A John Deere Publication

A llama stands next to a Welcome to the library sign outdoors.

Last summer, Mr. Freckles the llama spent the morning at the corner of 4th Street and 13th Avenue welcoming passersby to the library.

Rural Living, Specialty/Niche January 01, 2025

Llama Drama on the City Lawn

Story time comes to life.

by Katie Knapp

"Are there really going to be llamas at the library?" five-year-old Collins Christy shrieked in excitement after her mom told her their Saturday plans. "I hope they don't eat all the books!"

Meanwhile, sounds of summer construction blend with the hum of five happy llamas catching curious glances from those passing by. It's not every day people see big, furry creatures enjoying a grassy spot outside their Minneapolis neighborhood library.

Librarian Dana Bjerke meets those looks of wonder with a knowing smile. She explains the answer to why there are really llamas at the library is at the heart of the Hennepin County Library system's strategic mission: to provide a wide range of free literacy and enrichment activities for the whole community.

"It is geared as a family event, but we try to get everyone to partake and have a little llama therapy," says Bjerke. She sets up several stations for participants to learn more about the animals and the library itself.

Since Collins was a baby, she has loved llamas. It started with a plush toy filled with lavender that helped soothe her to sleep. What her mom Andrea thought was just a cute and unique solution quickly turned into the toy Collins couldn't live without. Now Collins is eager to see a real, live llama any chance she gets. The library experience is different than a typical petting zoo, though.

The unusual event started at a library close to downtown Minneapolis in 2021 and has grown each summer since. Carlson's Lovable Llamas from the nearby farming community Waconia, Minn., bring llamas to libraries' lawns throughout the summer. The visitors get to walk the animals around, feed them, and even sit and read with them.

"Everybody likes the llamas and says they're so cuddly," farmer Rick Carlson says. "They are so mellow and docile, and so good for people."

These calming, no-drama characteristics are exactly the reason he purchased two llamas in 1997 for his kids to use as 4-H projects.

Having grown up in dairy, Carlson wanted his kids to learn to care for animals and show them in 4-H. "I wanted an animal that would be good with our kids and their city friends. Before you knew it, we had oodles of llamas."

At the same time Carlson's herd was growing, children across the country began to hear about llamas every night before bed from author Anna Dewdney's best-selling Llama Llama book series full of clever rhymes and cute illustrations. Her stories, like Llama Llama Red Pajama where a mama llama puts her baby to bed, became best sellers and helped advance llamas from the pasture to pop culture.

This rising interest led Carlson to develop a county 4-H project so more area children could have the experience he wanted for his own kids. In 2024, they had nearly 80 members who leased and showed llamas.

"It doesn't cost much to feed five llamas, but it costs a lot to feed 55. As things expanded, we decided to do birthday parties and field trips…one thing led to another," Carlson says. Their agritourism business also includes on-farm activities.

"The libraries have been such a great project," Carlson explains, because the audience is so broad. "Families…kids…seniors, they're all there. Sometimes the seniors are lined up at the door."

In 2024, Carlsons took their llamas—including Collins' favorite: 15-year-old Tango—to 16 library locations across Hennepin County. Similar 'Llamas at the Library' programs are also happening from Connecticut to Washington.

"It started out kind of as a small thing, and then last year, tons of our libraries got llamas," Bjerke says. "So yeah, llamas in the city!" ‡

Above. The event was one of 16 where Carlson's Llovable Llamas made the hour trek into Minneapolis to provide young and old the opportunity to get up close and personal with the beloved character.