December

12/1  The 11 Mile Llama Rescue on the western slope of Colorado was completed successfully.  Of the 24 llamas, 11 went to the Kerrville Sanctuary.  The project had been kept quiet because it is an ongoing animal control case. Animal control called us in to help. At some point we can tell the whole story but not yet. Lynda's crew just picked up the last 2 of the 24. It continues to be a whirlwind of activity for almost 2 months.

12/19  Pentagon Federal Credit Union is offering 18 mo & 2yr CD rates at 4.35%.
Pentagon Federal Credit Union has changed the membership requirements to open up membership to anyone.
IF donations or fundraising was done, the rates are some of the highest available.
Donations can be sent to the treasurer address at:  SWLR, 184 Hoofbeat Trl, Kerrville, TX 78028 or paypal at SouthwestLlamaRescue@gmail.com.

12/20  Last quarter, the use of Amazon Smile and designation of SWLR as the charity resulted in $92 donation. Thanks to all of you who use Amazon Smile & designate SWLR as their charity.

12/24  baxter wrote:  I trust all of you are warm and fed well this holiday season. You all make a difference in the lives of llamas and their previous owners and the other volunteers. Thank you for being part of the village that cares.

12/24  Little cria (born Oct) Loretta Lynn had a successful surgery yesterday. The tendon and lower leg could was not viable and causing more harm than good so the vets agreed that amputation was the best course. She had her surgery yesterday and came out walking on 3 legs. So far, so good. After care in the cold and 2 more vet visits are planned but all is well.

We are hauling warm water to all the llamas. Texas does not usually get this cold. I had to dig out my NM clothing.

12/26  Announced on Facebook: "When you sign up to donate monthly to a nonprofit on Facebook, Meta will match 100% of your donation after you make your second monthly donation. We’ll match up to $100 per donation, $100,000 per nonprofit and up to $7 million in total across all organizations. This is a shift from how we’ve historically matched one-time donations on GivingTuesday. ...

To be eligible for our match, people in the US can sign up to donate monthly between November 15 and December 31, 2022. We’ll continue covering donation processing fees so everything raised through fundraisers on our platform goes directly to the organization you support."

12/26  The use of Facebook Meta for SWLR is beyond my time, talent, or interest. I cannot figure it out and would rather be caring for llamas.  baxter gives up.

12/26  Donna posted on Facebook that she has been notified of a 14-year old black male huacaya needing a home because his herdmates have passed away.  She followed up later to say she thinks she has a good home for him already!  Great going, Donna.

12/27  Rosemary offered to figure out Meta as she uses the Meta Business Suite for her farm page.  baxter quickly thanked her.

November

11/1  Lynda Liptak sold some llama manure to master gardeners for $100 donation to SWLR. Nice.

11/2  baxter told us a high school friend came to visit the llamas and donated $50 to SWLR. It is one way to raise funds for rescue in addition to sale of llama "beans".
She also noticed that PayPal asked if she would donate $1 to SWLR when she made a purchase. Has anyone else seen that request? baxter believes the $1 will come thru the PayPal Giving Fund.

11/15  baxter updated the situation at the Kerrville sanctuary:  Loretta Lynn, the injured cria, has gained weight. Her leg continues to be a challenge. We are working with the vet and are reaching out to find a specialist to consult.

New arrivals that need shearing and medications are settling in with the help from many volunteers. All will need time to evaluate and train and treat for medical issues.

The "behavior issue" male llama that was surrendered has not given us any problems except with his health. He is an old male llama that was gelded just a month ago. His eating and peeing and pooping is better now than the first few days when he arrived after some oral doses of mylanta and even some mineral oil. The previous owner said that the llama was acting depressed but my assessment is that this old llama was ill as well as depressed. Now he is among some other old geldings so he has companionship.

11/25 Nina had someone come by and pick up some llama manure aka beans. Nina asked for a donation and one was given to SWLR for $200 thru paypal on the website. Very nice!

11/28  L'illette told the story of Loretta Llama on her gofundme page:
My name is L'illette, and I'm an Adoption Coordinator for Southwest Llama Rescue's sanctuary in Kerrville, TX. I'm also a director for this all-volunteer 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with other locations throughout the southwest. The llamas and alpacas that come to us, often as their last chance to simply stay alive, are supported by donations from folks like you.

