AGOURA HILLS : Llamas Win Vote of City Council

In South America, llamas are generally used as beasts of burden. In Southern California, they are beasts of fashion.

But until Wednesday night, the chic pets were not welcome in Agoura Hills, the once rustic community that allows residents to raise sheep and goats and cows and horses--but not llamas. By a unanimous vote, the City Council gave preliminary approval to an ordinance allowing residents to keep llamas and alpacas, a woolly cousin of the llama.

For now, the ordinance applies to only one person: Barry Sobel, a physician who owns the only five llamas in town, said City Planning Director Dave Anderson.