CLOSE Two llamas running through Sun City, Arizona., drew a crowd of curious onlookers and several area residents who were trying to herd the animals Thursday afternoon. VPC 
 
 Llamas on the loose in Sun City. (Photo: 12 News) 
 
 PHOENIX — Two llamas on the loose in a West Valley retirement community were lassoed into Internet fame after escaping their owner on Thursday afternoon. 
 
 In what is arguably the most famous llama-related journey since Disney's The Emperor's New Groove, the pair running through Sun City made national news and became social media darlings as they briefly avoided capture from a crowd of curious onlookers and several area residents on live television. 
 
 The shaggy duo — one black and one white — dodged cars, avoided lassos, and managed to launch their own Twitter account as they ran amok in the town northwest of Phoenix just before noon. 
 
 Maricopa County Sheriff's Office posse members tried to corral the llamas with their SUVs as they moved from a field into a neighborhood near 103rd and Grand Avenues, but were unable to stop them from bolting away. The runaway animals were eventually caught by three onlookers. 
 
 Two llamas on the loose in the northwest Valley; MCSO in pursuit, Feb. 26, 2015. (Photo: 12 News) 
 
 "If it weren't for (their help) we wouldn't have been able to catch them," said Lt. Brandon Jones of the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office. 
 
 Jones said a Cop'er Star Llamas rancher brought the animals to an assisted living facility to visit an ex-llama rancher as a form of therapy. He said the animals were spooked when the trailer door that was transporting them to the site opened. Though there were three llamas, only two were rebellious enough to leave the confines of their trailer. 
 
 The escaped llamas launched a Buzzfeed quiz and were trending nationally on social media under the hashtags #llamas and #llamasontheloose. 
 
 During the hourlong chase, the animals dodged cars as they crossed busy Thunderbird Road multiple times, disobeying pedestrian and vehicular laws and forcing those who were following them through neighborhoods to run in circles. 
 
 The white llama, often running ahead of its smaller dark-colored companion, seemed to like to sprint into oncoming traffic as posse members approached them with their arms outstretched. 
 
 The pair was separated briefly during the chase, but found each other again shortly before the black llama was lassoed in by two citizens near 103rd Avenue. 
 
 Facebook Twitter Google+ LinkedIn PHOTOS: Llama drama in Sun City Fullscreen Post to Facebook Posted! A link has been posted to your Facebook feed. Like this topic? You may also like these photo galleries: Replay Autoplay Show Thumbnails Show Captions Last SlideNext Slide 
 
 Alone, the ivory-hued llama fended for itself against its assailants for another 15 minutes before it was finally lassoed by an onlooker who was riding in the bed of a pickup truck alongside the animal. 
 
 Initially defiant, it leaped and shook until eventually resigning itself to its fate. 
 
 No humans or animals were hurt during the escapade and the animals were turned back to their owner and brought home. 
 
 According to Melissa Cokely, of Cienega Creek Farm in Cochise County, llamas can be stubborn and personable. Cokely has worked with the 400-pound mammals for 10 years at her family's ranch, where visitors can interact with alpacas, llamas and goats among other animals. 
 
 She said chasing llamas isn't a good idea as they will think of it as a game to avoid getting caught. 
 
 "They're a lot smarter than what people think," she said. "You'll wear yourself out before you catch up with them." 
 
 Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1BCcD9Y ||||| 
 
 
 
 Two llamas were briefly on the loose in a Sun City, Ariz. retirement community Thursday afternoon before they were lassoed by authorities—a story that has lent itself to countless headlines from “llama drama” to “llow speed chase” and “llamas on the lam.” 
 
 Livestreams showed men running to capture the animals as they galloped along sidewalks and green lawns for about an hour, Arizona’s ABC 15 reports. The black llama was captured first, while the white llama managed to keep sprinting until it was eventually lassoed and put in the back of a pickup truck. The names and owners of the llamas have yet to be released. 
 
 
 
 While the chase is over, the memes are still streaming in, including a fake Twitter account @SunCityLlamas, a music video, and a “Which Runaway Llama Are You?” online quiz. Here are some of our favorite memes and jokes that have emerged on Twitter: 
 
 And one alpaca joke: 
 
 Read next: Quiz: Is Your Dog Crazy? 
 
 Sign up for THE BRIEF and more view example 
 
 Listen to the most important stories of the day. ||||| SUN CITY, Ariz. (AP) — Two quick-footed llamas that dashed in and out of traffic in a Phoenix-area retirement community were captured by authorities Thursday, causing a stir in the streets and on social media. 
 
 Television footage showed a large, white llama and a smaller, black llama darting through the streets of Sun City during the lunch hour. Cars and golf carts stopped in their tracks because of the wayward livestock. 
 
 Their televised breakout quickly inspired a Twitter account and several hashtags including #LlamasonTheLoose, #llamadrama and #TEAMLLAMAS. 
 
 The user tweeted that the idea was inspired by someone starting an account for a bear that caused an online frenzy by running around the Phoenix suburb of Mesa in December. The animal was captured Christmas morning. 
 
 Social media users shared running commentary and even photos of people gathered around a screen to watch the llama saga unfold. 
 
 Arizona Sen. John McCain and the Arizona Cardinals got in on the fun. McCain tweeted that he was "glad that #LlamaDrama 2015 has been peacefully resolved!" The Cardinals tweeted that team "agreed to one-year deals with the #llamasontheloose," promising the animals a salary in hay. 
 
 Even the North American Aerospace Defense Command tweeted: "Llama had no known connections to ISIS. Appears to have self-radicalized." 
 
 The llama saga also made actor Lorenzo Lamas a trending topic. Lamas was mentioned in more than 270 tweets in an hour, according to social analytics website Topsy. Some on Twitter joked that they heard the actor was on the loose in Arizona. 
 
 The animals galloped along the sidewalk, through manicured yards and along street medians. The streets looked more like a rodeo arena as several people tried to lasso both llamas. The llamas thwarted numerous attempts by Maricopa County sheriff's deputies and bystanders to round them up before they were roped into custody. 
 
 The black llama was captured first. The white one was nabbed after two men in the back of a moving pickup truck repeatedly threw out a lasso. It took three men in all to secure the rope. Both animals were escorted to a waiting horse trailer. 
 
 The entire ordeal lasted about an hour. It was unknown if the llamas were anyone's pets. ||||| Original post: Two llamas—let's call them Thellma and Llouise—spent Thursday afternoon frustrating Arizona pollice and dellighting the Internet by going on an impromptu run that was (thankfulllly) captured on video by llocal TV reporters. (See bellow!) The two woolllly creatures were on the llam for roughlly an hour before pollice were ablle to eventualllly corrall them.
– If you were wondering why the actor Lorenzo Lamas was trending on Twitter today, it all has to do with a pair of runaway llamas in suburban Phoenix. The two animals led police and civilians on a lunch-hour chase around the streets of Sun City before they were finally lassoed, reports AP. As you might imagine, the chaos spawned all kinds of memes and headlines of the "Lllamas on the Lloose" variety, notes Time. (Slate dubbed them "Thellma and Llouise.) The two were reportedly being transferred to an elderly care center to work as therapy animals when the great escape somehow took place, reports USA Today.