Animal Health: Fecal Egg Counts (FEC)

By Leona Grearson Bizzozero

This spring I attended a conference on gastrointestinal parasitology hosted by a SARE Research & Education Project to Improve Small (& modified) Ruminant Parasite Control in New England. I am not a veterinarian or vet tech, but like most folks that raise camelids, sheep, goats, and other livestock, it is my mission to ensure that I provide the best possible environment & humane treatment for the animals under my umbrella of care. I partner with my veterinarian team, yet I recognize that camelids remain 'exotic' in North America. Knowledge, understanding, and husbandry techniques continue to evolve within university and professional communities. For example, not all available anthelmintics (anti-parasite drugs) are currently approved for alpacas or llamas. This is problematic for new and seasoned camelid owners alike. To further complicate matters, there are differing views on if, when, and how often to treat alpacas & llamas for internal parasites.

Fecal Sampling

Periodic fecal sampling, including fecal egg counts, will provide information as to types and numbers of parasites present. This information will allow you to review your herd data with your veterinarian to determine the best deworming program, if any, to improve herd health.

Average Cost Per Sample: $5 — $20

I fancy that all camelid owners are smart, savvy, and sensitive. How could we not be? We choose to dedicate time, effort, and means to simply commune with the stoic Zen of alpacas & llamas. So before throwing hands up into the air and exhaling a deep resigning sigh, inform yourself about the parasite loads carried by your herd. Once you have an informed snapshot, then you can make sound decisions on how to reduce the parasite burdens and increase the health & well being of your animals, rather than blindly treating an entire herd for parasites that they may or may not carry. I encourage you to test the poo before you do any gastrointestinal anti-parasite treatments.

Fecal Sampling

A technique that involves examining dung from an individual or a group of animals to determine the number (and/or type) of gastrointestinal parasite present. Fecal sampling will only identify parasites that live in the digestive tract. What does fecal sampling involve?

• Collection of specimen: Fresh manure is collected and should be stored in a clean, air-tight, dry container such as a plastic sandwich bag, mason jar, or the like.
• Collect either from individual animals or from communal dung pile.
• Label each specimen with date, animal name/dung pile location, and your farm name.
• Store sample(s) in cool, dry place (refrigerator) until you can provide to your vet or other testing facility.
• Sample Process & Analysis: A portion is mixed with a solution that causes the eggs to separate & float to the surface.
• The mixture is filtered removing all possible debris and the residual is observed under a microscope where eggs are counted.
• The results are measured as eggs per gram (epg) of dung.

Some owners believe it's a waste of time and money to perform fecal testing. On the contrary, administering chemical dewormers when not warranted is not only a waste of money, time & effort, but may inadvertently develop drug resistance in parasites while lessening the overall effectiveness of available products.

Drug Resistant Parasites?

When an alpaca or llama is exposed to parasites, bacteria, viruses, etc. it will develop specialized cells to fend off infections from the foreign organisms. Some of these cells will produce life long immunity after a single exposure. Other cells may produce immunity for as little as several months. Low level repeated exposure to a foreign organism can stimulate the immune system to continue producing the specialized cells reducing the severity of future infections. Resistance is very common in sheep and goats and increasing in alpacas and Ilamas. The fact is that anti-parasite drugs are unable to completely eliminate an entire population of parasites. The few that remain are resistant to the drug and with time, reproduce creating a new population that is also resistant. Given that indiscriminate use of chemical dewormers, shipping animals, open herds, and inadequate biosecurity only encourage resistance; performing routine fecal sampling will help take the guess work out… To keep costs minimal while obtaining meaningful herd parasite load data, begin your sampling focus during the times of year when worm egg counts increase.

Birthing Times

Worm egg counts will rise during birthing times as females are under stress. Testing at this time of increased egg levels will determine the parasite burden that will be present in the cria fields. Autumn fecal egg counts performed in the fall will yield infection levels from summer grazing and ensure animals are not going into winter with worm counts high enough to adversely affect health & welfare. Anthelmintics should complement but not replace good management and sanitation practices. Camelids are not immune to parasites, but there are practical ways to reduce the need for anti-parasite drugs. As simple as it may sound, practicing sanitary barnyard management strategies, including feed bunkers for hay & grain, eliminating standing water and wet areas around waterers, and routinely removing dung will reduce the favorable environment most parasites need to become infective.

Tips

• Frequent cleanup of the dung piles, effectively planned pasture rotation and grazing multiple species on pastures reduces parasite load while lessening the possible chances of exposure.
• If you are not removing dung piles, especially large seasonal piles, then fence them off to exclude animal exposure for several seasons, allowing the manure to compost.
• Incoming animals are stressed from transportation, new surroundings, and removal from existing herdmates. The stress can cause a mild immunosuppression, causing an increase shedding of parasites or other organisms. When a new animal arrives on your premises, practice quality biosecurity measures by quarantining the animal from all other similar species for thirty days. Utilize distant pens, paddocks, & pastures for all incoming animals to help reduce exposure of the existing herd to new parasite species as well as other diseases. 

Don't Guess… Test!

Further Information: Contact your Vet for fees/services available locally. The Southern Consortium for Small Ruminant Parasite Control provides a variety of guidance for farmers including a guide to egg per gram (epg) counting. You can also visit www.scsrpc.org/SCSRPC/ProdRec/producerinfo.htm. Leona operates Hespe Garden Ranch & Rescue in Washington, VT providing a safe haven for camelids in need while practicing symbiotic agriculture to humanely enhance animal health, happiness and overall yields.

Taking Care of the Rumen

By Karen Nicholson

We've all experienced it at some point - some major stress in our life or we've altered our diet less than gradually or taken medication or something as simple as drinking different water while on vacation and it results in serious digestive upset! Well, camelids are just as susceptible or more so to gastrointestinal upset than we are. While discussing camelid digestion can be quite involved, I'll attempt to offer a few simple ways to ward off potential problems.

Digestive Flora

Scientists estimate that we humans have trillions of microbes (bacteria, viruses, fungi and assorted parasites) living on the outside of our body and hundreds of millions in our digestive tract. Our bodies coexist with these living microscopic organisms, keeping us healthy most of the time and helping us digest and absorb vitamins and minerals from our food and water. These microorganisms (bacteria, protozoa, fungi, etc) are also teaming within the camelid.

