The Dolly Llama
By Jeff Moffitt
@moffittjc (118511)
Gainesville, Florida
April 7, 2024 10:21am CST
On Saturday afternoon, I took a quick trip to the grocery store to pick up a few items I needed. On my way out the door after completing my shopping trip, I saw a small crowd gathered in the parking lot. At first I thought maybe there was some trouble brewing, and then thought maybe someone had gotten hurt or had a medical emergency. But as I walked closer (the crowd was gathered not too far from where my vehicle was parked), I noticed that everyone was calm and seemed to be in jovial spirits.
Then I noticed it as I approached closer, they were all gathered around and petting what looked like a white dog. As I passed by, I saw that I was mistaken; it was not a white dog but a baby llama. Curious, I detoured over to the crowd and drew in for a closer look. The owner was telling the crowd that the name of the animal was Dolly. Most did not connect the reference, but a few (myself included) recognized the play on words: Dolly Llama, instead of Dalai Lama (the spiritual leader of Tibet Buddhism).
I didn't ask, but I was curious as to why someone would bring their baby llama to a grocery store.
Have you ever seen a customer with a weird or exotic animal in a store before? I've seen lots of people with dogs and a few with cats; a couple of iguanas and parrots here and there; and at least one skunk and one monkey. But a llama...that was a new one for me.
24 people like this
20 responses
@MarieCoyle (28810)
•
7 Apr
My oldest son was in line to check in at O'Hare about a year ago. A lady tried to carry in a screeching parrot in a crate, claiming it was an emotional support animal. She had printed stickers that said the contents of the crate was legal, emotional support, etc. She had not even asked...they did not let her board. She said it was registered but had no proof, and she had printed the stickers herself. According to my son, this was one noisy bird and would have been terrible to listen to on a flight.
A llama pet sort of...belongs at home? or a farm, etc. Not a grocery store!
3 people like this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
7 Apr
Having worked in government most of my life, I know for a fact that there is no official government process for establishing a service animal, comfort animal, or support animal. People lie about that all the time. Anyone can go online and order a certificate, a tag, a leash or vest for the animal that says it's a service animal or support animal. But that does not mean it is. There are no local, state or federal laws that say you can bring emotional support or comfort animals anywhere you want just because you say it such an animal. Federal law only dictates that service animals that support a specific disability can be allowed.
I agree that llamas belong on a farm, but I think the reason this owner had it with him was because it was a baby; he probably didn't want to leave it at home alone while him and his wife were gone. He did not go into the store with it, but remained outside in the parking lot while his wife shopped.
3 people like this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
7 Apr
@MarieCoyle I see the same thing all the time. People treat their animals as if they were babies, not pet animals. I'm thinking in my mind, "if you want to treat something like a baby, just go have a baby!" lol
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (28810)
•
7 Apr
@moffittjc
Well, that’s a good thing, not to take it in to the store. I doubt it’s potty trained!
I know I often see a lady that lives near me who has a little tiny Yorkie. She dresses her Yorkie in a baby outfit with a baby bonnet, wraps it in baby blankets, and wheels it everywhere in a baby stroller. Um, it’s a dog!! Buy a leash and take the dog for a walk!!
I know I often see a lady that lives near me who has a little tiny Yorkie. She dresses her Yorkie in a baby outfit with a baby bonnet, wraps it in baby blankets, and wheels it everywhere in a baby stroller. Um, it’s a dog!! Buy a leash and take the dog for a walk!!2 people like this
@Tina30219 (81538)
• Onaway, Michigan
7 Apr
No I have not ever seen anyone in store or outside of a store with any kind of exotic animal. The people in the crowd must of really been excited to see the llama
2 people like this
@Tina30219 (81538)
• Onaway, Michigan
8 Apr
@moffittjc Right and I am sure it was cute.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Apr
@Tina30219 It was very cute, and it must not have been very old, because it was so little.
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
8 Apr
Everyone was excited to see the llama, including me. It’s not everyday you see one, especially a baby one.
.@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
7 Apr
So many people were bringing pets to our local grocery store chain that they had to print huge signs at the front doors that say that under federal law no animals are allowed in food stores unless it is a service animal. But of course, every person feels entitled to do whatever they want, so everyone says that every animal they bring to the store is a service animal. I call BS on it, and I will publicly call out anyone who brings an animal to the store that clearly is not a service animal. Pushing your little teacup terrier around the store in a baby stroller? Not a service animal. Being led around the store by your Labrador because you are blind? That is a service animal.
