Do Llamas Spit?
Llamas and most members of the camelid family (alpacas, camels) have the ability to chew their cud. Chewing their cud means they chew their food once, then regurgitate it to chew it again at another time to get the most nutrients out of their food. With this ability they can also spit the half eaten food as projectile with quite good aim at about up to eight feet.
Now - that does not make a llama sound like a very likable friend. However it works both ways - if you are good friend to a llama then they will not be a bad friend back.
Llamas use the action of spitting as a hierarchical mechanism, mostly among llamas. It is like a horse kicking or a dog growling. Dogs growl more at other dogs than at people. Well, a llama that is used to people will realize that a person is not who they should spit at. Llamas will spit over food, or over mates or friends. Llamas will also spit to protect the herd, or a cria (baby llama).
Do my llamas spit at me?
My llama May is a Smart Alic and when she doesn't like me doing a certain act near her, she will spit right over the top of my head as a warning. Its a lot of fun being near such humorous creatures because they will play with you, but they also respect you. May has never spit directly at me before and Bella has never spit at me period. They are a dynamic due though and its funny to watch them spit at each other in their food fights.
A llama will spit if:
It feels threatened
It is cornered
Its not used to your presence
There are extraneous circumstances
