Otherwise, the shaggy longnecks are very friendly.
“They are gentle,” Shelby said.
The Tryons had to learn to show their animals on the fly this year, but they will be ready for next year’s fair. Among the tasks presented during the show was a general knowledge section, plus an obstacle course.
The course required Shelby to walk her alpaca backward and forward through an “L” shape, and push a wheelbarrow while holding onto the alpaca.
“It was fun,” Shelby said. “I learned most of the stuff today.”
She looks forward to showing the alpacas again, in addition to all of her other show animals.
Still, she’s a Montana girl at heart and the funny-faced exotic can’t trump her affection for beef animals. She was showing a steer, cow, and mini-Hereford after the alpaca round.
“I love cows most,” Shelby said. “They have amazing personalities.”