The population dynamics of the different species found in the forestomach will depend on the camelid's diet. This brings me to my first Tip: Avoid abruptly changing the diet for exactly this reason — the microorganisms are specific to the diet. If you change the diet abruptly, the camelid now has a population that is designed to serve a different diet and they can wreak havoc while simultaneously the forestomach has no population of the microorganisms to work with the new diet. This results in stress and a gastrointestinal challenge for the animal.

Stress

Stress impacts all the physiological systems including gastrointestinal function and health. Stresses such as: too much heat or cold; too much, too little or the wrong kind of food; aggressive companions or crowded conditions or transport and shows can lead to digestive tract problems such as colic, constipation, urinary tract problems, parasite problems, ulcers and so on. These range in seriousness from mild to life threatening. Tips: As their keepers, this is one of our tasks — stress management. We can also breed for this trait choosing camelids that are not compromised under stressful conditions. Always be alert for signs of digestive tract upset such as reluctance to eat, reluctance to stand, diarrhea, constipation, gut ache, self-isolation, change in eating habits, and food preference.

Parasites and Deworming

Parasites are one of the most important considerations in the digestive and overall health of the camelid. We'd need an entire article to address this completely. But here are a few tips that can keep parasites in check. Tips: Keep stocking density low per pen; pasture rotation is a must; when necessary, use dry lot feeding to help control a parasite problem; quarantine animals coming onto the farm; keep animals in good condition; and run fecal exams on a regular basis. For deworming - Tips: It is best to treat the individual animal, not the herd. Giving dewormers to animals that don't need them only upsets their digestive flora unnecessarily and encourages parasite resistance to the drug. Also consider giving probiotics after any medical treatment to encourage the reestablishment of gut flora.

Water

Water is one, if not the most essential, nutrient critical to proper digestion. Fresh, clean, high-quality water should be available for free choice at all times. Tips: Abrupt changes in water can lead to digestive troubles. Consider bringing your own water to shows, in transport and when relocating an animal to a new farm. It could make all the difference in your animal's health during this stressful time.

Feed

It's worth the time it takes to learn how to determine if feed is of good quality. While there are so many factors, there is one simple thing to know that can make a world of difference for your camelid. Tip: Have you ever eaten a lettuce from a plant that has bolted (gone to seed)? It tastes horrible, it's difficult to digest, and has poorer nutritional content than an immature plant. The same holds true for your hay and pasture grasses. Always try and put animals on immature pasture (mow if necessary) and the same for hay.

Crias and Weaning

The newborn cria is a non-ruminant animal. Milk is digested in the third compartment whereas in an adult, about 50%+ of digestion takes place in the forestomach or first compartment. It takes the cria about 12 weeks to ruminate as an adult and even then, only at about 80-90% of adult function. Tip: Before weaning, make sure you have observed healthy ruminant activity, then gradually wean the cria from the dam (together at night but not daytime). If transitioning to a new farm, consider weaning at 5-6 months and observe healthy behavior and digestive function before the cria leaves the farm. Also, the temperament of the camelid and the situation it will be going to will greatly impact their success at weaning and the impact it will have on their digestive upset.

Other Tips

• At changes of season, gradually put on pasture and take off. It takes the rumen two weeks to adjust to new feed.
• Consider having hay from the same source available at all times so that the camelid can use this as its base of food at all times while taking in new food (different pastures or moving to a new farm).
• Avoid forced grazing where the selection of food is limited and scarce. They will eat things that upset them before starving.
• Be very careful to not let camelids get into grain bins causing potential forestomach acidosis. Use bungee cords to secure them closed.
• Gradually change grain products or hay.
• Consider bringing all your own hay, water and grain to shows/events or to send along with an animal relocating to it's new farm.
• Sit and watch your herd for 5-10 minutes a day to make sure they are eating, ruminating and pooping/peeing normally.

Summary

High quality feed and water — gradual changes — manage stress — breed for hardiness.

Karen Nicholson, of Stepping Stone Farm Alpacas in Stowe, VT, has a herd of nine colorful alpacas bred and managed for valued traits including: fiber excellence, conformation, reproductive vigor, hardiness and temperament. Also on the farm are: two French Alpine dairy goats, Indian Runner ducks, broiler chickens and several laying hens all integrated into their farm management program. While the information shared is not meant to replace the protocol set up by your veterinarian, these methods are being successfully used with many different types of livestock including camelids. Any comments or questions can be directed to: Nicholson@websticker.com.

Simple Causes Behind Weight Loss in Your Llama: What Can You Do to Help?

By Erika Krauss, Reprinted from the GALA Newsletter, December 2007

How can I tell if my llama is losing weight? The first and most important thing to know about your llama’s health is how much should this animal weigh? This should be a question you ask about your animals when you first buy them. If, as a small-scale llama owner you do not own a scale, you can always ask a vet to weigh your animal in the future.

It is often difficult to check a llama's weight by sight because of the amount of wool coverage on the body. However, a simple and quick way to see if your animal is overweight is to check the angle of its backbone directly in front of the hips. When you first receive your animal, assuming it is a healthy weight, drape your hand, thumb on one side, four fingers on the other of the backbone in front of the croup. The angle made by those two opposing sides should be at least a 45 to 55 degree angle. The owner needs to account for each animal's specific body type, but if the angle is smaller or larger than that, the animal could be under or overweight. If you are still unsure about the animal's weight look at the chest: does it look full and jiggle when it walks? You can also feel for fat deposits in the lower end behind the armpit. If there are no fat deposits, then the animal is probably more underweight than your original assessment from the backbone test.

Cause of Underweight Animals

1. Underfeeding

In most of the northeast, up to six llamas can graze on a pasture of two acres, while the ratio of horses is only one animal to two acres. Llamas are known as the "wonder animal" for consuming the least amount of resources when it comes to surface area of pasture. However, this can make a severe generalization. This ratio is for an average size llama with average bodily needs. Get help from your local extension service to check the pasture quality, and have your hay tested every year. A llama's physical development may not end until age 4 or 5, so extra food and/or nutrients are needed in these critical years of growth. They will be mostly adding muscle and "filling out" at ages past 4. A llama older than 14 years old is susceptible to old age (an average lifespan of a llama being 20 years old), and older animals typically need some dietary supplements. Like any animal, it is difficult for llamas to assimilate nutrients without the proper vitamins. An essential way to keep all of your animals well-fed is by having a Ilama-specific loose mineral mix out for consumption at all times in their feeding area(s). As always, water is vital to their systems and if there are not adequate amounts of water for your llamas their health and weight will fail as a result.

