Llama Drama in Oconee County

WATKINSVILLE, GA — It all started with these simple words: "We can't make this stuff up."

That was how the Oconee County Sheriff's Office described the fact deputies had just responded to a call reporting a llama on the loose in Watkinsville.

What followed Wednesday afternoon was a blow-by-blow account of the llama quest that captured the attention of hundreds of people on social media — both in Oconee County and beyond.

Initial word of the free-roaming livestock came at about 4 p.m.

The animal was spotted alongside GA 10 — the busy highway loop around Athens.

That initial post would eventually get more than 1,800 likes on Facebook and garner nearly 800 comments, including this one having some fun with Oconee County Sheriff Scott Freeman (which appears to be from Watkinsville City Council member Mike Huff):

Wrong llama. Er ... lama. Anyway ...

Deputies quickly dispatched and found the stray, brown-and-white llama just as reported. It was obviously not doing a very good job staying away from traffic, a fact that made the somewhat silly search an actually dangerous one.

The llama didn't just pick the beginning of rush hour to take its stroll. It also picked a busy area to do it.

Before deputies could catch up to the creature, it made its way along the highway for a bit, strolled through a busy shopping area and even cruised by a Starbucks.

Eventually, the llama walked behind a Cook Out burger restaurant, where deputies were able to corral it in a fenced-in dumpster area.

"Nooo!!" wrote one Facebook follower. "I was super excited that I might actually get a glimpse at the Llama on my way home!"

And not long after, the Oconee Llama was reunited with its owner, ending an afternoon of llama drama.

Photos courtesy Oconee County Sheriff's Office