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Important Announcements from the ILR |
Welcome to the newest addition to our ILR family! |
Paige Elizabeth Adams |
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Born on June 23, 2006 at 12:02 a.m. 9 lb. 6 oz. and 21" long |
The Proud Parents are Salena and Dave Adams |
Salena is presently on maternity leave. |
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Welcome - Mark Smith |
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The LAMARIBBEAN Cruise |
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Kudos for the ILR database and website "I went to your database and looked at offspring, coloring, sex. Any breeder who does not use this database as one of their most important sources of information is missing the boat. It saves hours of researching background providing extremely valuable pictures and is so easy to use. Your database is worth its weight in gold to my breeding program. Fast and user friendly. Thank you, thank you, thank you . . . "Trish "Let me compliment you on an amazing website! I had no idea that the ILR website was set up to do so many things." Christy If you are a member, you have access to the ILR database. Call us if you have questions regarding access - 406-755-3438. Check out the website at www.lamaregistry.com
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| A NEW I Want A Llama publication will be coming out in 2006. You have an opportunity to reach old and new llama owners by being included in the advertising section for a mere $50. Call the office for specifics.. |
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Events Calendar |
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July 19, 2006 Dear Llama Owners, |
From the Registrar - Jan L. Wassink and the ILR Board of Directors |
re: ARI Dispute Settled
The good news this month is that the 2 ½ year-old dispute with the Alpaca Registry Inc. over their final bill from the ILR has finally been resolved. With a date for arbitration looming, the ARI suggested a last-minute mediation to try to resolve the issue. The ILR agreed and the issue was settled with the ILR receiving the amount of the original bill plus $4,000. We believe we would have received a larger settlement by proceeding with the arbitration as called for in the contract but we also believe that the additional time requirements and the additional expenses for our lawyer and the arbitrators would have negated any additional amounts received. We are thankful to have this issue behind us and excited about moving forward.
re: Lamaribbean Cruise Still Has Room for YOU
Elsewhere in this ILRe-port is more information on the Lamaribbean Cruise. We are excited that at least 120 people have already signed up for the cruise and as far as we know, the cruise line has not yet raised the rates so you might be able to come with us at the originally quoted fees if you act immediately.
re: Motivational Speaker to Guide the Llama Industry into the Future
The conference cruise program is being finalized and we have a dynamite speaker, Kevin Ochsner of Agri Business Group, Inc. (ABG). ABG describes itself as an organization "whose passion for your industry allows our teams to ask you the right questions, understand your situation, collaborate with you to create and implement ideas and trace success." Mr. Ochsner is scheduled to help us look at some of the opportunities that we have to move the llama industry forward. Come join us as we review our current status and work together to develop ideas to move forward. Our speaker has vast experience in strategic planning with other livestock registries and with numerous agricultural businesses. We want as much owner input as possible so that he can understand the particular needs and issues of our industry and can begin guiding us in positive directions for the streamlining, promoting and growth of the llama industry. Our industry is at a crossroads and we can either plod along as a bunch of individuals trying to educate the public and grow our markets or we can get excited and develop some movers and shakers in our community to raise the bar and drive our industry to the next level. The ILR is not trying to define the nature of this growth, rather, to provide an opportunity for ideas to develop with the help of a skilled professional who has no agenda or vested interest in the llama industry. Many who have heard him speak say that his insights would be helpful to any entrepreneur or business owner, so if you have family and friends coming on the cruise, they may want to sign up for the conference package just to hear his motivational messages.
Come cruise with us – www.lamaribbean.com – have a great time plus input into the direction of the llama industry!
Jan L. Wassink
and the ILR Board of Directors
Kathi McKinney , Karen Baum , Mark Smith, Sally Taylor, Sally Rucker
2007 Lamaribbean Cruise / Conference Information
. . . in celebration of llamas
An ILR Conference Reunion of Old and New Llama Friends
We have 120 people booked for the cruise to date
- IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN THE CRUISE YOU NEED TO BOOK NOW
- before space is gone and rates increase - a refundable deposit holds your space!
See itinerary below.
Be a part of it - BOOK today!!
Information including registration forms, cruise and shore tour specifics
(you can sign up for tours online - some fill up so it's a good idea to do it now)
available at:
www.lamaribbean.com
REMINDER - if you have already booked your cruise and plan to arrive the night prior to departure, which is a good idea, you need to call Diane at Cruises Inc. - 1-888-583-2020 to get your name on the hotel list, as well as set up a hotel-to-ship transfer for the following morning.