Loretta is the youngest recipient of your donations. She came to us at four hours old on October 5, the day after Loretta Lynn died. Her mother had "roughly rejected" this precious little girl... who had been born with a congenital malformation of one rear leg that was so profound she would not have been able to stand and nurse. A constricted tendon had her leg drawn up so tightly that her foot was by her hip, and I swear it reminded me of a frozen chicken wing.
I slept in a livestock trailer with Loretta the first two nights, praying that she would live until morning. Then we moved her into a 10x10' pen with a canopied shelter, in which I slept near her for a few more nights. At last, we set up an adjacent canopied shelter for me, so she could have more room to move around; and we continued her two-hour bottle feedings until we could arrange to have help with feeding her.
Beginning on day two of her very young life, we began weekly visits to our vet to have the “bad” leg stretched and splinted, hoping Loretta could eventually manage some sort of ambulation. After four weeks, though, it was decided that the splints couldn't do anything more for her. The last one was briefly put on mornings and removed at night, but it ultimately created a nasty pressure sore. Finally, with that leg having drawn back up almost to its original position, we had to consider amputation, knowing the chances of such a young llama surviving anesthesia were terrifyingly slim.
Worse, her supporting rear leg had begun to collapse, and she was again struggling just to walk. After visiting one more local vet who could offer no other real suggestions, we took her to an exceptional veterinary clinic several miles away. There, Loretta was mildly sedated and xrayed, while three attendants stretched her leg to an almost natural position. An obtruding bone was shifted closer to its correct placement, and the tendon was correctly aligned. We were then told there might be a way to save Loretta’s leg! We hope to hear this week if that surgeon will accept her case, thereby offering more than hope: a surgical and recovery plan that Loretta can survive.
So, that's a lot of veterinarians, a fair amount of travel, medicines and, ultimately, surgeries to save her leg... or to amputate it. We need your help to continue our determined efforts to give little Loretta every chance to have a happy, healthy future.
Loretta is just one of over 30 llamas presently in our care in Kerrville. One of our more recent intakes, an elderly male that had recently been gelded--not generally recommended at his advanced age. He was sick, depressed, and extremely underweight, but wouldn't accept anything other than the feed of his previous companion goats. In addition to all that, he has neck arthritis so severe that he can barely raise his head above the ground.
We have also recently taken in eight completely unhandled and untrained adult female llamas, three with babies still nursing. They required initial evaluation, vetting, vaccinations, shearing, toenail trims... and are now being gentled in preparation for training to begin as soon as they are acclimated to their new, safe environment.
30+ llamas, some with medical needs. Nursing moms and their little boys. Elderly males and females with various age- and injury-related long-term issues. Others with ongoing health concerns resulting from previous neglect or abuse, and a few with emotional needs requiring that they remain at the sanctuary for however long they may live. Healthy llamas suitable for adoption are trained in basic handling and trailer loading. Grass hays, pellet feeds, supplements, medications, veterinarian farm-call visits... For these things, we also depend on your support to care for our animals’ needs.
Please donate to Southwest Llama Rescue so we can continue providing extraordinary care for these animals we love. Your one-time or recurring donations are 100% directly attributed to the costs of caring for the llamas and alpacas in our care.
On behalf of all our caretakers, trainers, and four-legged residents, we thank you!

11/30  baxter asked the Facebook group if anyone uses llama manure for fuel.  Nancy T. said she knows someone who has made fire bricks or fire starters.  Sona has heard that but she's never tried it.  She asked if you can use it immediately; she thinks it would work better dried out.

October

10/20  The GoFundme Li'llette posted raised $1887 towards the vet bills at TAMU for Bella the llama.

10/25  baxter has cleaned up the volunteer data base of volunteers by removing the ones that are bouncing.  Some were people who have duplicate addresses.  Please let her know if you want to be removed from the volunteer email list.  It is used to keep volunteers in the know of what is happening within the volunteers of SWLR.  Some are also on SWLR volunteers on Facebook. You would receive duplicate information, so let her know if you want to be removed from this list but stay on the Facebook group or vice versa.