Another time when llamas need extra food is if they are pregnant or nursing. While a dam's body is going through stages of providing for a fetus or cria, it needs the appropriate changes to diet. This information can be obtained from a local veterinarian or an accredited book such as Story's Guide to Raising Llamas or The Complete Alpaca Book. Always be ready for changing weather and have sufficient amounts of feed and water depending on the temperature, ventilation, humidity, precipitation and altitude of your area.

2. Age

As mentioned above, animals below or above their "prime" age can suffer if not fed appropriate amounts of food. While a cria or young llama is nursing, it needs to have extra food that is high in protein that will help the cria to grow. It is imperative that the dam has enough water to produce the amount of milk needed to feed the cria. If an owner notices that his/her young llama is not growing at a healthy rate (one-half to a pound per day in the first few weeks), consult a vet or try giving the dam extra food. If the cria is eating solid food and is not energetic, it may also be a sign that more food is needed.

Our geriatric llamas can have a few more problems in their old age than the juveniles. An older llama can have a hard time digesting or absorbing nutrients from its food. Sometimes they need more processed food, or grains with higher amounts of energy and vitamins, which can include things like beet pulp, oats, and alfalfa pellets.

Another problem commonly found in older animals is failing tooth structure. If your adult llama appears to not be chewing properly check for tooth decay or askew tooth erosion. Tooth problems can lead to problems grazing, chewing and digesting. A llama has three parts to its stomach. One stores food and allows it to be regurgitated and chewed again, which aids in digestion. If the balance of the body is thrown off, then digestion may not be complete within the body. What can result is not enough food or slow absorption of nutrients. An older animal may also be low in the hierarchy of a herd and it may be doubly difficult to obtain food because of the competition and tooth and/or mouth pain. Any age animal can always develop a tooth or jaw abscess that would inhibit eating and digestion. An overbite or under-bite may also prove to be problematic in some cases.

If you have an older llama that has problems with digestion and chewing her food thoroughly, mix a grain of one part alfalfa cubes, one part whole oats, and one part beet pulp and add hot water and let it sit for 15 minutes. This will create a mash that will be easily chewed by your geriatric friend.

3. Parasites

Underfeeding and age are common variables in a llama's health. Just as important are parasites. The kinds of parasites I will refer to in this article are intestinal parasites that live in the digestive path of the llama and consume the food the llama takes in. Parasites can live in young, old, underfed and overfed animals. Any animal that is exposed to a parasite of the digestive tract is susceptible to infestation. Most often, these parasites live with the llama and lay eggs that exit the animal with their feces onto the pasture. The way the parasites spread is when other llamas eat in the same area where the last animal defecated and bring the eggs or the young parasite into their body.

The sure signs of a parasite in the digestive tract are a bloated animal that seems to be eating the same amount or more than usual, but is gradually losing weight. (Bloating can be noted by sight or by how the animal moves, not by checking in front of the croup). If there is ever a suspicion that there are parasites in llamas, the easiest and quickest thing to do is to send a fresh fecal sample to the vet for analysis.

Animals on pasture that are moved a lot, housed with other species, or on pasture near a wilderness area should be treated for parasites with an oral or injectable worming medicine. The advantage of an oral worming medicine is that it targets the parasites in the digestive tract. An injectable worming shot targets parasites living outside of the digestive tract, and can be just as important.

More information is being studied that suggests targeted deworming among small ruminant herds, or only worming animals that show positive test results, may be desirable. Parasites can become resistant to wormers over time. There has also been some research that suggests worming medicine can be harmful to an array of good soil organisms on the pasture when the medication comes out of the body in the fecal matter.

Llamas that are uncomfortable or sick are not fun to be around. A healthful llama is a happy llama! Please watch for any changes in your llama's behavior or body condition to effectively assess health of the individual and the herd.

Quick Recap

1. To see if your animal is underweight, use a quick method of feeling with your hand in front of the croup on the animal's backbone. Look for more than a 50-degree angle.
2. If you have an underweight animal, look at the age, condition of feeding ground (pasture/nutrient content), hay quality, and if parasites are suspected, get a fresh fecal sample to the vet for analysis!
3. Things to keep in mind are to monitor for parasites regularly, and to not hesitate to supplement regular grass or hay feed with grains ranging from processed llama pellets to whole oats and beet pulp.

Some excellent resources:

• Storey’s Complete Guide to Llamas
• The Complete Alpaca Book by Eric Hoffman
• Robert J. Van Saun
• www.luresext.edu/goats/library/field/WellsCO5.pdf

The last article is based on goat and sheep parasites. When reading about other small ruminant species in texts, you must remember that some parasites are shared while others are not. The best information found is specific to the camelid family. Knowing how similar species relate to your camelids helps to expand ideas to what other farmers are dealing with when it comes to nutrition and pasture health.

A Whole Farm Approach to Parasite Management

By Karen Nicholson of Stepping Stone Farm Alpacas

Internal parasites are a part of most every livestock producer's farm. Regardless of whether they are pasture raised or in a confinement setting, livestock will be exposed to internal parasites at some time in their life. In the Northeast, and in other humid climates, parasites can be a major problem for small ruminants, such as alpacas, sheep and goats.

So why adopt an organic approach to parasite management? Chemical dewormers are losing their effectiveness, with parasites developing resistance to them at an alarming rate. There are some parts of the country where internal parasites have developed resistance to all commercially available dewormers without new ones being developed. In our area where Meningeal worm is a threat and there is widespread use of Ivermectin, parasites that were formerly managed with this drug have grown resistant to it. Resistance means that not all the worms are killed during deworming. The surviving worms pass that genetic resistance on to offspring.

The growing concern about the resistance of internal parasites to all classes of dewormers has caused people to look for alternatives. By looking at the whole farm as an interrelated system, it becomes apparent that there are parts of the system that can be managed to decrease internal parasites and their effects. This management whole farm approach not only postpones the day when chemical dewormers no longer work, but it also increases the overall health of the individual animal (and future herd), and it may even decrease costs.