NOTE: If you have friends or family who would like to go on the cruise but not be involved in the llama conference activities, they are welcome to join us. They need to register for the cruise but NOT the conference.
ITINERARY| DAY | PORT | ARRIVE | DEPART | STATUS |
| Monday | Galveston, Texas | 5:00 PM | Docked | |
| Tuesday | At Sea |
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| Wednesday | Cozumel, Mexico | 7:00 AM | 7:00 PM | Docked |
| Thursday | Costa Maya, Mexico | 7:00 AM | 3:00 PM | Docked |
| Friday | At Sea | |||
| Saturday | Galveston, Texas | 7:00 AM | Docked |
DOG ATTACK – YOU ARE NOT IMMUNE
–By Dr. Melissa Hamilton
Reprinted from TLC News, Fall 2003
Everyone has thought of the possibility of their animals being the victim of a dog attack at some point in time, but the thought passes and you feel this could not happen to me. Please think again because this could happen to your herd.
There are very few fence designs on our farms that are dog proof, and many of us have fences that need repair. From barbed wire to a no climb fence, no matter how carefully you have selected your fencing, there is still the persistence of some dogs, especially dogs (domestic or feral) in a pack.
Approximately one year ago I was called by a distressed client. Their herd of seven llamas, mostly young animals, had been attacked by a pack of dogs from their neighborhood. The owners Border Collie had acted agitated multiple times that a.m. and the donkey in the pasture had brayed a few times, but they had no realization of what was occurring at the back of their pasture early that morning. At feeding time she found 3-4 mid-sized dogs around their pond with the entire herd of seven llamas in the pond. After chasing the dogs away, the owners discovered one llama had drowned in the three foot deep pond and that all but one llama had bite wounds from the dogs. I was called to the farm and upon inspection of all the llamas, found that the smallest llama was unharmed. Three midsized llamas had superficial wounds down the back of the neck and across their top line and the adult female had deep puncture wounds on the tail, rectum and along her top line. Their adult male also had traumatic injuries along with his top line injuries, he had two large holes ripped into his muscle around his rectum, one of which had a partially torn testicle exposed. He also had large punctures on his underside on either side of his urethra. In addition to his dramatic wounds, this was a cold morning and he was in shock and hypothermic from being in the water. The most unfortunate loss was the seventh animal which had become hypothermic and went down and drowned in the pond.
An interesting fact in this case was that there were 2 horses, 2 ponies, and 3 miniature donkeys in the same pasture – all of which were not injured in any way.
With propane heaters and blankets we warmed up all of the llamas. The most seriously injured young male had to be sedated to castrate him and repair as many of the wounds as possible. All of the llama’s wounds were derided, cleaned and treated with antibiotics. It took approximately 5 hours for us to treat the five injured llamas.
For three long months and many vet bills later, all five llamas recovered with treatment of daily water therapy, cleaning wounds, injectible and oral antibiotics, and diligent treatment from their owners and a neighbors help.
The dogs from this case were seen back in the area over the next couple of days, but were never identified. Animal Control/Animal Shelter instructed the owner that there was nothing they could do except provide them with live traps to catch the dogs.
The fences in this case were barbed wire which made easy entry for the dogs. However, I have recently had my own trouble with a dog attack. A few weeks ago, two of my neighbors Alaskan Malamutes crawled under our woven wire fence into Arnie and Winky’s pasture and their pack instinct kicked in. Luckily I had gone out to my truck at 11:30 p.m. and heard Winky screaming. He has puncture wounds on the side of his abdomen, on his scrotum and his right rump had a quarter sized hole into the muscle. Winky is recovering from his injuries, but our fear of dogs has increased 10 fold! Our fence was as few inches off the ground as possible and covered as many gates with no climb fence as possible. And our neighbor still insists her dogs are “good dogs”.
Please consider how safe your pastures and fences are and understand that this can be a problem any of us can encounter at any time. Attempts to dog proof your fence may be beneficial to deter dogs or a dog proof paddock for night time (when most dog attacks occur) housing may improve the safety of your animals.
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Compiled By Ellen Jacobs 1996 |
For several years before the outbreak of the Civil War, the United States Army conducted an experiment using camels as pack animals in the Southwest. This desert region's punishing climate and terrain took a terrible toll on the horses and mules upon which the Army had always depended. The suggestion that camels might fare better than these traditionally used mounts under desert conditions was met with ridicule and opposition by some, but with eager interest by others. Read on and learn the story of this fascinating and little known episode in U.S. military history.
