|
Many, or all of my "fun ideas" involve or are for kids. Kids love to get out in the fresh air, love to be around animals
and love to expend their energy!
These ideas would be good things for 4-H groups as they teach agility to both the handler
and llama, as well as throwing in some fun challenge as well!
Pack Relay Races:
This activity can be done
with only one person and a stop watch but for real fun, I suggest at least 2 people and 3 llamas.
To start, take a long
rope (a tie out rope) and tie large knots as far apart as you want your llamas to be tied (2 knots for one llama, tie llama
lead between the knots). Now, take your prepared tie out rope and tie it taught between two sturdy posts, preferable in the
corner of a pasture. Either curl the tails around the posts or put them over the other end of the fence. (This prevents llamas
from getting tangled and a bad situation from occurring)
After you have secured your tie out line, pick a spot for your
pack to hang. It should be close to the llamas and it plain site of them, so they aren't frighten when the person runs up
to them with it.
Once you have all these things in place, set up your obstacle course. Think of practical obstacles like
water crossings, rough terrain, noise makers, bridges, things that the llama and/or handler must go under, scary looking things
(with lots of color).
Now, you are ready to choose your llamas. Of course they should already be pack trained and tie
easily, as in, they won't bother the other llamas and they are docile enough to stay calm and not entangle themselves while
you are with the other llamas. Always work with one more llamas than there are people, other wise the llamas could get tired,
or if you don't have that many llamas, limit the number of runs each person takes. Now, tie your llamas to the tie out line,
making sure the line is tight and the llama is tied to it securely. Remember to space your llamas out, even if the live together,
there's nothing a llama enjoys more than harassing the llama tied next to it!LOL
Now, let the fun begin!!! If you have
a large family this could be nothing but fun for the kids! You (being the adult) will be the judge & handle the stop watch.
You can alter the rules as you wish, but these are the rules I would use:
1: A walk through for all handlers
2: Stop
watch starts when handler lifts pack off of hanging place
3: Handler must saddle llama exhibiting safety consciousness
and agility
4: Handler must check pack and untie llama
5: Handler and llama move to the obstacle area (run, walk, trot,
doesn't matter, but remember, the object is speed)
6: Handler and llama stop at selected entry to "ring" so does stop
watch
7: Judge writes down first time and tells handler when to enter ring, starting the stop watch when the handler and
llama begin to enter the ring
8: Handler and llama proceed through obstacle course and judge looks for safety consciousness,
control, willingness of llama, llama-handler feedback & smoothness
9: llama and handler exit ring
10: Handler ties
llama to tie out line, paying attention to proper spacing, un saddles the llama and replaces pack to hanger, when pack comes
to rest, stop watch is stopped
11: 2 times are added up for a total time
This can be great fun! I love to do this, by
myself and my llamas seem to enjoy it as well. Alternate every other run, for the llamas. A tired llama is a very uninterested
llama-again, don't do this with pregnant dams or studs! It would be great if you could come up with prizes to motivate the
kids. Candy bars, video games, pretty much anything kids like! For families-a week off chores for first place or some other
family thing. Oh yeah, you don't have to be a kid, either, it would be a great part of a llama fun day for your local club,
too!
Dress up fun
I love to do this with my llamas because it helps them get used to having things around them and just makes them calmer.
It's great for training and gets llama and handler over a lot of fears.
Again, this is a great 4-H activity.
Pick out anything to dress a llama in, use your imagination. You can make it a bit of a compition, if you want by offering
prizes to "best dress" llamas and handlers.
Scavenger Hunt
This is pretty much self explanatory, but could be lots of fun!
Again, this is a great 4-H activity,
or llama fun day for your local club.
To start:
Determine your hunt area, draw a map and begin to hide items, or hints,
or both! Give a general idea of where your hints are hidden to your "lookers". Everyone must have their own llama and their
own pack, on the llama. If a llama isn't pack trained or the handler doesn't have a pack, anything from two groceries bags
tied onto the llama or a back pack for the handler will work-but, you have to have a llama with you at all times.
First
one back with all the hints/items is the winner. Prizes, again could be offered.
Llama Bath time
This is, again, kind of self explanitory, however, this one isn't just a kid activity. It is actually essential during
the hot part of the summer, in some states.
Llamas over heat very easily, they must be watched at all times durring the summer.