10/25  Kerrville sanctuary received a cria with a retracted tendon on a rear leg. The dam rejected the cria. The vet asked if we could take on the responsibility of bottle raising this few hours old, 16lb, female cria. Loretta Lynn, as she was named, is doing well so far. Loretta has gained weight, running around on 3 legs with a cast on the 4th leg to hopefully get the 4th leg working. Pictures are on various facebook posts. We have been scrambling so few emails with pictures on this list.  We are feeding her thru the night still so some of us are sleep deprived. <g> ==baxter

10/30  A photo was posted on the SWLR Facebook site of Moana, Bobbie Jean (named after an animal control officer who helped rescue this sweet llama, & Christina ready for a Halloween walk around the neighborhood. Way to go, Helen, for adopting these 3 bonded llamas and loving them to the max!

10/31 ISO Texas ASAP transport of one llama with "behavioral issues."This trip hasn't been finalized, pending determination of foster farm. Pick-up will be in New Braunfels; destination might be Milam; or location TBD if we find someone else who can foster (care for, evaluate, train); or, if that doesn't work out, SWLR sanctuary in Kerrville as a back-up last resort.

If (1) you can transport this boy, or (2) if you are an EXPERIENCED llama handler and have trained them previously and are interested in fostering for SWLR, please contact me asap either here or by email to swlrATlilletteDOTnet.

September

9/2  L'illette asked us to spread the word of the GoFundMe for the beautiful Bella.  She is fighting for her life at TX A&M Large Animal Teaching Hospital.  Next couple of days will determine whether they can save her. https://www.gofundme.com/f/saving-bella-llama

9/3  L'illette will join the RMLA Board next month, October 2022.  Rocky Mountain Llama and Alpaca Association has been serving the lama community since 1982.

9/10  UPDATE: IN PROGRESS  We need assistance asap with nine-llama surrender in Duncan OK area. Need help to load untrained animals and a foster farm placement. Only experience volunteers, please. Please contact L'illette for details.

9/16  Ellen has mentioned she would separate out the addresses on the registry into a separate file. As long as the name of the adopter & surrender person is kept in the registry, the full info can be in another file.

L'illette is in the process of establishing members that are the active volunteers or who want to be active with some minimum amount of dues.

We do have the address files from the bumper sticker mailings.  The plan would be to incorporate the registry addresses into those address files that are in existence.  We would need the phone number, email, plus address.

Membership list can be from the address files, perhaps.

Important if we want to do any kind of appeal for fundraising.  Maybe add a column or note that says whether the person is on facebook or volunteer groups.io or board member or adopter or member.

What information would you want on a contact list?

9/20  We currently have had vet farm visits and some additional herd health issues with the old retired llamas.  One llama, Mrs. Jones, is not walking that we are treating as best we can with advice from 3 vets including Texas A&M.

Thank you in advance for your donations and for your fundraising projects.

9/20  Nancy H. asked, "I have 2 llamas that are limping which I believe is due to sand burs.  Have you ever had this problem?  I’ve called the vet but haven’t been able to get an appointment yet.  I’m in the midst of getting help to clear out burs from my pasture.  If you have any suggestions about bur management I’d love to hear.

9/20  baxter has used two methods to remove plants/seeds (Goatheads!).  She doesn't use herbicides.
Labor intensive, but (1) pull young plants as soon as I spot them which is usually when the lovely little yellow flowers come out.  Even then, there are seeds.  (2) I put down the foam square pads that I buy in a package from TSC or Harbor freight (cheaper) and walk on the pads.  More pads can make it go faster.  Pick up the pads & scrape off the burrs into the trash.  Repeat.  A friend came out to help and it was a "Lucille Ball" kind of activity like crushing grapes for wine with our feet.

Last idea is a foam sponge paint roller with a long handle.  Basically the same process.  Roll over the seeds & scrape off the roller, repeat.  I have not tried this but it should work especially if you can get enough cheap sponge roller pads.

Let me know what you try and especially what works.  The pads are the 2 foot square ones that connect together to make a padded floor space.  I use the pads for several things so I have a stack.

