She laughed and said , “ It was very organic , never intentional . So , I ’ ve always loved alpacas and llamas . I grew-up next to a petting zoo that had a lot of alpacas .”
She said she would take her brother , who was 9 years younger , to the petting zoo and they would hang-out with the alpacas .
“ I had a lot of difficult moments throughout my childhood and they always brought me this sense of peace , just being around them ,” she said . “ Did I dream of owning one ? No .”
She said that was mainly because she never wanted to live on a farm because she was a city girl .
Then , she said , when she had her first son , she decorated his nursery in an alpaca theme and people would give him stuffed animals that were llamas and alpacas .
“ He never got attached to any stuffed animals but my second-born son , became attached to a llama and since he was six months old , has carried around this llama and he ’ s almost six years old now ,” she said . “ So , it ’ s just funny how I ’ ve always had this tie .”
Last July , she said , her mom bought the property between Autreyville and Pavo and Amanda thought , “ Man , if I wanted to , I could own a llama and an alpaca .”
However , she said , llamas were expensive and she wasn ’ t invested enough in the idea to spend $ 8,000 or $ 10,000 . “ I just wanted a pet ,” she said . She still kept researching online , though , and found a lady who was in her late 60s , early 70s who was struggling with health issues . She had a llama that she couldn ’ t take care of anymore .
Don Parker said that he did not expect the camelids to be so gentle when he petted them .
MARCH 2025 MoultrieScene 15