Kids would really get into this but it is also fun for us adults, too. There is nothing better than a nice cold swim
in the heat of the day in August but if your like me, you want to take the llamas with you, right? LOL Well, a good way for
llama and owner to cool down & have a little fun, together, in the summer time, is to wash the llama. When I say wash,
I don't mean shampoo and conditioner. If you are blessed with cold water in the summer time, just hook up the hose to the
fossit & begin to wet the llama down, working from the leggs up. You will get wet, too, believe me! It's great fun and
usually the dog will get in on the act, as well.
Careful! In the summer you might think once a day will be good and that you only need to watch your beloved camelids
in the heat of the day, wrong! On hot, hot days, they must be watched from morning til' evening and sometimes require washings
every half hour, especially for pregnant dams! Nachos always seems to get hotter when she's pregnant or maybe, I just watch
her more. Regardless, this is a fun activity for you, your llamas, your dogs & your kids in the hot summer.
P.s always do this in the shade-extreme heat on the head, even when in cold water, can be deadly!
Perfect Party Tray for Race Day
Ok, so this has nothing to do with llamas!LOL It could be incorporated into a llama fun day or 4-H meeting, however.
Every year, for the Daytona 500 (I'm a huge NASCAR fans) I fix a grand party tray, with all the trimmings! Now, I am
going to share my idea with the world!LOL
The 500 is always on Sunday & I will usually start chopping and cutting Saturday night. Here's what I include on
my party tray (use your imagination & you could embelish!):
Vegitables: Baby Carrots, Celery (cut into thin strips), Brocoli and Coliflower
Meat: Salami or Peporoni, or both, Lil' Smokies (These are a must. I place them in a small pot drowning in BBQ suace.
I then put them on my dad's wood stove in his office. They boil and bubble & can be fished out with tooth picks. If you
don't have a wood stove handy, just use a hot plate!)
Dip: Ranch or Blue Cheese dressing (Has to be Light House Blue Cheese)
Crackers: Ritz, original. I haven't tried the flavored ones, although I'm sure they'd be good, too.
Sides: Pickled onions (made by chopping any kind of onion, moderatly thin to medium thick, and pooring pickle juice over
them & letting them sit for about 15 minutes before consumption), Pickles (gotta be dill)-usually sliced, end to
end
Cheese: I use anything from Monteray Jack to Swiss. I have to say, my favorite would probably be Swiss, I used that on
this year's party tray & Yum!
Add ons: Turtle Brownie Bites (I make my own brownies & carmel, of course, I can't devuldged the reciept to either
because, 1 I don't have one for the carmel & 2 the brownies have won 1st 3 years in a row at the county fair!LOL), Cinnamin
Pie Crust roll ups (make pie crust, spread with soft/melted butter-liberally. Sprinkly cinnamon and sugar mixture over butter
and roll up. Bake @ 350 until pie crust is golden brown. Cut into bite sized pieces)
Drinks: My famouse (in my family) Iced Tea (fill a glass one gallon jar with hot as you can get from your tap, water.
Place 12-13 regular black tea, tea bags on top, make sure they submerge, and put lid on. Place outside in sun pretty much,
all day. Bring in, remove tea bags and put 1/3 of a cup of sugar in, stir vigoriously and place in Fridge. This is a little
hard to do in Febuary so, just take 12-13 of you tea bags and pour boiling water over them and let steep for about 1/2 hour,
take tea bags out & add 1/3 cup sugar, stir vigoursly and fill the rest of your gallon jar up with cold tap water. Serve
with Ice), Root beer, Cola, anything really.
So that's the perfect party tray for race day or any other day! believe me, if you fix this, you'll be a hit with your
family & friends! Remember, this is just what I place on my tray-you can come up with many different things!
Let's get Crafty!
This is so much fun! I love to just sit down and create for my llamas! All you need is a theme, or even just main colors
and start creating! Anything is a good medium, felt, any type of fabric, yarn, wool, tool, clothes, anything!
I use a glue gun and a sewing machine & come out with something totally cool almost everytime! Kids love to do this
sort of thing and it lets them make a mess and use their imagination. Prizes could be offered for "Most imaginitive" or "best
dressed" or any number of things. Any way you look at it, it's great fun! Remember, kids should never use a hot glue gun,
scissors or a sewing machine unsupervised!
|