Nancy H. replied, "I do not use herbicides either.  With help, we’re hoeing put plants and bagging them which is a big task.  Mowing the plants before they drop seeds in the big patches is another thing that is helping.  I do plan to use pool noodles with paint rollers.  And foam pieces too."

9/27  Mrs. Jones has passed away.  She could no longer stand.  She gave the softest kisses and was very social with visitors, a real favorite.  A vet assisted in her passing.  Darry named her after the folk song "Me & Mrs Jones."

9/28  Article on record keeping for  501(c)3. SWLR is a 501(c)3.
https://www.missionbox.com/article/351/document-retention-for-us-nonprofits-a-simple-guide

August

8/3  Aaron is driving his truck from Utah to Texas on Monday Aug 8th. Just FYI. In case anything needs to come this direction. He will be returning Texas to Utah in a month. We do have some donated equipment such as halters & leads if anyone needs some that could go on his return trip. You would need to be close to his route which is thru Albuquerque.

8/11  Figment Ranch & Event Center which is a rescue & sanctuary near Houston has agreed to lifetime care of 8 of the old female llamas from here. They left this am and arrived safely by lunch time in good traveling weather.  This is good news as they (Sean Price, Robin Turell, Ruby Herron) have grass & the means to foster old females.  L'illette arranged the connection.  More details later.

8/12  Anyone have access to a land or farm lease that allows you to graze your animals? Would you be willing to share it with the Board?
Nina responded:  Where are you wanting your animals to graze? Location? My local farm bureau has a "match" program that matches farms/ranches who have available land. Don't know if this is a local/regional or national program.

8/15  Thanks to those who use smile.amazon.com and designate Southwest Llama Rescue, Inc. as the charity, Southwest Llama Rescue Inc. received $88.44 as a result of qualifying purchases made by you and other customers between January 1st-March 31st.

8/23  baxter asked if anyone would investigate ReelTime Animal Rescue which offers 501(c)3 non-profit or animal welfare organizations to be a part of their free network of livestreaming and uploaded videos to their platform to increase our presence and outreach.
Nina suggested that if SWLR and SELR both participated it out increase national recognition.  Would anyone want a live streaming camera on your ranch?   Does anyone know how to produce videos and post them? Could you do it on a consistent basis to benefit SWLR?

8/26  2 llamas were adopted today to Seguin, TX. The adopters are shearers and also have a 4-H program and sponsor Bluebonnet Llama Show.  Seguin is a couple of hours from Kerrville so the trip was not long for the llamas.

8/26  URGENTLY SEEKING spitty camelids in Cypress/Houston area!  Desperately need to activate rumen of down llama!  Contact L'illette.

8/28  baxter reported that they recently went thru the entire herd TWICE for toenail trimming and ear checks for ticks and cylence treatment or ivermectin if needed. The nails were finally soft after a much needed rain. Ticks are a new occurrence here. The guineas help a lot but this year is different with the drought, heat, water restrictions, plus new arrivals that brought ticks with them from other locations. Ticks were found inside the ears in the fold ridge. This is after a vet check did not locate them at the beginning of summer.

8 llamas left, then 3 returned, then 2 left. One that left is in ill health so we are following thru on the llama's progress. Zero time for pictures or more details.

8/30  Our Bella, who joined us at Southwest Llama Rescue, Kerrville TX in June 2021, is in the fight of her life.  We are fighting for her and ask you to join the battle.  We anticipate hospital costs of at least $5000—already over $1800 in just the first few days—and more tests and longer-term hospitalization are needed immediately.  If the cause is found, or at least a successful treatment plan implemented, the costs may well be even higher than we currently anticipate.   We have started this GoFundMe to raise money to continue her care at the Texas A&M Large Animal Teaching Hospital, where they are trying to determine the cause as they continue to treat the symptoms.  Your donation will go specifically to Bella’s care and is tax-deductible as a charitable donation.
I would hugely appreciate it if you took a moment to check out Bella’s GoFundMe campaign at
Your support will mean so much. Thank you!
L'illette

July

7/2  The fundraiser at the Kerrville Folk Festival brought in over $800 in donations. That is hay for the llamas. Thanks to all who contributed items, talent, time, & participated.

7/10  A volunteer is working with a lady close to Ardmore, OK to find someone who might be able to catch an abandoned, lone, scared llama.

