Herald staff
LAKEWOOD — Angela Markland had a terrible fright Sunday morning when she saw a show llama with blood pouring down the back of its leg.
She and her mother, Carol Markland, ran toward the barn on their six-acre property just off Highway 531 (Lakewood Road) near Lake Goodwin. Inside, Angela saw two large dogs ripping at the hindquarters of yet another llama.
Still worse, they soon found the body of a third llama that apparently had jumped the barbed-wire fence containing them and tried to flee before it was killed.
"It’s extremely upsetting," Carol Markland said. The llamas "are a part of our family. We do a lot of things with them. … They’re just very special animals."
The Marklands called the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office and an officer took a report. A group of 4-H enthusiasts associated with Angela’s Bellingham group came down to help the Marklands bolster their fences.
The attack happened about 7:30 Sunday morning. Angela said she spotted a German shepherd-type dog and a bull mastiff in the barn. She said she got a good kick in at one of the dogs before it fled.
The 4-H helpers were scouring the neighborhood Sunday looking for dogs that match the two seen by Angela.
The Marklands and Carol Markland’s sister had seven llamas in the pasture. Some have been shown and have won prizes. The three males in the group were the ones that were attacked. They were being kept in separate pastures.
The Marklands moved to this area from Michigan late last summer, and earlier had one llama ingest something poisonous. Carol Markland said she doesn’t know how that happened, but she’s beginning to feel not welcome.
The owner of the dead llama, Carol Markland’s sister JoAnne Trudel of Bothell, said the dead beast was named Dusty.
"I’m devastated," she said. "I get very attached to my animals. We had a special bond."
The two injured male llamas were take to a veterinarian Sunday, and will require a hospital stay.
Carol Markland said she was warned by the sheriff’s deputy that once the dogs have tasted blood they’re likely to return. She’s going to play it safe by locking the remaining llamas in the barn at night.
Carol Markland doesn’t own a gun, but she now can see why some people might be prepared to shoot a marauding dog that trespassed.
"I don’t have a gun, but I have a shovel and I know how to use it," she said.
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