2 people like this
@much2say (53952)
• Los Angeles, California
7 Apr
@moffittjc I've seen some of those store signs, but otherwise people bring their pets everywhere else here. Right - a lot of them are not service animals. Whatever happened to leaving your pets at home like we all did way back when . . . I think some pets are spoiled to the point where owners can't even think to leave them alone ever. Some people are allergic to fur/dander or have a phobia of animals - and it's possible these animals could bring in bacteria or viruses that need not be around food. They really should not be in stores.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
9 Apr
@much2say That’s my thoughts exactly. Many people are allergic to dogs or cats and can’t tolerate being around animals. These pet owners don’t think about that (or they think about it and don’t care). Also, when did animals stop being pets and suddenly become “members” of the family?
1 person likes this
@wolfgirl569 (95469)
• Marion, Ohio
7 Apr
We usually only see dogs in the stores here. A llama would be cuter
2 people like this
@wolfgirl569 (95469)
• Marion, Ohio
8 Apr
@moffittjc I look for pets to be allowed everywhere soon. It has got out of control. Helper dogs I understand. But the rest should be left at home
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
8 Apr
I don’t understand why people bring their dogs to grocery stores. There’s a possible contamination issue in that scenario.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Apr
@wolfgirl569 I agree. Pretty soon pets will have all the same rights as people.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
8 Apr
I know there are llama farms around where they raise them for the meat, but this one was apparently their pet.
1 person likes this
@noni1959 (9883)
• United States
14 Apr
@moffittjc The ones around here do it for fur and some are pets.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
16 Apr
@noni1959 I wonder how much of a market there is for llama fur?
1 person likes this
@Hannihar (129507)
• Israel
8 Apr
@moffittjc
I also get it about the name too. I would wonder what was going on too. I have only seen people with dogs but nothing exotic.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
8 Apr
With Florida’s warm, temperate climate, there is a thriving industry of exotic pets here. My boss was telling me the other day there is a farm not too far from where he lives where the owner has a pet tiger.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
9 Apr
@Hannihar It probably behaves well if trained properly. But even so, I think there should still be protocols in place to promote safety. Trained or not, big cats are still wild animals, and eventually their instincts will take over and dictate their actions.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (157629)
• United States
8 Apr
Maybe he is trying to make sure Dolly is well socialized.I had a friend who would bring her baby goats to the assisted living facility where she worked. Those elderly people loved it. Some would sit and rock a baby goat in a rocking chair.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
8 Apr
You bring up a good point. It could have been a means of socialization. The llama seemed to be accepting of all the people around her. I wonder what they plan to do with Dolly when she grows up and gets big?
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
8 Apr
It was a beautiful little thing! Pure white. Almost looked like a labradoodle at first.
1 person likes this
@RebeccasFarm (86782)
• United States
7 Apr
What is wrong with people..in the grocery store? I like that play on words though.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
8 Apr
He didn’t bring the llama into the grocery store, he just waited outside while his wife shopped. But I have seen people bring pets into a grocery store that had no business being in there.
1 person likes this
@FourWalls (62289)
• United States
7 Apr
I don’t know why anyone takes an animal to the grocery store. But yeah, I like that Dolly llama pun.
2 people like this
@FourWalls (62289)
• United States
7 Apr
@moffittjc — I saw a guy having an argument with the clerk at the hotel I stayed at while on vacation earlier this year about his emotional support dog being a service dog (apparently the hotel differentiates between the two). 
There was a great scene in the new Night Court last season with a woman having a horse as a “service animal,” her “seeing eye horse.” After she admitted to seeing the judge and the prosecutor on the subway Dan turned to the horse and said, “How do you put up with her?”
There was a great scene in the new Night Court last season with a woman having a horse as a “service animal,” her “seeing eye horse.” After she admitted to seeing the judge and the prosecutor on the subway Dan turned to the horse and said, “How do you put up with her?” 2 people like this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
7 Apr
@FourWalls A seeing eye horse...that's hilarious! Could you imagine if someone tried to do that for real? Where does the insanity end?