7/12  Bahama Mama Llama, Catalina, and Avalon are doing well here thanks to the good care of Lynda and the careful transport by Aaron.  They hang together in the coolest part of the land under shade trees & come to some senior feed with an arthritis herbal mix each morning.  Avalon is started on meloxicam also thanks to L'illette.
The other 2 females that arrived are really old and moving slowly.  They are keeping to themselves, and are kushed often.  Both receive Dr Pollard's herbal mix for arthritis and one receiving meloxicam from L'illette.
Thanks to all who assisted in getting the 5 females to the sanctuary.  It really takes a village.

7/12  Learned that Sebastian, an adopted rescue llama, died this week.  We are no strangers to grief from our 4-legged companions.  Sebastian was a rescue from early 2000s.  He had a great & long life with his new family.  Sebastian came from a horrible trailer accident in California and was a survivor.  Thanks to all who helped Sebastian with the rescue, transport to SWLR, raised funds for his transport, trained him to lead, load on a trailer, adopted him, trained him to pack, and gave him a good life with lots of adventures and love.

7/24  Char in Montana told a gal in Nevada about SWLR because she is looking for a llama sanctuary closer to her for her llama to go to.

7/27  Is there anyone who can help Bureau of Animal Protection with a llama that needs to be picked up in Morgan County this Thursday,  July 28th?  Contact me for details.  Lynda
Help was found.  Lynda is grateful for a quick no-notice response to catch a llama in open space and doing it so well!  Gary & Patti will foster care for the new young male llama for SWLR.  SWLR welcomes them and third rescuer Nancy.

7/27  An alpaca rescue ranch is looking for a connection with possibly the Navajo or other weavers/spinners who would like her sheep and alpaca fleeces.  She has a lot and paying for processing a a mill is too expensive.  Do you know anyone who could use them?

7/31 L'illette's birthday fundraiser for SWLR raised $270 after hoping for $200.

June

6/3 Lynda reported they are expecting the driver Aaron to pick up from Albuquerque, 5 females to go to Baxter's in Kerrville that include the three sisters: Bahama Mama Llama, Catalina, and Avalon. The three sisters came from Denkai Animal Sanctuary and lived in Elizabeth CO until November 13, 2021 when they were surrendered back to Lynda. Lynda transported them to Canon City to a foster care arrangement where two of them (Catalina and Avalon) got left due to ankle injuries on December 1, 2021. The vet there wanted to euthanize Catalina and Lynda refused and agreed to take them back. Robin Benton drove them down to Albuquerque where we hospitalized them for a week where they got radiographs and Resflor (12cc/week for 5 weeks). Catalina has made a fantastic recovery and barely has a limp. Her ankle is large from the bone having been infected but she does not seem to be in pain. She is more trusting and comes to you from across the field readily for snacks. I can touch her a little. Avalon is limping but less so and her pastern is completely down now since the injury. Her other pastern is very soft.

6/5 Would each of you commit to one fundraising project this year for llama/alpaca rescue? Then share with all of us what your fundraising project was? Thank you to those that sent in or made some items for the fundraising booth that is going on right now.

6/9 baxter explained a current situation of a llama needing to be shorn. Similar scene from a few weeks ago. Contacted by an owner with a single intact male guard llama who has NOT been sheared for years (never sheared by this owner) put in with sheep, not handled. Llama is there to protect the sheep on large acreage. Shearers are too busy by now and it is costly to pay for mileage and time for one llama. Thank goodness the owner found SWLR from facebook. Niki has made arrangements to go soon to at least trim/hand shear the llama. It is always an unknown situation on arrival (what kind of corral/catchment/training). We are not professional shearers and only do this when a llama is in distress. In this Texas heat, we do not want the llama suffering if we can assist. At the same time, we don't work well in this heat either and are working as hard as we can to care for the llamas at the sanctuary and upkeep on the facilities. Whew! Moral of the story is if you know anyone with llamas, please tell them to schedule shearers early in the year.

6/12 One more success story for preventing heat stress! Niki went yesterday to shear the intact male (guard for sheep) AS A FAVOR since our time and resources are needed for the llamas at the sanctuary here. Record heat advisory going on. Llama was sheared and all is well today.