It All Starts with Prevention and Management:

1. Healthy, properly conditioned animals – Nutrition plays a major role in how well alpacas are able to overcome the effects of internal parasites. Quality feed, fresh water, minerals, managing stress and monitoring for condition are essential. Check weights/body score and mucus membranes and observe the herd regularly to monitor condition.
2. Stocking Density – By maintaining a healthy stocking density you decrease the overall infectivity rate of the farm. It also allows you to have more areas (pastures, etc) that you can rest for longer, creating more 'clean' areas. To calculate the optimum stocking density, you'll find a good worksheet at www.sarahflackconsulting.com.
3. Quarantine – When an animal comes or returns to the farm, keep it with a buddy in a quarantine area for one month while monitoring their health and doing regular fecals. This can protect your herd (particularly the geriatric, cria. weak or pregnant/lactating females) from parasite overloads and other disease.
4. Pasture Rotation – There could be an entire article alone on this subject. If we begin with an understanding of the interrelationship between the animal, the plants it eats, and the soil on which those plants grow, then it will become clearer how parasites infect the animal and how they can be managed so as not to cause as many problems. Narrowing it down to two subjects, there are: rotation for the health of the grasses and soils, and rotation to work with the lifecycle of parasites.
• Lifecycle of parasites
– Although some parasite eggs can live in the soils year round without a host, many of the parasites we are dealing with go through up to a 21 day lifecycle outside the host. The infected manure is dropped, three days later the eggs hatch into larvae searching for a host (the alpaca), and most die by 21 days if a host does not ingest them. Consider wildlife where parasite loads generally do not cause disease and death in the host because, instinctively, wildlife are on the move. The parasites have no host if the animal is no longer where the manure (eggs/occysts) was dropped. The same principle applies to livestock. If we rotate our animals every 2-3 days to new pastures and do not put them back on that same pasture for a minimum of 21 days, we are significantly decreasing the numbers of larvae available to be ingested. Ideally, you want to size your pastures so that they eat it down to not less than 2" in 3 days (or even better, 12-24 hours) as most larvae live in the bottom 1-2" of grass.
• Health of Grasses and Soils – Healthy soil grows healthy plants. Healthy plants provide good nutrition to animals. Unhealthy soils also have fewer of the beneficial organisms (beetles, earthworms, nematophasous fungi, etc) that can kill parasites. Chemical dewormers also kill most of these organisms that are working for you. Test, monitor and fertilize your soils as necessary. Grasses - overgrazing (below 2”) damages pastures as that alpaca will continue to graze the most vigorous and productive plants in the pasture down very short, which will stress the root system of the plant, in turn reducing the productivity of that pasture. If this happens every year, several years in a row, it can greatly reduce the amount, quality and the diversity of plants the pasture will produce. Overgrazing also cuts down on the animal's efficiency and dry matter intake, resulting in poor performance.
5. Cleanliness – Keep clean barns and pastures. Scoop manure twice daily or as often as is practical, and pile it in the current active compost pile. Actively composting your manure by creating the proper carbon/nitrogen mix will heat up the manure to 135 degrees and kill pathogens. Removing manure often keeps the alpacas from stepping in it and dragging it all over and ingesting larvae. Larvae migrate from the manure up to 12 inches.
6. Animal Selection – Select breeding males that exhibit parasite resilience. Resilience is the ability of the host (camelid) to maintain health during a parasite challenge. In most livestock production, resilience is one of several traits that are being selected for. By monitoring and keeping good records, we can most often detect which animals almost never shed eggs regardless of the parasite load of the rest of the herd. Typically, 10-20% of animals will always be heavily parasitized. 10-20% will be lightly parasitized, and 60-80% will fall in between. Identifying these genetic lines and selecting for them in our breeding will improve the health of our herd and the future herd. For example: don't put sires into production from sires/dams that either always have parasite problems themselves, or always produce crias that have parasite problems. An example of an effective parasite control program can be found in TN. Dennis Onks of Highland Rim Experiment Station has not dewormed the adult cattle on the farm in eight years. They are dewormed at weaning and not again. They have never shown any signs of internal parasites and their condition is excellent. These animals are on a high plane of nutrition, have a low stress level and are strictly culled on production. Producers who add parasite susceptibility to their list of selection criteria find that in 2-3 years, they have greatly decreased the incidence of parasite problems in their herds.
7. Encouraging Hardiness – Too much of a good thing can actually work against the animal. Ideally, you want an animal that can retain health when faced with adversity.
8. Other – Grazing multiple species together or rotating them behind one another can be helpful, as they are a dead-end host for each other's parasites. Chickens and ducks will also consume some of the parasites. Consider planting herbal lays (weedy pastures) and high tannin forages for improved gut function.

Then moves to Monitoring and Treatment…

1. Fecal Monitoring – Testing and monitoring animals is crucial to determining the progress and success of your parasite management program and in determining which animals are resilient and which are not. The ultimate goal is for the animal to develop immunity or resilience to parasites. NOT to be parasite free.
• Observation is one method – identify which animals always keep condition, have firm beans, etc. regardless of stress or the performance of the rest of the herd.
• Fecal Testing is another method of monitoring, and aids in identifying which animals are resilient and which always carry heavier loads. Sometimes it can identify a problem much more quickly than observation. Once parasites have been identified in a fecal test, they can be monitored by additional tests for increased/decreased loads, significantly reducing the number of deworming treatments. Consider doing fecal testing on-farm as it can get expensive.
2. Strategic Deworming – Treatment should be the last resort — that includes alternative and pharmaceutical treatments. Careful fecal monitoring instead of conventional seasonal or routine deworming should increase resilience and decrease parasite resistance to the drugs. Treat the individual animal, not the whole herd. Proper dosing is also important. If you do not knock out the parasite, but only knock it down, you are encouraging adaptation and resistance to the drug. If your vet doesn't specialize in alpaca care, make sure he/she is up to date on proper treatment and dosages. Put crias in a pasture with low-level parasites to give them low dose exposure so that they can develop immunity. Transition animals slowly from winter hay feed to pastures to not upset the gut and to slowly introduce the animal to pasture parasites that survived the winter. Give probiotics at times of stress, immune challenge, immunizations, and gut challenge. Do not move animals to new pastures until 12-24 hours after deworming to allow enough time for parasites to be killed and eggs to be expelled.

