Alpacas and llamas are increasingly popular fiber and companion animals, but welfare problems including improper nutrition, inadequate company, and poor dental care are widespread.
Alpaca and llama welfare challenges are driven partly by the popularity of these animals among hobbyists who underestimate their care complexity. These are not farm-lite animals — they have specific nutritional requirements, mandatory social needs, and subtle health expressions that require owner education and veterinary support. The dental disease problem is particularly significant: unlike companion animals with annual dental checks as standard of care, camelid dental disease often goes undetected until severe malnutrition occurs. Improper shearing is a welfare problem compounded by the proliferation of mobile shearers with variable skill levels. The social isolation problem mirrors that of guinea pigs and rabbits — these are animals that genuinely cannot be kept alone without chronic welfare compromise, yet single-animal acquisitions remain common.