6/22 Susan told us about a guy out of Louisiana. He’s buying llamas and alpacas cheap and selling them high. One woman said she talked to him about buying a male alpaca for $1500 and then wanted to add on shipping charges to move it from Louisiana to Mission, TX. More power to him if he can get that, but that’s not the intention of the page. She deleted him from the Texas Rehome page.

6/22 There was some discussion about the value of the 800 number that serves SWLR and CRC. It was decided to drop it as an unnecessary expense in this time of unlimited long distance with cell phones.

May

5/11  baxter received a call about a downed llama probably with heat stress. Llama was at a nearby town. Owner had to go to a funeral and vet was not available. Llama had not been sheared and was old. Niki packed up the shearing supplies (hand shears) and Banamine and went to where the llama was. She hand sheared the llama and wet him down at the belly and gave him Banamine.  He is drinking and eating today. Owner is scheduled to take him to the vet today since llama also had an eye infection and was a low body score. Whew! Texas is in record heat wave and early in the year.

5/11  The Kerrville Sanctuary is host for a few "farm stay" sites where baxter provides room & board in exchange for some hours of volunteering with cultural exchange. I use WWOOFUSA.org, HELPX.net, WORKAWAY.info, among others. She has been listed on WWOOFUSA.org since 2007 and has met some wonderful people that way that love to work with the lamas. baxter usually pays for premium membership. Some sites are free. Here is a link to one of them. If you sign up thru her invite, we get a discount on our membership. No pressure, however as it is worth the cost without the discount: https://www.workaway.info/invite/ADED3516

5/13  Niki gave a training session to two new adopters. The adopters were experienced with alpacas & llamas but wanted to see some of the methods that were used here. We did have her sign a liability waiver for our farm here & Southwest Llama Rescue, Inc.

5/13  Would you want to share the liability waiver that you use for your farm with the volunteers on this list? Does it also include Southwest Llama Rescue, Inc. volunteers? A sample was attached of what baxter uses. It is being reformatted and can be modified based on any input from you.
Lynda attached her form and noted that she will adjust her language where it falls short.  She also asked how long to keep waivers.

5/14  3 alpacas left for their new home today. Good home with 2 other alpacas.

5/15  Rescue operations have lacked in volunteers during COVID. The sanctuary has been short of volunteers due to COVID for 2 years. A big KUDOS to all of you who have volunteered thru these tough times. SWLR volunteers ROCK!

5/18  SWLR welcomes new member Terry.

5/20  Reminder that SWLR will be doing a fundraising and information booth at a festival that goes for 3 weeks starting in a WEEK. If you have items you want to donate for the booth to sell, please send SOON. Thank you. Send to SWLR, 184 Hoofbeat Trl, Kerrville, TX 78028.

5/25  L'illette saw that Biosecure [Shearing] is making one last swoop into Texas the 2nd week of June…if you’re in TX and need a team, this may be your last chance...not sure what areas of TX. Contact them NOW to inquire. They’re on FB.

April

4/4  Today was shearing day at the Kerrville Sanctuary.  They were shorn, vaccinated and had their toenails trimmed.  It was a long day but all went well.

4/8  One llama was castrated and another 6 looked at when the vet visited today.

4/10  Thank you to those who ran fundraisers in February on Facebook.  SWLR received $336 thru Network for Good distribution with anonymous donations from facebook. SWLR also received $30 from iGive (anonymous) for a donation in November 2021. iGive takes a while to process the funds, plus the check is mailed.  SWLR continues to use the donations for feed and vet care.

4/11  A memorial service for Cindy is planned for April 14, weather permitting, at 10AM in the pasture in Kerrville with the "boys" in attendance.  The plan is to record some of the service and post it. Cindy died a year ago in April.  More details soon.

4/14  Too good not to share again if you missed the story of Lewis the llama. https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/regional/runaway-yellowstone-llama-has-dental-surgery-to-get-at-root-cause-of-past-escape/277-520f857d-d42a-460c-b509-e121179430ad

4/15  Brooke posted pictures to the volunteers Facebook page asking for help identifying two dermatological spots on her undercarriage. She's been given oral Safeguard and oral Ivermectin.  Any ideas?

