Survey of

Disease Issue

Concerns on

Alpaca and

Llama Farms

By Stephanie J. Mitro, Veterinary Student

David E. Anderson, DVM, MS

College of Veterinary Medicine

The Ohio State University

A

A

survey requesting owners and
veterinarians to list their “top”
disease concerns or problems
encountered on alpaca and llama

farms revealed a broad spectrum of
issues that vary among farm owners
and the veterinarians. The
CamelidMed Electronic Newsletter
distributed the survey and yielded a
total of seventy-eight responses, fifty
of which were owners and the other
twenty-eight comprising veterin-
arians. Responses from various
geographic regions included Australia,
Italy, Argentina, Canada, and twenty-
four states in the U.S.A.

The top medical concerns among

owners were parasitism, illnesses in
crias, congenital defects, reproductive
problems, skin disorders, nutritional
imbalances, and gastrointestinal
disorders. Veterinarians, on the other
hand, noted oral health as the number
one medical concern followed closely by
reproductive problems, parasitism,
illnesses in crias, congenital defects, skin
disorders, and nutritional imbalances.
These top six categories listed for each
group comprised approximately 64% of
the owners and 61% of the veterinarians
main concerns in overall camelid health.

Of the owners that responded to the

survey, 16.9% noted endoparasites as
well as some ectoparasites as a major
concern on their farms. Parasites of
particular concern included meningeal
worms, coccidiosis, liver flukes,
tapeworms, and ectoparasites (mites,
lice, and ticks). 10.1% of veterinarians
and 16.9% of the owners noted parasites
as high on their list of priorities. Oral
health was of great concern to
veterinarians with 12.3% of
veterinarians making note of the
importance of dental maintenance of
camelids. Only 4.7% of owners,
interestingly, noted oral health as a high
priority. Problems noted within this
category included abscessed teeth, long
incisors, and mandibular disease.

Diseases effecting health of crias,

ranked second among owners and fourth
among veterinarians. These included
failure of passive transfer of maternal
immunity, weakness, diarrhea,
congenital anomalies and deformities,
septicemia, and poor weight gain.
Reproductive problems noted included
uterine infection, dystocia, abortion,

uterine torsion, prolapsed uterus, and
vulvar discharge. Skin disorders
comprised primarily those of idiopathic
origin and zinc deficiency. Obesity,
various deficiencies as well as toxicities
from the soil of certain geographical
regions, and the problem of keeping
weight on some animals comprised the
category of nutritional imbalances.
Gastrointestinal problems included
ulcers and diarrhea; however, peritonitis,
GI obstructions, colic, and choke were
also noted. Ocular abnormalities
included infections, traumatic injuries,
corneal ulcers, cataracts, and glaucoma.
In the “Other” category, owners noted
individual cases of a heart murmur,
urinary tract infection, ear trauma, and
mastitis. Veterinarians also noted a
urinary tract infection and ear trauma,
along with urinary calculi, neurologic
disease, fever of unknown origin,
mammary adenocarcinoma,
management issues, and the threat of
foreign animal disease.

Geographic areas represented by

owners and veterinarians and their
major concerns are noted below in Table
2. Regions listed within the table only
comprise those within Canada and the
United States with at least five responses
to the survey for a moderately
representative sample. Only leading
categories of concern were included. In
the Northwestern U.S. (states including
Oregon (2), Washington (3), and
California (2)) owners noted cria
illnesses and deformities,
gastrointestinal (GI) illness, nutrition,
reproductive disorders, lameness, and
dental problems as primary interest
areas. Veterinarians, on the other hand,
listed nutrition and lameness as less of a

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The Camelid Quarterly

June 2003

Table 1:

DISEASE AND PROBLEM CATERGORIES

RANKED BY OWNERS AND

VETERINARIANS

Disease/Problem

Owners

Vets

Parasites

16.9%

10.1%

Cria Illness/Defects

12.2%

9.5%

Reproduction

9.3%

11.2%

Dermatitis

9.3%

8.9%

Nutritional Imbalances

9.3%

8.9%

Gastrointestinal

8.1%

8.4%

Lameness

6.4%

2.2%

Oral Health

4.7%

12.3%

Abscesses

4.7%

0.0%

Wasting Disease

0.6%

4.5%

Ocular

2.9%

5.6%

Heat Stress

2.9%

3.4%

Respiratory

1.2%

2.2%

Arthritis

2.9%

0.0%

Foot/Nail Injuries

1.7%

2.8%

Liver Disease

.06%

2.8%

Bacterial/Viral Infections

2.9%

2.2%

Other

3.5%

5.0%

Table 2:

GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION OF DISEASE CONCERNS

Disease/Problem

Northeast Midwest Southeast Southwest

West Northwest Canada

Parasites

14.3%

19.4%

16.1%

11.1%

7.8%

7.0%

7.4%

Cria Illness/Defects

8.6%

6.5%

16.1%

11.1%

23.1%

14.0%

14.8%

Reproduction

5.7%

6.5%

6.5%

11.1%

23.1%

14.0%

3.7%

Dermatitis

11.4%

6.5%

6.5%

5.6%

15.4%

7.0%

7.4%

Nutritional Imbalance

11.4%

9.7%

16.1%

5.6%

0.0%

9.3%

11.1%

Gastrointestinal

5.7%

9.7%

3.2%

5.6%

7.8%

14.0%

11.1%

Lameness

8.6%

12.9%

6.5%

5.6%

7.8%

7.4%

7.4%

Oral Health

11.4%

6.5%

9.7%

16.7%

7.8%

7.4%

7.4%

Ocular

2.9%

6.5%

0.0%

5.6%

0.0%

7.4%

7.4%

Heat Stress

0.0%

0.0%

6.5%

5.6%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

Other

20.0%

12.6%

12.9%

16.7%

7.8%

22.3%

22.3%

Total Responses

35

31

31

18

13

43

25

problem and added parasitism, dermatitis,
and ocular lesions to their inventory of
disease concerns. Within the Western
U.S. (Colorado (2) and Kansas) owners
noted reproduction, cria illnesses and
deformities, dermatitis, and parasites
among top concerns while a veterinarian
from Colorado added GI problems,
lameness, and dental problems to this list
with no mention of concern for parasitism.
In the Southwestern states (Texas (4) and
New Mexico) the owners major concern
appeared to be with dental problems with
mention of various other concerns across
the board. Veterinarians in this area as well
were fairly spread out in their opinions of
major disease concerns with no single area
being represented more than once. In the
Southeastern states (Florida, Georgia,
Tennessee, Alabama, North Carolina, and
Virginia (2)) of most importance to owners
were cria illnesses, nutrition, and parasites.
Veterinarians also ranked these issues
highly but included dental disorders and
heat stress. Owners in the Northeastern
states (Pennsylvania (2), New York (3),
New Jersey, Massachusetts, and Vermont)
recognized major problems with cria
illness, parasites (especially meningeal
worm), and lameness. Veterinarians
expanded this list adding abscessed teeth,
dermatitis, and nutritional problems.
Within the Midwest (Michigan (3), Ohio
(3), Indiana (2), Kenucky, and Kansa)
owners noted parasites, lameness,
nutrition, and GI disorders primarily,
while veterinarians concerns were focused
on dental problems and meningeal worm

infection. One veterinarian from Alaska
ranked premature crias, parasites,
dermatitis, vitamin D deficiencies, teeth
abscesses, osteomyelitis, and colic among
top interests in camelid health, and an
owner from Montana noted zinc
deficiencies, strongyle worms, arthritis,
and reproductive problems of importance
to him.

Outside the U.S., Canadian owners

from British Columbia and Ontario noted
lameness, cria diarrhea, nutrition, and GI
disorders of significant concern. A
Canadian veterinarian also mentioned
dystocia, teeth abscesses and osteomyelitis,
foot/nail problems, parasites, ocular
disorders, and dermatitis. There was one
veterinarian from Argentina whose
primary concerns included fatalities caused
by Clostridiosis, but also noted some
problems with Sarcocystosis, Rotavirus
infections, Bovine Herpes virus, and
Leptospirosis. A veterinarian from Italy
also noted Clostridiosis as a major
problem along with parasites, GI
disorders, vitamin D deficiencies, heat
stress, tooth abscesses, ocular disease, and
breeding problems. And lastly, two
Australian veterinarians noted vitamin D
and selenium deficiencies, parasite
infections (Haemonchus), and liver disease
to be of major importance along with
dermatitis, GI disorders, and heat stress.

Among the twenty-eight veterinarians

to respond to the survey were five
veterinarians from the academic sector
of the profession. In comparison to
veterinarians from the private sector,

academic veterinarians ranked oral
health highest (20%), followed by
endoparasites (15%), and then neonatal
problems, reproductive disorders,
dermatitis, and lameness all weighted
equally (10%). Other concerns included
nutrition, gastrointestinal disorders,
urinary problems, bacterial and viral
infections, and wasting disease.

In reviewing the differences briefly

between the issues of camelid health and
management that owners and veterinarians
find most pertinent, it is evident that many
concerns are similar. However, some
differences were found and these areas may
need further study. Both perspectives are
highly valuable, relevant, and
complimentary to each other. This survey
should help increase awareness among
both owners and veterinarians as to the
major concerns of the other. This may help
to increase interest to learn more about
these concerns and guide research efforts.
Priority health issues may need to be
addressed to secure more effective
management practices leading to healthy
animals within the camelid industry.

CQ

David E Anderson, DVM, MS

Diplomate, American College of Veterinary Surgeons Associate
Professor of Surgery, Food Animal 601 Vernon L Tharp
Street College of Veterinary Medicine

The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 43210
[e-mail], Phone: [phone], Fax:
614-292-3530
http://www.vet.ohio-
state.edu/docs/ClinSci/bovine/index.htm
http://www.vet.ohio-
state.edu/docs/ClinSci/camelid/index.html
http://www.internationalcamelidinstitute.org

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The Camelid Quarterly

June 2003