THE BEGINNING
Selling The Idea
It was George H. Crosman, a U.S. Army second lieutenant who fought in the Seminole wars in Florida , who first proposed the introduction of camels to America . His argument, articulated here by his friend and fellow camel enthusiast E. F. Miller of Ipswich , Massachusetts , was:
For strength in carrying burdens, for patient endurance of labor, and privation of food, water & rest, and in some respects for speed also, the camel and dromedary (as the Arabian camel is called) are unrivaled among animals. The ordinary loads for camels are from seven to nine to ten hundred pounds each, and with these they can travel from thirty to forty miles per day, for many days in succession. They will go without water, and with but little food, for six or eight days, or it is said even longer. Their feet are alike well suited for traversing grassy or sandy plains, or rough, rocky & hilly paths, and they require no shoeing...
Reasonable though this was, no one in Washington took Crosman seriously, until he befriended Henry C. Wayne, a Quartermaster, and fellow major (Crosman had been promoted several times by then). Wayne was able to convince Jefferson Davis, a senator from Mississippi , that the Army should give camels a trial.
In his capacity as chairman of the Senate Committee on Military Affairs, Davis regularly advocated for the importation of camels on an experimental basis, but to no avail. It wasn't until Davis was appointed Secretary of War in 1852 that he was able to make an official recommendation on the subject of camels. Even then, it took another three years, during which time the matter was much discussed in the press, before the government took action. On March 3, 1855 Congress appropriated $30,000 for the project, and the stage was set for the birth of the U.S. Camel Corps.
ADVENTURES ABROAD
Getting The Camels
The ship USS Supply, with Lieutenant David Dixon Porter in command, set sail from New York on June 3, 1855 . Aboard was Major Henry C. Wayne, charged by Secretary of War Jefferson Davis with the responsibility of procuring camels for the U.S. Army.
Upon arriving in the North African City of Tunis Wayne and Porter were so anxious to purchase camels, and so inexperienced, that they bought the first beast offered to them, which turned out to be sickly. They vowed to do better next time, but found that healthy camels were difficult to find. There was war in the Crimea , and most of the camels were there, carrying troops and supplies. They sailed again, for Malta , Greece , and Turkey , but had little luck in locating healthy animals.
They were, however, learning about the camel trade. They learned that Arabians(one-humped camels native to the Middle East ) were best for riding, while Bactrians(two-humped Asian camels) were best for carrying loads. They also learned how to avoid sick animals, and that camel dealers sometimes artificially inflated a sick camel's hump to give it a false appearance of plump good health.
At last, in Egypt , they discovered a plentiful supply of camels, but government regulations forbade them being taken from the country. Many bribes and negotiations later, the USS Supply headed for home with 33 camels and five camel-drovers who had been hired to care for the animals en route, and to educate American soldiers about the animals when they arrived.
The two-month trip home was far from smooth. There were storms at sea, during which the camels had to be lashed down in a kneeling position to prevent injuries. Also, the camel-drovers proved lax, and neglected their charges. Eventually, however, on April 29, 1856 , the Supply and its crew arrived at the port of Indianola , TX with 34 camels–one more than they had started with.
THE EXPERIMENT
Camels Vs. Mules And Men On U.S. Soil
Once on dry land, the camels were given several weeks of rest before being taken to their permanent base at Camp Verde , 60 miles west of San Antonio . During this time, they were used only occasionally to carry supplies from town. Major Wayne enjoyed astonishing the locals by loading a camel with 4 bales of hay (weighing over 1,200 pounds, about four times what a mule could carry) and having it rise, grumbling and groaning for effect, but otherwise unconcerned, and walk away, hardly aware of its burden.
Soon the camels took up residence at Camp Verde , and Wayne sent very favorable reports about them to Secretary of War Davis. However, Wayne and Davis had a falling out over whether or not to breed the animals ( Davis was against it) and eventually, in frustration, Wayne requested a transfer. A series of leadership changes followed; during which time the camels were put to little use. However, in June of 1857, the Camel Corps was assigned to survey the unexplored territory between El Paso and the Colorado River . The party, led by Edward Fitzgerald Beale, consisted of 25 camels, 44 soldiers, 2 camel-drovers (Greek George and Hadji Ali, whose name had been anglicized to Hi Jolly), and numerous horses and mules. At first, the camels did not meet Beale's high expectations, and often arrived in camp hours later than the horses and mules. But after a few days on the march, they hardened to their task, and soon outstripped the other animals, often leading over terrain where mules and horses balked.