4/16  SWLR welcomed new members Cole, Sona and Alexis to the group.

March

3/12  Bumper stickers continue to be mailed.  Email SouthwestLlamaRescue@gmail.com to request the number of stickers you would like mailed to you.
The IRS and state filing have been completed for 2021.
Guidestar information on nonprofits was updated with the 2021 information requested to be rated a Platinum charity.  Network for Good information was updated including the new address of record which is Pat's address.
The Facebook Southwest Llama Rescue, Inc. page was updated with the new email address and Pat's new address.
Pat Little's new address is 1201 St. Francis Drive, Tularosa, NM 88352.  Many references are being located and updated.
The yahoo.com emaill address has been phased out and only the gmail email address is monitored, references are being located and changed to the gmail email address.

3/15  SWLR will have a booth at the Kerrville Folk Festival.  We'll be setting out information, a donation jar, camelid-related things to sell, and hopefully a few really nice things to raffle. We just need some "things"! Please contribute! Send by April 30 to 170 Hoofbeat Trl, Kerrville TX 78028-8780. Text L'illette at 720.839.0787 if you have questions.

3/22  Volunteers from France and Vermont visited SWLR sanctuary to help train llamas.  SWLR is blessed with a great trainer, willing volunteers and smart llamas.

3/26  Will and Moonshine arrived today.  They are father and son and do NOT get along.  Perhaps castration on March 31 will change that.  Nice looking, well fed llamas that need shearing, vaccinations, training.  Sue Leslie and Anna Reese, Leslie Lane Llamas are scheduled to come shear, vaccinate, trim toenails on the llamas here at the sanctuary on Monday April 4.  It is a major event that is paid for by a friend in South Central Llama Association.  Kudos to all the volunteer folks who will be involved in the "spa" day and to the shearers extraordinaire.

3/28  Thank you for your designation of SWLR for this past quarter: AmazonSmile has made a charitable donation to Southwest Llama Rescue Inc, in the amount of $114.67 as a result of qualifying purchases made by you and other customers who have selected this charity. Thanks to customers shopping at smile.amazon.com or using the Amazon app with AmazonSmile ON, everyday purchases make an impact.

3/29  SWLR is looking for volunteers in community help.  Come join us at a local foster farm or help online with legal issues, fundraising, record keeping, public relations, forms designs, administration. What talents can you offer? Volunteers can help at local foster farms in the compassionate care of rescue llamas/alpacas plus facilities maintenance. Help with the upkeep of the equipment or fencing or shelters or trailers that may need painting, repair.

February

2/1  baxter reported that she has filed the USDA Census of Ag for 2022 for SWLR operations.  There are no direct questions about llamas/alpacas being "raised"  but it does ask about chickens, regardless of ownership so she added in her chickens.  She considers the land used by the llamas/alpacas to be used rent free.  She asked if anyone else completes this survey for their own farms/ranches.  It resulted in a lively discussion expressing several different opinions.

2/4 baxter touted the value of llama associations and asked that everyone ask their llama contacts to join associations, and while they are at it, ask them to donate to llama/alpaca rescue.

2/4 Nicole is looking for waterproof coats for two sweet old ladies.  Contact her if you have one you would be willing to donate or sell.

2/6  Susan is rehoming several books.  Contact her if interested.

2/7  There will be a Spring Castration Clinic March 16th at Colorado State Vet Teaching Hospital.  Males have to be minimum of 18 months old .  Along with castration, they will do physical  Exam, cut nails/teeth, includes analgesics/antibiotics if needed.  Price: $55 alpacas, $65 llamas.  Contact: Joel Foote   fuzzyfarm@earthlink.net  There is a limited number they are taking, so sign up early. Contact Joel for requirements.

