Camelids Flashcards
wot dis
llama
wot dis
alpaca
wot dis
huacaya
wot dis
suri alpaca
wot dis
guanaco
wot dis
vicuna
how are camelids adapted for high altitudes
higher affinity for oxygen, very efficient ruminators
where can you take blood from or put in an IV in a llama/alpaca?
you can either go really high up around C2 level, or really low around C5-6
this is because their transverse processes on their C spine stick out pretty far and hide the jugular vein
what is special about camelid lips
they are oh so muscular hehe
camelids are not ruminants, they are
pseudoruminants
camelid stomachs have how many compartments
3
what are each of the 3 stomach compartments equivalent to in the cow?
C1: the rumen
C2: omasum
C3: absomasum
do stones in the saccules in comparment 1 cause any problems?
no
what makes camelids such efficinecy ruminators
they have more frequent mixing, greater buffering capacity, efficinet VFA absorption, and longer retention time
camelids are ______ ovulators
induced
camelids hav a ____ placentas
diffuse
significant things to remember about repro in camelids
gestation in the left horn, give birth during the day
camelids kick laterally like
cows
what are signs of a comfy llama vs concerned vs upset llams?
comfy: ears erect and slightly forward
concerned: ears point to back of the head
upset: ears flat against head and nose up
how do you deal with a spitter?
put a sock over their nose and thell spit all over themselves and stop
what is bezerk male syndrome
when they work too much with humans and they think they’re one of you and they will fight you. castration does not fix this
how do you take out fighting teeth
with giggly wire
malocclusion usually affects the
incisors
remember its only a problem if they can’t eat or have actual clinical issues
what’s the most common types of jaw masses and how do you treat them?
tooth root abscesses most commonly: treat with enrofloxacin or surgery
osteomyelitis (lumpy jaw)
fractures
cysts
tumors
megaesophagus us camelids is realted to
trauma, choke, organophosphate poisoning
a llama named Tootie presents with vomiting, regurg, dysphagia, fetid breath, chronic weight loss. based on top dx how will you diagnose and treat?
megaesophagus
rads/barium study
tx: feeding complete feed or euthanasia
llama presenting for anorexia, depressed contractions in C1–>instead of the normal 3-4x a min, there is only 1 per min. what is this and what is the treatment?
first compartment “flora” problems
tx: transfaunation, 2-4x
camelids can get grain overload just like cows can. how do they present and how is it diagnosed? treatment?
acute depression, gastric atony, fluid distention, stumbling gait
dx: C1 fluid will be acidic, metabolic acidosis
tx: correct dehydration, correct acidosis, antibiotics and thiamine
third compartment ulcers are often secondary to
other problems
what are the clinical signs of third compartment ulcers and what causes them?
C/S: colic, depression/anorexia, bruxism, less poopies
cause: maybe stress or seasonal, we dont know
treatment: omeprazole IV, not oral
more than ____% of colic cases are not surgical in camelids
50
but its better to be safe! better to go to surgery and find out its medical than to have a patholgist say you couldve done surgery to fix it
list some causes of peritonitis in camelids
pleuropneumonia, pericarditis, abdominal abscesses, septicemia, C3 ulcers, pancreatitis
2 most common clinical signs of peritonitis are
depression and anorexia
how do you diagnose peritonitis
abdominocentesis beech
treat withantibiotics, NSAIDs, nutrition support
tell me about the alpaca snots
animals returning from shows would get outbreaks of nasal discharge, fever, cough, and then recovery. suspect to be adenovirus, PI3, or coronavirus.