More importantly, the camels proved their mettle when the expedition became lost and its water supplies dwindled. Only the camels were fit to go on. They found a river 20 miles from camp, and led the expedition to it, then looked on with indifference as men, mules, and horses gulped the water they were desperate for. Triumphantly, the Camel Corps pushed on to the Colorado River , its mission a success. The camels had won over the skeptics among the party. There were others in Washington however, who had not seen the beasts in action, and who remained unconvinced of their worth.
THE END
The Fate Of The Camels
When James Buchanan took office as President in 1857, he appointed a new Secretary of War, John B. Floyd. Although Floyd himself was a proponent of the Camel Corps, his commander of the Army in Texas , Major General David E. Twiggs, was not. In fact, Twiggs, "was outraged when he discovered a herd of camels under his command" (Yancey, p. 47). Though he admitted that he knew little of camels or of their potential fitness for military use, Twiggs's hatred of them was intense, and he barraged his superior with letters of complaint.
The camels were also unpopular among some of the soldiers who worked with them. Some found the beasts bad tempered, and claimed that they held grudges against those who ill-treated them, waiting for a chance to exact revenge by kicking or spitting on their enemies. The camels' smell was also a bone of contention, as it was unpleasant to men, and caused panic and stampeding among domestic animals unfamiliar with the strong odor.
In addition, the camels, though they performed splendidly when required, were not used often. Apart from carrying supplies, and making occasional surveying trips, the camels didn't do much, and were seen by some as a financial drain that brought little return.
By 1860, the nation's mind was on the imminent Civil War, and the camels were all but forgotten. In the course of the War, the Camp Verde herd was little used by the Confederate forces who were in charge there. The same was true of the camels that had remained in California after the Beale expedition: they were cared for, but seldom put to use. In November of 1863, the California herd was put up for public sale. Camels were sold to zoos, circuses, mining companies, and a few individuals, such as Edward F. Beale, who allowed his camels to live out their lives in comfort on his ranch. The Texas herd was auctioned off in 1865, though some of the camels sold were later reclaimed as stolen property by the government, which promptly released them into the desert. The short, colorful career of the U.S. Camel Corps had come to an end.
WHAT BECAME OF THEM?
THE LEGEND: Phantom Camels And Others
For years after the dissolution of the U.S. Camel Corps, camels wandered at will across the American desert. Bactrians, who had been bought and later set loose by a mining concern in British Columbia , drifted south to Nevada and Idaho . Many Arabians roamed through Texas , California , and Arizona . Although the last authenticated sightings of camels in the wild occurred in the early years of this century, there are locals who claim that the beasts thrive in remote areas to this day.
Among the many legends that arose concerning these animal army veterans who had been released to fend for themselves, none was more intriguing than the tale of the camel known as the Red Ghost. The first incident occurred in 1883, when a woman was discovered trampled by some beast, which left clumps of its reddish fur in a nearby thorn bush and huge hoof prints in the mud. Several days later, a large, unidentifiable animal careered wildly into a tent in which two miners lay sleeping. It too left behind hoof prints twice the size of those left by horses, and strands of red fur. More sightings occurred, and eventually the creature was recognized as a camel. A rancher reported that the animal carried a rider, and that the rider did not appear to be alive. This claim was proved when the beast was next seen, by a group of prospectors, who saw something fall from its back and roll away into the dust. The prospectors eagerly retrieved this object, which turned out to be a human skull.
The Red Ghost and its now headless rider continued to terrorize the populace for the next decade. It was finally killed in 1893 by an Arizona farmer, who caught the huge red camel grazing in his vegetable patch one morning. When examined, it was found that the animal had at last shaken free of its grisly rider, though it still bore the leather straps with which the corpse had been attached. Who was the mysterious rider? How did he come to be tied to the camel, and why? No one knows but the Red Ghost, whose unwanted burden eventually drove him on to madness and death.
U.S. Camel Corps remembered in Quartzsite, Arizona
by Chuck Woodbury editor, Out West
From Out West #18 ©2000 by Out West Newspaper
One of the most interesting military experiments of the American West involved 77 camels and a Syrian named Hi Jolly. His real name was Hadji Ali, and he's remembered today at a pyramid-shaped monument in the Quartzsite
Honored at Hi Jolly's grave in Quartzsite.cemetery.
