How are your animals are vaccinated?

[MrsCountryChick]

I know about the CDT vaccine & later approx 3wk booster of CDT. -But I wasn't aware of the 5-way Leptospirosis ( later 3wk booster) & the West Nile vaccination (also with a later 3wk booster).

How many of you vaccinate with the 5-way Leptospirosis? the West Nile vaccine?

& it's safe to give more than 1 vaccine at the same time? (different vaccines I mean, administered the same day, into the same animal).

I know there are people who with animals are Very Cautious & want to not use medical intervention until really necessary & they only worm once a year & some don't even vaccinate at all...saying it's not necessary. But it seems like the 5-way Leptospirosis protects them from alot of things. Do you all give it to your heard of Llamas & alpacas?

& I have been finding conflicting information about worming also...some worm monthly, some worm Once a year, or worming in the spring one month & the fall for the 2nd time a year & others use the old practice of worming when they have a 'sign' or something going on??
--------Others say rotational worming means for one whole year use Ivermectin injectable (repeatedly for that year)....then the next year use Safeguard paste...that whole year.??
I was under the impression rotational worming is one month this, then next month that, & alternating?

It seems like across the board people do a variety of different things from someone else... I find that with dairy goats too. Some only worm when it "looks" like the animal "needs" a worming? Not even a once a year dose. But I know of someone who bought a Llama for guarding their horses & giving him a vaccine is Waaaayyyyy off thier list for his care.... they don't even buy him alpaca feed.... "he eats after the horses are finished"...I can't believe the remainder of horse feed is what he eats.????? It's been a year that they've had him & he's still walking around tho.? I go to great care to measure out the specific feed for all of my different species of animals.

VL5 which is for: Campylobacter fetus, Lepto Canicola, L. grippotyphosa, L. hardjo, L. icterohaemorhage, L. pomona.........that's what the Llama/alpaca 5-way Leptospirosis is right? Specificly the Citadel VL5 I'm meaning. TSC has one called Intervet VL5-- but it says "One-dose Vibrio & 5-way Leptospira protection. Labeled for protection against Lepto hardjo-bovis."....that's more than the 5way so prob not suggested for a camelid.?

Oh & some of the vaccines for 5-way Leptospirosis have added ingredients, like providing protection against parvovirus. But it's a swine vaccination of 5 strains of leptospirosis and erysipelas.......that is Not what is for Llamas/Alpacas right?

I'm just wanting to know all aspects of preventative & maintenance care.

Ksalvano: aka Camelid expert Due to you birthing crias & alpaca/cria sitting other people's animals what do you require a visiting alpaca to have (health wise I mean, vaccinations, worming, etc)?
& how long after an animal is wormed or vaccinated do you accept them? Meaning does a minimum of a wk after worming or vaccinating okay, or do you require that the second booster have been given? Just curious because you have animals & are bringing in new animals that would need a barn stall for birthing, access to outside, etc. Wondering how you keep your animals safe or your boarding animals safe from new introductions?

---we have a relative that "may" be in the future interested in alpacas & wondered if we'd board their animals "if" they get them before they're ready. I want to research all preventative health care for my animals. & wondered if we kept the others in a separate pen with separate housing, hay, drinking water, grain bowls, etc. Would that keep them safe from anything transmitted? How far apart can the fences be? nothing would transmit by air right? if the wind blew across one pen to another I mean? We want to set up an area also in case we were to get another camelid so we ourselves could quarantine them for 30days before they were allowed in with our existing herd. But if we got 1 new alpaca I wouldn't want them alone & separated from everyone else being lonely if it wasn't necessary.

Sorry so many questions... I wanna learn EVERYthing.

 

[sayyadina]

Regarding vaccinations, the best person to ask is a veterinarian in your area who is familiar with camelids.

It seems to be standard protocol to vaccinate with CDT & Rabies vaccines. Crias get their first CDT at at least 3 weeks old, and then at least 21 days later. Rabies I think is first at 4 months & then 6 months, but I'm not sure exactly.

The more components in a vaccine, like the 5 way Lepto you mention, the higher the probability of a reaction. Our herd receives only CDT & Rabies at this point in time. Adults get vaccinated once a year, males at around the same time, and females get theirs before being bred or after giving birth. There are a lot of people who vaccinate pregnant females, but I'm not comfortable doing so. The general rule is to give no more than 2 vaccines at the same time.

I have been advised that there are some significant risks attached to the Lepto vaccine (severe reactions or death), more so than CDT & Rabies, and that its only necessary to give it if you've had problems with Lepto on your farm, such as pregnancies aborting. If you haven't had aborted pregnancies, or don't have any breeding females, you probably don't need to vaccinate for Lepto.