Summary

Parasite overloads are a symptom that there is sickness within the farm. It is disease in individual animals, but also an indication of imbalance or a problem on the farm. While implementing all strategies can seem overwhelming, slow changes can make dramatic improvements in parasite levels and the overall performance or the herd. If we were to choose the most effective methods they might be:

• Prevention – good nutrition is essential, grazing management and selecting resilient dams/sires to improve crias.
• Early Observation – catch symptoms of disease or ill thrift early thru routine observation of the herd. Trust your gut instinct. Use fecal monitoring as a preventative and monitoring tool.
• Treatment – as the option or last resort, but certainly when the animal's health requires it.

Karen Nicholson has a herd of ten alpacas at Stepping Stone Farm Alpacas in Stowe. While the information shared is not meant to replace the protocol set up by your veterinarian, these methods are being successfully used with many different types of livestock, including camelids. Any comments or questions can be directed to: Karen@stowealpacas.com.

Herbal Therapy in Llamas and Alpacas

By Donald Thompson DVM

This past September, Donald P. Thompson, DVM, CVA, was invited to speak at a veterinary conference in Chongoing, China on acupuncture point location and herbal remedies for cattle and camelids. His presentation covered protocols and techniques to treat a few common maladies in these food and fiber species. Along with cattle, horses, goats, dogs, and cats, Don has been working with camelids and their owners for twenty years in northern and central Vermont. His veterinary degree is from Cornell, then recently enhanced with his degree in acupuncture and his study of Chinese herbal formulas. The following paper is the portion of his presentation on camelids.

My final comments today will be concerning the emerging use of TCVM techniques in South American camelids, primarily llamas and alpacas in my practice. These are valuable animals in the United States worthy of having many treatment options at your disposal.
In dosing these animals with herbal formulas, one rapidly finds that oral administration is challenging, especially in adults. They rarely voluntarily consume the powder, but this route is worth trying first if the patient is not anorectic, offering the powder with grain. The very long, sinuous neck of camelids is used effectively to avoid oral administration of all but the smallest volume of liquids or suspensions. Llamas and alpacas may try to hit you with the head and/or neck in defense or may "cush," dropping to ventral recumbency to avoid you. Lastly, these animals will ward off your persistent advances with rapid, well-aimed expulsion of stomach contents, or "spitting" at you.

If attempting to treat these animals orally, I recommend dosage volumes comparable to that cited for cattle, due to the presence of the complex, three-compartment stomach. Administer small amounts of the total dose, tip the nose up slightly, and allow them time to swallow to avoid aspiration, then give more.

As an alternative to oral dosing, I have begun teaching my camelid owners to administer a much smaller dose--that of the horse--via rectal suppository. With the head either held or tied and the tail firmly raised, owners have found this route of administration to be technically simple and I have found it effective. The typical 30-gram dose of powder is mixed with a minimal amount of warm water, often 30-60 cc, to create a thick slurry. I use a 60 cc catheter tip syringe to deposit the slurry past the anus into the rectum in a minimal volume, trying to avoid creating the sensation of an enema followed by rapid expulsion and loss of the herbal.

While I have now treated many conditions in camelids both with acupuncture and with herbals, I would like to finish this presentation with what is an interesting case for me, lending hope for more such cases in the future. In the United States, we deal with many cases of paraparetic to paraplegic llamas and alpacas, which almost universally are presumed to be and subsequently treated as cases of meningeal deer worm, or Parclaphostrongylus tenuis, spinal disease.

Meningeal Worm (P. Tenuis) Myelopathy Life Cycle and Treatment

The life cycle of the meningeal deer worm is an interesting one. The definitive host is the white-tailed deer, common to the United States, especially in the Eastern part. Adult worms lay eggs in the meninges of the deer. The eggs then pass into the venous circulation and travel to the lungs, where they hatch into the L1 larvae. The L1 are coughed up, swallowed and passed in the deer's feces. These larvae invade or are ingested by terrestrial slugs or snails, which serve as an intermediate host. The L1 larvae develop into the infective stage L3 larvae in these gastropods over 3-4 weeks. When consumed by a susceptible aberrant species, including llamas and alpacas, the L3 migrate to the spinal cord and wander aimlessly, creating neurological disease (1).

I now treat these paralyzed llamas with two therapeutic goals in mind, the first being destruction of the invading parasite, the second being relief of Blood and Qi stasis in the spinal cord. Two Jing Tang Herbal formulas help accomplish these goals. Qing Hao Powder is responsible for destruction of the parasite, tonification of Qi and enhancement of Zheng-Qi and its immune function and Double P#2 is my choice for breaking down stasis in the spine, moving Qi, and relieving pain. The composition of each formula, as cited by Jing Tang, is as follows:

Qing Hao Powder (2,3)

• Atractylodes Bai Zhu: To tonify Qi and strengthen the spleen
• Codonopsis Dang Shen: To tonify Qi and strengthen Zheng Qi
• Licorice Gan Cao: To harmonize
• Dryopteris Guan Zhong: To kill parasites
• Astragalus Huang Qi: To tonify Qi and enhance immune function
• Omphalia Lei Wan: Kills internal and external parasites
• Artemisia Qing Hao: Kills and expels blood-mediated parasites
• Quisqualis Shi Jun Zi: Kills gastrointestinal worms

Double P #2 (2,3)

• Morinda Ba Ji Tian: Warms Yang, tonifies the kidney
• Psoralea Bu Gu Zhi: Tonifies Kidney Yang and strengthens bone
• Peony Chi Shao Yao: Cools blood, resolves stagnation
• Ligusticum Chuan Xiong: Activates blood, resolves stagnation
• Angelica Dang Gui: Nourishes and activates blood, resolves pain
• Lumbricus Di Long: Clears internal wind and detoxifies
• Cucommia Du Zhong: Strengthens the back, tonifies Kidney Yang
• Aconite Fu Zi: Warms Yang and the channels
• Licorice Gan Cao: Harmonizes
• Cibotium Gou Ji: Tonifies Kidney Yang and the channels
• Drynaria Gu Sui Bu: Strengthens bone and tonifies Kidney Yang
• Carthamus Hong Hua: Moves blood, resolves stagnation and stasis
• Astragalus Huang Qi: Tonifies Qi
• Strychnos Ma Oian Zi: Activates channels, relieves pain, clears Wind-Damp
• Myrrh Mo Yao: Resolves stagnation and relieves pain
• Cyathula Niu Xi: Tonifies kidney Yang and strengthens rear limbs
• Scorpion Quan Xie: Resolves stagnation
• Olibanum Ru Xiang: Resolves stagnation and relieves pain
• Notoginseng Tian San Qi: Moves blood and stops hemorrhage
• Lindera Wu Yao: Moves Qi and relieves pain
• Dipsacus Xu Duan: Strengthens bones and ligaments, tonifies Kidney Yang
• Draconis Xue Jie: Resolves stagnation

