Therapy llamas patrol Portland airport to relieve passenger stress
The Portland International Airport in Oregon understands holiday travel is stressful. So this season, it invited a few specialists to help passengers manage their cortisol levels. Over three visits this month, Beni and Prince doled out their brand of medicine.
"You can hug them close, and their thick fiber is so soft," Lori Gregory said of her llamas. "They're just very unique animals compared to most other therapy animals. They got the total package."
Airports around the globe use a variety of methods to inject some Zen into one of the busiest travel periods of the year. They decorate their halls in holiday lights, host carolers and concerts, and bring in therapy dogs for group canine counseling.
Portland does all of the above. True to the city's quirky spirit, it also invites local camelids to the airport to canoodle with passengers. That's where Gregory, president and founder of Mountain Peaks Therapy Llamas & Alpacas, comes in.
"PDX has an ongoing partnership with various therapy animal programs," said Allison Ferre, media relations manager with the Port of Portland, which operates the airport. "So this year, when we were bringing back holiday concessions programing, we just thought, "Who better to lead that parade than the llamas and alpacas?"
Gregory's herd have outfits made out of the airport's beloved carpet pattern, which Napoleon and Smokey wore during the grand opening of Concourse B in 2021. For their special appearances over the past two weeks, Beni and Prince donned holiday attire.
This year's theme was "reindeer." Gregory and her daughter, Shannon Joy, dressed the pair in antler headbands, glittery halters with tinkling bells and poinsettia-adorned wreathes. Red velvet banners worn like saddles were inscribed with their names and silvery snowflakes.
"They looked pretty fancy," Gregory said.
During their two-hour visits, the llamas were treated like celebrities with valet parking, paparazzi and adoring fans. Though the pair had to pass through security, they didn't have to submit to a pat down, which they might have enjoyed for the extra pets. For their procession, the llamas had several handlers who encouraged spectators to hug, rub noses and pose for selfies with them.
Last Wednesday, Beni and Prince tended to an emergency after a plane was delayed because of fog in Seattle. In a TikTok video, a distressed woman throws her arms around the 15-year-old Beni and presses her face into his shaggy brown coat.
"Oh my god, I so need a therapy llama," she says with relief. "I am so happy now."
Gregory said llamas are often misunderstood. Contrary to animals-behaving-badly videos, the trainable pack animals that hail from South America do not typically spit, jump on people or bite. In fact, they only have teeth on the bottom front of their mouths.
"I think their PR has not been as positive as the alpacas," she said of their smaller cousins.
Gregory, who with her daughter cares for nearly a dozen llamas and alpacas, said they hope to return to PDX next year with their brood. However, if travelers need some llama love even sooner, the farm offers free therapy sessions. Call ahead to make an appointment.
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