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
7 Apr
I agree. No animals should be allowed into grocery stores due to contamination issues. I don't even like that service animals can be let in, but federal law does allow it. However, everybody thinks they are entitled to label their cute little pet dog a service animal just because they can. It drives me crazy.
2 people like this
@RasmaSandra (73570)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
7 Apr
That made me laugh, Dolly Lama how cute, Wonder what in the world the person with the lama was thinking to bring it to the store. There is someone in the city I live in Daytona Beach who has a wild cat for a pet that was adopted from a zoo. I am on the site NextDoor to get updates on what is happening in the area and he has posted photos of this cougar looking cat sitting in a shopping cart while he does his shopping, I guess to each own,2 people like this
@RasmaSandra (73570)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
8 Apr
@moffittjc I could just picture myself clomping through the streets of Daytona Beach atop of an elephant
I could just picture myself clomping through the streets of Daytona Beach atop of an elephant1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Apr
@RasmaSandra Now that would be a spectacle to see!
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
8 Apr
My boss has a neighbor on a farm near him who has a tiger for a pet. I thought keeping exotic big cats was illegal, but maybe I’m wrong.
Surprisingly, there is an elephant retirement home near Gainesville as well.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
8 Apr
Full grown llamas freak her out? I wonder how she would be around a baby one?
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
8 Apr
That is an awesome name for a donkey! I love it.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
7 Apr
That's what I was expecting, but the owner said it was just his pet. He wasn't trying to go into the store with it; I think he was just waiting out by his car while his wife shopped.
There are laws that restrict pets going into grocery stores due to contamination/health issues, but people think they can just do whatever they want. My local grocery store had to post a huge sign at the front entrance saying that by law pets are prohibited from being inside the grocery store, unless it is a service dog. However, in our entitled world we live in, people think that their support animal or comfort animal constitutes a service animal. It doesn't. I have no problem calling somebody out for violating the law by bringing their cute little animal to the store with them.
2 people like this
@kareng (55003)
• United States
25 Apr
@moffittjc How cool!! It is amazing what animals do and remember!
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
25 Apr
@kareng It is pretty cool that animals can do unexpected and amazing things with humans.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
25 Apr
My former boss had a pet squirrel. Rescued it when it was a wee baby that fell out of its nest. She name it Charlie, thinking it was a male, but it turned out to be a female. She eventually let Charlie loose in her yard, and she said the next year Charlie came back to the house with her babies in tow to say high.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
8 Apr
I thought it was very cute, especially since it was a little teeny weeny baby.
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
9 Apr
I see people all the time bringing dogs into stores in baby carriages or little wagons. It’s mostly the little cutesy dogs.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
12 Apr
@just4him I want to get a huge Great Dane and doll him up and put him in a baby carriage and push him around the store!
1 person likes this
@just4him (306705)
• Green Bay, Wisconsin
10 Apr
@moffittjc Yes, it is the cutesy ones.
1 person likes this
@JESSY3236 (18930)
• United States
9 Apr
not to the grocery store. But at petsmart, a family had brought in their small kitten. It was really cute and friendly.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
9 Apr
I would expect to see pets at the pet store! Lol. But people need to understand that there are health reasons why pets shouldn’t be at supermarkets or restaurants.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
20 Apr
@nela13 That would be pretty crazy to keep a grown llama inside his house!
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
13 Apr
I know there are a few llama farms in the local area where they are raised for their meat, but I did not know that people kept them as pets. When they are full-grown, they can be quite large. I didn't ask, but maybe this man owns a llama farm, or at least has a lot of land where the llama can roam free once it's fully grown.
1 person likes this
@nela13 (55732)
• Portugal
17 Apr
@moffittjc He won't be crazy to have a grow llama inside his house.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (156722)
• United States
8 Apr
I've never seen a customer with an animal. I would have liked to have seen Dolly. Have a good week.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
9 Apr
@LindaOHio It seems to be getting worse with the pets in the stores. People feel entitled to just bring their pets with them wherever they please.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118511)
• Gainesville, Florida
8 Apr
You’ve never seen a customer go into a store with their dog? It’s out of control here in Florida. Every pet owner in Florida thinks they can take their pet wherever they want.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (156722)
• United States
9 Apr
@moffittjc No. But then I haven't been into a store in several years.
1 person likes this
