Home Forums Gear Horses and ATV's Hemp rope vs. synthetic

Packing hitches stay put a lot better with hemp/manila rope.

Top-loads and mantied packs just seem to 'stay' better with the extra grip.

Lead rope (5/8th nylon or poly, quality rope) should be tied hard and fast into rope halters if you don't know everything about the stock, Lead ropes should be at least 11' long, and there are only a few knots that are truly quick releasing, here is one.



And chain the rest of the free end, and tuck the pig-tail (some Houdinis will test everything) .

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A big male in good condition can carry 80 to 100 lb. Day after day traveling, it should be kept down a little. We just got back from a short trip. I had 60 lb on a smallish 3 yo gelding and he handled it just fine. They need to be 4 before you put on a full load. Be sure to include the saddle weight and balance the load. I carry a small hanging scale to even out the pannier weights.

They eat about anything, including sagebrush and pine needles. In the summer, you don't need to pack any feed. Just let them graze. They'll constantly be nipping off grass and brush as you go. One experienced packer told me that during elk season when there's snow, he carries a 50/50 mix of grain and hay pellets. He gives them about a quart a day, using a frisbee for a feed bowl. This supplements what they can scrounge. We have a lot of larkspur here. I don't know if it will hurt a llama, but it'll kill cattle and sheep. I watch for it and make sure I don't tether them near it. Their eating habits sure make it simple where weed-free hay is required.

They'll kill a coyote and I've been told that bears won't mess with them (but I have no 1st hand knowledge about that). They're no match for wolves, though. I haven't heard what a lion will do with one. He'll win easily if he attacks, but I don't know if he would mess with one. If one's around, you'll likely hear some hellacious sounds from the llamas. They have a whole vocabulary of warning sounds. They have one that's a cross between a horse whinny and a hyena. The first time I heard it (a neighbors dog was near my pasture fence), I had to go investigate to see what that noise was. I couldn't believe it was coming from a llama.