some can die from pneumonia
necropsy: pleural effusion and consolidation
signs of resp dosease are not obvious in camelids. suspect it if:
unexplained fever, anorexia, tachypnea
pneumonia in camelids is caused by
streptococcus zooepidemicus
how to treat strep zoo pneumonia
ceftiofur or ampicillin
tell me about mycoplasma haemolamae
it is a bacteria with no cell wall that sits on the surface of RBCs
causes subclinical infection or fever, potentially icterus and anemia
often associated with stress/transport or concurrent disease
can see it on a blood smear (not always, transient bacteremia)
treat with doxycycline
tell me about parelaphostrongylosis
a worm in deer where llams are aberrant hosts and it gets into the nervous system
C/S: hypermetria, ataxia, stiffness, paresis, head tilt, circling, blindness
treat w fenbendazole or overmectin
give anti inflam like phenylbutazone, flunixin, dexamethasone, etc
signs of west nile virus in camelids
lip twitching, facial tremors, head shaking, ataxia, paresis, fever, colic like signs
leukocytosis, macrophages in CSF
dx via RT PCR
poor prognosis
how to prevent west nile in camelids
vaccination: use horse one, give more frequently
try to eliminate mosquitos
is heat stress/heat stroke a joke?
no
when are camelids most at risk for heat stress?
predisposing factors?
at shows, during hot weather, during transport long distances
predisppsing factors: exercise, working during hot day, obesity, poorly groomed coat
a llama presents with drooling of the lower lip and some perianal swelling/edema. the llama is also depressed and anorexic. top dx and tx?
heat stroke
tx: water hose, shade, pond/pool, fans, alcohol rubs, ice water enemas, oral or IV fluids
how to prevent heat stroke/stress?
enough shade, fresh water, shearing/clipping often, well ventilated barn, misters or sprinklers
dont breed them during hot days, avoid obese animals, dont transport during hot days, feed good quality roughage
what is this? tell me about it
idiopathic hyperkeratosis
affects hairless parts of the body, NOT itchy, thought to be caused by zinc deficinecy or inflammatory disease but often responds to zinc supplements
what are these guys
left is haucaya, right is suri
death rate of crias should be _______
less than 5%
how is llama milk different
it is quite low in fat compared to other animals like cows or sheep
what are some alternatives to llama milk for ze bebes?
cow or goat colostrum, bottle is ideal but can do tube feeding too, make sure RID is above 800 (ideally 1000 mg/dl)
causes of failure of passive transfer in camelids and treatment?
poor quality or quantity of colsotrum, inability to nurse, colostrum not absorbing
tx: plasma tranfusion
signs of prematurity/dysmaturity in newborn camelids
weakness, low birth weight, unerupted incisors, hyperextension of fetlock, really silkly wool, floppy ears
list etiologies and risk factors for neonatal sepsis in newborn camelids
E coli, pseudomonas, strep, listeria
risk factors: failure passive transfer of immunity, weak babies
C/S of sepsis in newborn camelid
weakness, lethargy, fever OR hypthermia, failure to nurse, injected mucus membranes, enlarged joints, hypopyon, seizures, dyspnea, enlarged/infected umbillicus
how to treat neonatal sepsis in baby camelids
antibiotics: ceftiofur and gentamycin
fluids
nutritional support
plasma
anti inflammatory drugs
tell me about eimeria macusaniensis in crias
considered pathogenic, causes weakness and wasting, causes diarrhea in adults, long PPP of 32-43 days
treat with decoquinate, ponazuril, toltrazuril
behold
this is how you diagnose this protozoan
how to identify choanal atresia?
if their cheeks are moving in and out it means they can’t breathe
has to be diagnosed officially on contrast rads
both the sire and the dam are carriers so STOP breeding parents
you go see a juvenile alpaca with a dark coat, he isnt growing very fast and doesnt seem to want to move. when he walks you see a shifting leg lameness and some swollen joints. top dx?
hypophosphatemic rickets: thought to be from P deficiency, not enough vitamin D ingestion maybe too
treatment AND prevention: give vitamin D
BVD presents in camelids as
abortions, sometimed diarrhea
PI animals: poor weight gain, diarrhea, gets sick more often, or competely normal!
clinical signs and labwork findings of immunodefiicnecy syndrome
C/S: weight loss, normal TPR, recurring infections
lab findings: anemia, M. haemolamae, hypoalbuminemia