To reiterate, I instruct the patient's owner to administer each of these formulas as an aqueous intrarectal suppository at 15 grams (2 tablespoons) of each twice a day for up to one month. These recumbent animals are very easy to treat in this manner and, based on the first few patients that I have treated as such; results appear positive in comparison to my previous efforts using a Western pharmaceutical protocol. Such a protocol commonly includes any or all of the following: Fenbendazole, Ivermectin, flunixin meglumine, thiamine, vitamin E, selenium and cyanocobalamin. Using the Western and Eastern treatment modalities may prove to compliment each other in future eases.

References

1. Anderson, D. (2002). Parelaphostrongylus Tenius (Meningeal Worm). Retrieved on July 20, 2008 from http://www.vet.ohiostate.edu/docs/ClinSc i/camelid/mening.html
2. Xie, H. (2004). Chinese Veterinary Herbal Handbook. Reddick, FL: Chi Institute
3. Xie, H. (2008). Dr. Xie's Jing-tang Herbal, Inc. Retrieved on July 21, 2008 from http://www.tevmherbal.com

Thoughts on Deworming

By Kristy Brawn DVM
Reprinted from The Orgler, Wisconsin Organization of Llama Enthusiasts, February 2007

Parasite control has become a looming issue in our industry and ever-present questions at veterinary panel discussions. Parasite control programs vary based on the density of population (number of animals in a given area), the length of time that species has been on the same pastures (virgin pastures versus overgrazed yards), soil types (sandy soils are less conducive to parasite larvae/egg arrival than are heavy soils), parasites with other host species or parasites endemic to an area (meningeal worm and liver flukes) and "animal traffic" (a closed herd when there are no new animals and no movement versus a herd that shows, does outside breedings, "animal dealers," etc).

A few basic thumb rules:

1. Where there is grass, there are worms.
2. The more animals in an area, the higher your parasite exposure.
3. Coccidia become more of a concern the longer a species is in an area.
4. The more animals move on/off your farm, the more at risk you are for parasite infestation.
5. Formed stool does not mean your herd is parasite-free.
6. Fecal exams are an important management tool.
7. Use appropriate drug dosages--do not under-dose!
8. Proper doses and product rotation decreases the likelihood of resistance.

I hate to give a parasite control strategy for everyone to follow because it just won't fit every herd. If you have meningeal worm as a threat in your area, then your deworming must be more aggressive and timely and the importance of product rotation is far more important. If you have sandy soil or conditions are arid, you can get by with far fewer dewormings and a different rotation of products.

Generalities:

Meningeal threat - whitetail deer and snails/slugs are a part of the lifecycle of meningeal, so conditions conducive to snails/slugs increase your risk (heavy soils, standing water, leaf litter, down grasses, shady area, etc). Estimated 30-100 days for parasite to reach the spine.

Plan:

1. Deworm at 4-week intervals with Ivermectin products or 6-week intervals with Dectomax to kill parasite migration. Start with spring thaw and discontinue with 6" frost in winter or snow cover. Some plans have been suggested to use strategically timed doses of Avermectins (wet spring and fall) - this does not work in heavy infested areas - I did a test group for this strategy and had meningeal infections from April to December - decide if the value of the animal is greater than the risk of infection.
2. It is imperative to use a different family of dewormers 2-4 times per year to kill parasites not sensitive to the Avermectin class drug (Ivo and Decto) - Fendbendazole or Albendazole both also kill the larvae and are more effective against many of the internal parasites. The number of dewormings with these products varies based on stocking density and fecal exam results.

Non-meningeal areas - internal parasites are the biggest risk - see factors above regarding density and animal movement and combine with fecal exams to deter-mine appropriate scheduling.

Plan:

• Two weeks before pasture turn-out
• Mid-summer (July) End of grazing season
• Fecal exams periodically to monitor levels and need for dewormings

Liver Fluke threat: Geographical maps help to delineate the areas where flukes are a threat. Swampy areas, wet soil and water bodies increase the threat of flukes.

Plan:

Consider combined meningeal threat if appropriate and then 6-8 week dewormings either: 

• Ivomec Plus or Ivomec F (Ivermectin plus clorsulon)
• Valbazen (albendazole) 

Tapeworms: Valbazen

High doses of Fendbendazole

High doses of Pyrantel

Suggested drug dosages

There are minimum suggested dosages - certain parasite conditions may necessitate higher levels and newer research may also change suggested dosages.

Intestinal worms:

• Ivermectin products: 2cc/100# subQ (400mcg/kg)
• Dectomax: 2cc/100# subQ (400mcg/kg)
• Fendbendazole: Liquid - 10cc/100# orally (20mg/kg - note: this is 4x the label dose)
• Fenbendazole: Paste - 4x body weight (20mg/kg, - so a 1250# horse tube will deworm a 300# llama)
• Fenbendazole: Granules - 4x body-weight (20mg/kg - so a 500# equine packet deworms 125# of llama)
• Albendazole: Liquid - 8 cc/100# orally (20mg/kg or twice the label dose for cattle)
• Albendazole: Paste - 2x body weight (20mg/kg - so 500# cattle dose will deworm a 250# llama)

External parasites:

• Ivermectin and Dectomax as above
• Cyclence - pour on at cattle dose for lice and fly control

Other topicals as needed for specific parasites - ask your veterinarian for doses - in general if it is safe for use in lactating cattle, it will likely be safe for camelids, but check first!

