Llama Zoomies: Invite a llama to liven up your next Zoom with help from an Iowa farm

  When Earl the llama's furry face popped up on the screen of a Zoom meeting Wednesday, the reactions were immediate. Laughter, squeals of delight and exclamations of 'Oh my God!'' rang out over the video connection.

Earl and the five other llamas at Prairie Patch Farm in rural Cedar Rapids have been making a lot of appearances on local computer screens lately, after farm owner Kahle Boutte started offering the 'llama bombs' to anyone who needed a way to liven up anything from a company meeting to a happy hour with friends to a virtual elementary school class session.

'We're just trying to spread love and positivity for everybody and doing what we can to bring some smiles right now,' Boutte said.

She got the idea after reading about another farm sanctuary in California offering virtual llama visits. Since then, she's seen the trend pickup across the country.

'It's something a lot of people in the llama community are doing,' Boutte said. 'So many of us depend on the foot traffic of agritourism. It has been such a hard hit for farms that really do depend on people visiting and tourism.'

Other animals have also gotten in on the action. Galena company Hoof It Goat Treks is offering Zoom calls with goats, starting at $40 for a 15 minute visit.