With the first shots of the Civil War, the Camel Military Corps was as good as dead. Most of the animals were auctioned off, although a few escaped into the desert where most were shot by prospectors and hunters as pests.
Hi Jolly kept a few and started a freighting business between the Colorado River ports and mining camps to the east. The business failed, however, and Jolly released his last camel in the desert near Gila Bend. Years later, after marrying a Tucson woman and fathering two children, Hi Jolly moved to Quartzsite where he mined with a burro. He died in 1902 at age 73 and was buried in the Quartzsite Cemetery . To his dying day, Hi Jolly believed that a few of the camels still roamed the desert. Some people think the ghosts of some still do.
Pictured above is a monument to Hi Jolly and the U.S. Camel Corps
Bibliography f>rom Web site: ©Ellen Jacobs 1996 ejacobs@vmsvax.simmons.edu
Faulk, Odie B.The U.S. Camel Corps: an army experiment, Oxford University Press, New York , NY , 1976
Fowler, Harlan D . Camels to California ; a chapter in western transportation, Stanford University Press, Stanford , CA , 1950
Froman, Robert."The Red Ghost," American Heritage, XII (April 1961), pp. 35-37 and 94-98
Gauthiers-Pilters, Hilde and Anne Innis Dagg . The Camel: its evolution, ecology, behavior, and relationship to man, University of Chicago Press , Chicago , IL , 1981
Lesley, Lewis Burt ( ed.). Uncle Sam's Camels: the journal of May Humphreys Stacey supplemented by the report of Edward Fitzgerald Beale, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA, 1929
Yancey, Diane. Camels for Uncle Sam , Hendrick-Long Publishing Co., Dallas , TX , 1995
http://www.drumbarracks.org/original website/Camel Corps.htmlClassified Ads
Events - don't forget to check the ILR Events Calendar
Llamas for Sale
CLASSIC LLAMAS for sale. Studs, pets, breeding females. UTD on vet. Gentle, well behaved. Reasonable pricing. Call or e-mail for pics. 812-825-4289, byrdllama@bluemarble.net (7-11-06)
BEAUTIFUL AND AFFECTIONATE LLAMA and ALPACAS for SALE. Tally Ho's Big Sky Ranch. Visit us at www.tallyhoffman@hotmail.com 951-677-0010.(9-8-06)
MOONSHADOW FARM - eye catching, well formed, nicely fibered llamas for sale, show, breeding and wool. Visit us at www.moonshadowllamas.com or contact us for sales list, hh@moonshadowllamas.com (1-12-06)
HIGH QUALITY LLAMA liquidation - must go immediately -sale for $25,000 or best offer plus costs; a price way below their value. Eleven plus regular and mini's must go due to severe illness and disabilities for the most that gets done is feeding them which has become exceptionally difficult on a daily basis. Everything we have will also go with them. Check out www.llovinllamas.com. Email Dolfina02@yahoo.com or call 1-603-664-7587. (4-6-06)
HERD REDUCTION SALE - Each week a new weekly special posted on website - www.uhl-llama.com Upper Highland Llamas - Beavercreek, OR 503-632-3091. (4-6-06)
SHOW QUALITY llamas for SALE. Paco-Vicunas CO hayestees@sopris.net, 800-815-0488. Financing! (4-8-06)
LLAMAS FOR SALE abbott@charlo.net (1-12-06)
ILR Events
LAMARIBBEAN 2006 - An ILR conference reunion of Old and New Llama Friends. Book today before space is gone and rates increase - a refundable $100 deposit holds your space. Check out www.lamaribbean.com for info inclusing registration forms, cruise and shore tour opportunities.
We encourage you to support the following advertisers. They make this information possible.
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The Brownderosa |
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Hinterland Llamas |
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Little Doc's Veterinary Care |
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Llama Things Carolyn Myers Rt. 1 Box 62 Lakeview, TX 79239 806-867-3423 800-552-6213 carolynmyers@arn.net www.llamathings.com |
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Mountain Oaks Ranch |
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Rocky Mountain Llamas |
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Steven's Llama Tique and Suri Alpacas |
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Tally Ho's Big Sky Ranch |
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Traditional Lama Coalition |
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Wilkins Livestock Insurers, Inc. |