2/11 There will be a Live Zoom session with Linda Tellington-Jones
On Sunday, February 13th, at 11am PST join Linda Tellington-Jones and, Internationally recognized Camelid expert, Marty McGee Bennett to learn how she has adapted the Tellington TTouch Method to the handling, training and care of alpacas and llamas.
Marty's immersion into the Tellington Method really began in the 1980's on a three week journey to Australia called “Transformation on the Trail” that lead to the foundation of the CAMELIDynamics Program Marty has developed and shares around the world.
Linda and Marty will share some hilarious and sometimes life-changing stories from Marty’s memory-bank including: "A four-day camel safari wherein we treated our saddle sores with TTouch; climbed Uluru - the mysterious red rock in the middle of the Australian outback (when it was still allowed); attended the camel races in Alice Springs in which Linda placed 6th, yelling like a banshee from start to finish; where somebody (not me) saw Paul Hogan/Crocodile Dundee!
Followed by two weeks camping at the Crystal Waters Community where we spent a week learning to halter-train (not halter-break!) young horses and awoke each morning to the thumping of kangaroo grazing outside our tents and the spectacular alarm-clock calls of Whip Birds and Bell Birds. Then we stopped by the San Diego zoo park in Temecula where Linda worked with the 11-foot python named Joyce who is the inspiration for the “Python TTouch!" I believe the whole trip was 40 days! I lost 30 pounds and found myself."
This talk is FREE for everyone, but registration is required.
To register for the talk visit the link below:
https://us02web.zoom.us/.../tZwtduitrTMjGdZADrU56tACVcaDd...

2/27  SWLR signed  up for digital ads in the next 5 issues of the RMLA journal.  Thanks to L'illette for the design and the journal editor for help with the ad.

2/27  Training continues at the Kerrville sanctuary with the untrained or unsocialized llamas. Some of the llamas were trained  for adoption. 3 have been placed in a new home pending transportation and receipt of adoption fees. 3 more have a tentative home pending transportation. These are family/herd groups of 3 each. SWLR does our best to place the herd groups together.

January

1/3  The RMLA e-journal has just been published. Again, the journal is jam packed with articles of interest. Plus pictures in color!  SWLR has an ad in the magazine. Kudos to those involved in the production of the journal. Consider supporting the journal and RMLA by sending in an article.

1/7 baxter is working on the state and federal reports of the nonprofit's accomplishments required for the maintenance of SWLR's 501(c)3 status.  She needs every volunteer to send her an estimate of the time spent, miles driven plus the number of llamas/alpacas that were helped in any way during the year.  Here is a sample from 2020 reported on SWLR's form 990: 

"In 2020, over 10,000 hours were donated by volunteers to accomplish rescue and care, feeding, medical care, and transportation (over 10,000 miles) of over 100 llamas/alpacas. Over 50 llamas/alpacas were placed in permanent homes, or re-homed, or into permanent foster care. Over 40 llamas/alpacas are in temporary foster care. Area of rescue included most states in the western US."

1/8  Thanks to Jordan Stevens’ friends and family, the Southwest Llama Rescue, Inc. (SWLR) has named one of their new llamas in Jordan’s honor!  So meet Jordan the Llama!  And since Jordan’s birthday is coming up on the 24th of January, please consider donating to the llama rescue in his name.

1/9  baxter attached a general letter used for in-kind donations.  Print the letter and insert your items.  It is similar to the form you would receive from any nonprofit and you can use it for tax purposes.  Anything of value to the rescue may be deductible since Southwest Llama Rescue is a 501(c)3.

1/16  Summary of the donations given this year are in the mail.  Also, SWLR bumper stickers are mailed to many of you.  If you don't receive them soon and want stickers, please let baxter know.

1/17  You might have heard about the #BettyWhiteChallenge, a viral campaign urging Betty White fans and animal lovers across the nation to donate $5 or more to shelters and rescues in honor of what would have been her 100th birthday.  Betty was one of the biggest advocates for animals in need, so we invite you to be part of this campaign.
Together, we can help make Betty White's legacy live on. Please consider a donation today to Southwest Llama Rescue in Betty's honor.
http://www.southwestllamarescue.org/donate or via paypal @swlr
$135 has been raised for Southwest Llama Rescue, Inc.

1/30  Southeast Llama Rescue has an estate planning guide for planning for animals' care.  Deborah Logan was kind enough to share it.  It is attached.

1/30  Alicia had a message about a 6 week alpaca cria for sale in Alabama.  She's looking for someone in the area and is trying to get more information and hoping she can work something out to get mom and cria to safety.  There's also a 3 week old cute male appy llama listed too.