Coccidia:

• Amprolium (Corid) at label dose for 7- 10 days
• Sulfaquinalones at label dose for 7-10 days
• Deccox at sheep dose used strategically for control
• E. mac - different drugs apply

Fecals, fecals, fecals!!!

The only way to know if you are doing a good job with your internal parasite control is to run routine fecal exams. Centrifuge concentration methods of fecal exam are needed to be sure we identify all possible eggs. Routine small animal flotations may miss many egg types and quantities - with the centrifuge method we not only identify the types of eggs present, but also get an estimate of eggs/gram and use this to assess your infection level. Composite tests can be run on groups - routine samples can be run anytime to assess infestation levels. Samples should be taken 10-14 days post-deworming to be sure that you are eliminating parasites. Note: if a sample is found positive on an individual animal, the whole group should be treated even if no other animals show symptoms.

Parasites 101

Reprinted from Cool Camelids

Parasites have co-evolved with their mammalian hosts for hundreds of thousands of years. In comparison, it is a relatively brief period that humans have attempted to control their presence with the use of anthelmintics (dewormers). Parasites, meanwhile, have shown an incredible knack for adapting and surviving our best efforts to eradicate them. Most recently, the frequent use of Doramectin and Ivermectin in camelids to prevent Meningeal Worm has altered the population dynamics and genetics of some parasites, leading to resistance to these products. In addition, the indiscriminate use of other anthelmintics such as Fenbendazole and Amprolium is also suspected of leading to resistance.

Gastrointestinal parasites are increasingly implicated as a cause of serious health problems affecting camelids. Economic losses include poor weight gain and growth, costs for treatment and prevention, and loss of animals from death. In addition to the problems arising from resistance, overstocking can make elimination of harmful parasites from the herd much more difficult.

No Easy Answer

Unfortunately, there is no easy answer. Prevention must be tailored to each individual farm. There are too many variables that will affect the life cycle of the parasites, the types of parasites present in a herd, the parasites' survivability in the environment, and even the likelihood of contamination of herd members.

Factors to consider include:

• The individual farm's geography: A farm in Maine, a farm in Georgia, a farm in Colorado, and a farm in California are all likely to encounter different problems. Variations will include climate, foliage, soil and even species of parasites.
• The farm's layout: This includes pasture design as well as shelter availability and location. The ability (or lack of ability) to rotate animals to "safe" pastures and rest contaminated pastures will affect contamination and recontamination of herd mates.
• Deworming history of individual animals, farm history, stocking density, exposure to transient or outside animals, exposure to animals with unknown history or exposure to infected animals: All of these factors will influence the level and type of parasitic challenge in the environment.

In addition, when formulating a parasite prevention or treatment plan, fecal egg counts should be used to measure the level of parasitic infection in a herd, and the effectiveness of the eradication program.

Identifying At Risk Animals

While fecal egg counts are important in identifying parasites and degree of contamination, at risk populations and target groups also need to be established. Factors to be considered include age, nutritional status and presence or absence of clinical signs. Younger animals, particularly crias and weanlings, are going to be your animals most susceptible to the presence of parasites in the environment. Animals that have a poor body condition, or a lack of weight gain or weight loss should also be evaluated for parasites. Those animals that are immunocompromised, suffering other diseases or under stress (i.e., recent weaning, transportation, change in environment), are also going to be in a high-risk category.

In many cases, clinical signs do not truly reflect the direct parasitic damage. Many of these parasites cause damage to the lining of the gastro-intestinal tract. This may affect the animal's ability to digest feed and absorb nutrients. Other parasites may cause anemia due to blood loss. Clinical signs, if present, may include lethargy, diarrhea, inappetance, weight loss, lack of weight gain, poor condition, sudden collapse, and death. The lack of clinical signs does not mean that an animal is not at risk of suddenly becoming very ill and/or dying.

Treatment will almost always involve deworming; however, even with effective elimination of parasites, severely affected animals may still be at risk of illness or dying due to secondary damage to the gastro-intestinal tract. In severe cases, aggressive supportive care may be needed. This may include I.V. fluids, plasma, and/or a blood transfusion. The economic ramifications involved in treating a sick animal or actually losing an animal make treatment more costly than prevention.

Fecal Egg Counts

The only effective way of identifying individual at risk animals is through fecal egg counts. This allows the identification of the parasitic species involved, the degree of infestation, and the degree of environmental contamination, and determines if and when animals should be dewormed. In addition, fecal egg counts can be used to evaluate the effectiveness of the anthelmintics being utilized.

If you request a fecal analysis from your veterinarian, make sure he/she is not using a simple fecal float for analysis. Because the level of parasites tends to be low, a special procedure known as a modified Stoll's method is used to separate the eggs from the other material in the test tube. If your veterinarian is not prepared to evaluate the fecal sample, he/she may choose to send it to a university with a veterinary teaching hospital where the sample can be analyzed by a parasitologist.

When evaluating a herd, fecal samples need to be collected and evaluated on a sufficient number of animals. A gold standard is to use fecal samples from 10 animals or 10% of the herd--whichever is the greater number. The herd average is a reflection of the environmental contamination. Once a sample is collected, it should be placed in a clean plastic bag or cup and labeled. If it is not going to be evaluated immediately, it should be placed in a refrigerator. A sample should be analyzed within a day or two of collection to obtain the most accurate results.

Fecal samples analyzed prior to treatment should be compared to fecal samples collected two weeks post-treatment to establish efficacy of the anthelmintic. A drop in parasite numbers of at least 90% should be observed. Most parasites have a two-three week life cycle. Waiting this long will allow any surviving parasites to repeat another cycle, reach maturity and have eggs present in the feces. A significant presence of parasites two weeks after treatment would indicate an ineffective "kill" by the anthelmintic utilized.

During extremely cold periods, parasites may go into a state of hypobiosis within the animal. This is a metabolically inactive period and may result in a carry- over to the spring of a heavy parasite load. Fecal egg counts taken during a period of hypobiosis may result in false negative findings.

As with any of the pharmaceutical products used in veterinary medicine, anthelmintics are not labeled for camelid use. Extra-label use has been studied and safe dosages have been established. You should use extreme caution when using anthelmintics on pregnant animals or crias less than three months of age. If in doubt, consult with your veterinarian on the suitability of a product and its dosage.

So why would an anthelmintic fail?

