PHOENIX — The llamas that became a social media sensation running around a Phoenix-area retirement enclave last month are saying goodbye to the spotlight with one last event Saturday.
Kahkneeta and Laney, whose televised dash mesmerized the Internet and Sun City residents, will likely be making their final public appearance at a Phoenix race track, according to owners Bub Bullis and Karen Freund.
The llama drama that spawned jokes and Twitter hashtags also got the attention of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Freund said.
"If this opens up a can of worms where everybody across the country gets shut down doing this, that's really unfair," Freund said. "That's really a horrible thing to do to people who benefit from them."
A USDA official contacted them shortly after the Feb. 26 incident, saying they needed a license to showcase their llamas or even allow people to snap photos of them, the couple said. Neither was aware of such a policy. The husband and wife, who are both retired Phoenix police officers, had planned to continue offering the llamas for therapy and educational purposes.
"They just totally destroyed everything I had planned for my retirement," Freund said. "We've taken them to schools before. Now they're telling me I can't do anything, even like a photo shoot."
Freund said she is frustrated because the USDA won't respond to any of her follow-up calls about the matter because everything has to be in writing. So they are giving up for now.
USDA national and state offices did not immediately return messages Friday seeking comment.