Baby alpacas learn much more from the herd than where to find the best grass. Alpacas are naturally social animals, and during their first summer, crias spend a tremendous amount of time watching and interacting with their mothers, other adults, and especially the other babies.
As summer progresses, the crias become increasingly comfortable venturing away from mom to play and explore with one another. Those interactions are an important part of learning how to behave within the herd. Mom is usually still nearby, but the babies are beginning to discover that they belong to something much bigger than just the pair of mother and cria.