There are a number of reasons:

• Resistance: The frequent use of a single class of anthelmintic will encourage the development of resistance to any and possibly all drugs within that class. "Class" of anthelmintic refers to the "family" of chemicals used to produce the anthelmintic. Products within the same class use the same method of kill to eliminate the parasites. Anthelmintics from different classes use different kill methods. Parasites have survived every attempt man has made to eradicate them by developing resistance to kill methods. When this occurs, another kill method or class of anthelmintic must be utilized.
• Example: Ivermectin and Doramectin are both Avermectins and, therefore, within the same class. Because they use the same kill method, rotating between them will most likely not decrease resistance! Fenbendazole is from a different class, Benzimidazoles, and should be effective if resistance to the Avermectins has developed.
• Under-dosing: Dosing for the incorrect body weight will lead to the administration of the wrong dose. Under-dosing can lead to an insufficient kill of the parasites. Not only will the problem remain, but it can also be worsened as under-dosing can contribute to the establishment of resistance to an anthelmintic.
• Improper administration: Spit happens! An anthelmintic will not be effective if it is spit onto the ground! Likewise, a subcutaneous injection will be ineffective if the needle is poked through the skin and the injection is squirted out the other side of the skin. If you are unsure of techniques, ask your veterinarian to review them with you.
• Recontamination (part I): Rotate! Rotate! Rotate! Returning animals to contaminated fields will lead to recontamination of the recently treated animals. Ideally, treat, wait 72 hours for any live parasites to be shed, and then move treated animals to a "clean" field. Keep in mind that if the animals are moved to a new field but are utilizing the same shelter, they may still be exposed to the same contaminated environment.
• If environmental contamination is suspected, fecal samples analyzed prior to treatment should be compared to fecal samples collected six weeks post-treatment (don't confuse this with the two week check for anthelmintic effectiveness--you'll need to do both tests to distinguish between resistance and recontamination). The six-week period allows sufficient time for animals to be re-exposed, re-infected, and allows sufficient time for the parasites to reproduce.
• When planning how long to keep animals off of contaminated fields, keep in mind the conditions of the field, the climate, and the time of year. Many parasites thrive in warm, moist conditions and can survive in hospitable conditions in the environment. During hot, summer months, they may survive in the pasture for 30-60 days. This can be increased in cooler weather by up to 4 to 8 months, depending on the species of parasite.
• Rotating with other species can be useful to help manage field availability. However, while horses and donkeys are okay, sheep and goats share parasites with camelids and sharing grazing space with them can lead to very high parasite levels in the camelids.
• Recontamination (part II): If even one animal is not effectively dewormed, it can re-contaminate your field and re-infect the rest of the herd! No drug is 100% effective. Also, not all animals will respond to a drug the same way. Retesting allows for the identification of ineffective drugs. It also allows for the identification of “trouble animals." These are the repeat offenders who continue to be infected following treatment.

Other considerations

• Overcrowding: The ideal stocking density is 3-4 llamas or 5-6 alpacas per acre. This does not include your rotational fields. If every available pasture is in use, there is no room for rotation. If the stocking density is higher than the suggested level, the animals are more likely to come into contact with fecal material and parasite eggs. If animals are being forced to graze near dung piles, there are too many animals or the grazing area is not large enough.
• Farm layout and management: Evaluate field dynamics to determine the ideal location for feeders and shelters. Try to separate the bathroom from the kitchen by placing feeders away from the dung pile. While it may be impossible to prevent defecating in or around the shelters, every attempt should be made to maintain cleanliness where the animals cush. If a dam cushes near a dung pile, the teats will likely be contaminated and the cria exposed to parasites.
• Age segregation can help decrease exposure to susceptible youngsters. Adults can be asymptomatic carriers--shedding parasites without any disease. The parasites that might not affect an adult may cause severe disease and even death in crias.
• Biosecurity: Quarantine all new animals—including animals brought in for breeding, returning from breeding farms, or returning from events. Younger animals and pregnant females in particular should never be exposed to transient animals. Keep in mind that human visitors can track in parasites to your farm on their shoes, clothing and/or hands! Plastic booties and hand washing are two sensible examples of how risk can be decreased.
• Aside from a quarantine area, consider establishing a remote area on your farm for mobile breeding. This may involve either shipping in a stud to cover your females or shipping in females for a one day breeding only to your male. The transient animal is brought to a pen that is only used for breeding. Other than the animals being bred, no other animals should enter this pen. The pen is then disinfected following breeding--rubber mats are easier to disinfect than a dirt floor. If you must keep breeding animals overnight or for any extended period of time, you should have quarters for them separated from the rest of your herd.
• Good biosecurity practices not only keep parasites from sneaking into your herd, but also can help prevent the spread of infectious disease!

Decreasing the use of drugs:

• Hygiene: Cleaning dung piles is a start, but keep in mind that feces may also be tracked on foot pads and deposited into shelters and near feeders. Keep those areas clean and avoid feeding off the around.
• Utilize pastures/grazing systems: Ideally, stay within the suggested stocking density and practice field rotation. If your stocking density is higher than ideal, try to develop grazing strategies to allow higher numbers of animals on less land. This may involve splitting existing fields to allow for some field rotation. Long, narrow lots are less efficient than square/rectangular lots.
• Optimize host immune resistance: A healthy animal will be more resistant to parasites and to the effects of parasitism. You can improve your animals' immune function through good nutrition.

Take home message:

• Work with your veterinarian in establishing good strategies to prevent illness due to parasites.
• Frequent deworming is destined to create resistance to the chemicals being used!
• Use management and fecal egg counts to decrease the exposure to parasites and the use of chemicals.

Biography:

Shari C. Silverman is a graduate of the University of Pennyslvania School of Veterinary Medicine. Good health management and a need for compassionate care for small ruminants, camelids, and horses are what prompted Dr. Shari Silverman to establish Abbey Rose Veterinary Services. Serving clients and patients throughout New Jersey and Eastern Pennsylvania, the practice provides wellness programs, educational seminars and programs, as well as emergency services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. In her spare time, Dr. Silverman flies planes, kayaks and plays on her farm where she lives with her husband and many different animal friends.

Shari Silverman, VMD

Abbey Rose Veterinary Services

Email: vmd@abbeyrosevet.com

Website: www.abbeyrosevet.com