The friendly and easy to handle alpaca has an intelligent, sensitive, and inquiring nature. Gentle handling and great care are required when you have them as pets. Like any other animal, whether you have a herd of alpacas or one or two as pets, they require attention and care.

Aside from regular feeding, adequate shelter, and access to plenty of clean water, they require veterinary care as well. Establishing and maintaining excellent alpaca health is one of our primary objectives. We are familiar with parasites and diseases prevalent in camelids. Common conditions, as well as surgical procedures, include:

  • Poisons

  • Dermatology

  • Anaesthesia

  • Analgesia

  • Vaccines

  • Examination

  • Nutritional consultation

  • Basic husbandry

  • Parasite control

  • Dental care

Nutrition

Compared to other livestock, alpacas are easily suffering from Vitamin D deficiency. It is very similar to that of a tortoise that needs sunlight for strength and growth. Most pet owners keep their adorable alpaca indoors and a lack of shearing leads also reduces UV absorption significantly.

To develop healthy bones and calcium absorption, Vitamin D is essential. To keep alpaca herds in optimal health, as well as young alpacas that do not get adequate nutrition from their mothers who might be suffering from Vitamin D deficiency, Vitamin D injections might be the answer.

Alpaca Nutrition Guidelines

  • Like most animals, the alpaca requires adequate intake of fibre, energy and protein. They also require vitamins and other micronutrients. You can provide them with all of this through high-quality pasture hay or pastures. When the pasture’s nutritional properties decrease during cold winter months, additional hay may be required.

  • Alpacas should not be overfed especially when their main diet consists of lush pastures containing Lucerne or clover or grain mixes or concentrated feeds like pellets.

  • Keep in mind that nursing and pregnant females, as well as young growing alpacas, have higher nutritional needs.

  • They also need shelter from rain and wind and shade in the summer. An alpaca must have a continuous supply for fresh drinking water.

  • Check your alpaca’s nutrition levels by regular check-ups before a vet visit. Check the muscle amount that runs along the backline to determine if the nutrition needs adjustment.

  • To prevent a lack of Vitamin D, ensure your alpaca gets regular shearing, like every year. The best time to do it is springtime to prevent the full fleece during summer that blocks the sun.

Worms

Worms are common among a large number of animals and Alpacas are no different. Gastrointestinal worms like the Barber’s Pole Worm are the most commonly found in alpacas.

These are blood-sucking nasty parasites that appear in large numbers that lead to severe blood loss in animals. If it is a severe case and the animal goes untreated, the animal can die of anaemia.

Pale mucous membranes, weight loss, and weakness are common symptoms. A variety of other worms can also affect an alpaca that also cause weight loss and diarrhea.

Worm control is vital but complex. You need pasture management in herds as they could be grazing alongside other ruminants that lead to an infestation. You also need to do a worm egg count by monitoring faeces and use the appropriate worm medications.

To monitor worm levels in your animal, we recommend a three-month faecal worm egg count. This is something we do for you and we will recommend the best course of action.

Vaccination

Alpacas are as susceptible to diseases as other ruminants like goats, cattle and sheep. Pulpy kidney (enterotoxaemia) is a common alpaca disease with a nearly 100% mortality rate. Your alpaca needs to be vaccinated to protect it against this deadly disease.

Other diseases an alpaca needs vaccination for include clostridial diseases like black disease, malignant oedema, tetanus, and back leg. We often recommend a five-in-one vaccination for decent immunity.