I also do not vaccinate for West Nile, or EEE, (both are mosquito born) because my veterinarian isn't convinced that doing so is effective or safe. Another thing to keep in mind is that with most, if not all, of the vaccines and medications used in alpacas, there has been little or no research done to determine safety, proper dosing, and efficacy. A lot is based on the personal experiences of various veterinarians, though more research is being done.

Also, I remember my vet saying that camelids react VERY badly to some vaccine brands, which is another reason why you NEED a good camelid vet.

Until you're more comfortable, I'd strongly advise you having a veterinarian give vaccinations. They know what to do if the animal has an adverse reaction. I've had a couple have relatively minor, colicky reactions, and at least 1 of my girls has reacted negatively on 2 separate occasions.

Another thing to consider is that the frequency with which a vaccine should be given to maintain an adequate protective immune response isn't known in alpacas, or even what an adequate immune response IS, isn't known in alpacas. Some advocate giving CDT several times a year, while others give it annually.

With regard to worming, the best route to take is to only worm those animals showing signs of parasite problems (weight loss, not acting right) or have shown too many parasite eggs in a fecal test. Using dewormers too often, especially at too low a dose and for too short a time, has contributed greatly to parasite resistance.

I weigh & body score my herd monthly, and I do a fecal on any alpaca that has lost a lot of weight, is too thin and isn't gaining with extra food, or just isn't acting right. If I see parasite eggs, I'll call up my vet & ask if she thinks I should treat. Then I'll follow her instructions as to treating or not. I am more proactive with my nursing moms & babies, as it is most critical that they maintain (or gain with the crias).

The only wormer that I use regularly is injectible Ivermectin, at 1cc/70lbs. If you live in an area with white tail deer, you will need to give this every 30 days, while the ground is soft, to prevent your camelids from getting meningeal worm. This is a neurological parasite, carried by deer & transmitted by slugs & snails, which is often fatal. Those animals that do survive are often left with lasting neurological problems.

What other animals do you have? Cows, goats & sheep all carry diseases that alpacas can get and are often fatal to the alpaca.

Our quarantine facility is approximately 100ft away from our main barn, and shares no common fence line. Your quarantine facility should have separate, secure fencing, and be far enough away from your existing herd that they can't touch noses. At a bare minimum, it should have a 3 sided shelter, with the opening facing south. You should have water available at all times, in buckets or automatic waterers. Hay feeders should also be well stocked.

How you feed grain depends on what you're doing with your camelids. If you just have fiber animals, you can feed minimal, or even no, grain. You can only do this if you have a good loose mineral mix made for camelids available free choice. If you're environment is very humid, you won't be able to do free choice minerals, since they'll get soupy & disgusting fast. In that case, you would need to feed grain. And if you're going to be breeding, you definitely need to feed grain. Breeding males don't need much, but lactating females usually need a LOT of food. I can give you my exact feeding protocol if you'd like.

Another thing is that alpacas are herd animals. They're happiest in groups of at least 2, though they're more comfortable with at least 3.

Kansas State University has some excellent online seminars about camelids. Everything from pastures to surgery. http://www.vet.ksu.edu/CE/Camelid.htm
I've taken most of the seminars offered, and most of them are excellent.

One good book that every camelid owner should have is Dr Norm Evans Field Manual.

Hope this helps. Feel free to PM me if you want to know anything else.

I'm relatively new to alpacas, but I've learned a lot in the time I've had them. We started out with 2 girls 4 years ago, and have grown into a herd of 29.

 

[ksalvagno]

I only vaccinate with CDT for the alpacas and I have only used Bar-Vac CDT. I used to do the 5-way Lepto but haven't used it in years and found out that you should really do that every 6 months for it to continue to be effective and I wasn't having any problems anyway. As far as West Nile, it is my understanding that out west they do it but I'm in Ohio and we don't vaccinate for West Nile.

If you are bringing in a new animal, you have to figure out how or if you can quarantine that animal. My situation is unique and I can't quarantine all the pregnant females that come here. I ask that they are properly vaccinated and wormed before coming and my clients are ones that worm on a monthly basis so it really isn't an issue. if you are bringing new animals in then I would ask to have a fecal done, worm appropriately if needed, wait 2 weeks and then have another fecal done if worms were previously present. Then I would also want proof of vaccinations and see a medical record that any alpaca owner should be keeping on an animal since birth.

There are so many different ways to worm. You really have to find out what works for you. I have fecals done on my girls and worm appropriately. Because of white tail deer in my area, I do worm with Ivomec from September to December but that is the only monthly worming that I do. Dr David Anderson who is now at Kansas State University had suggested years ago to just worm for Meningeal Worm in the fall months like September to December or January as that was the most likely time that he usually sees the problems. But you are risking it if you don't do it all year around. The flip side is that if you are giving your alpacas Ivomec all year around, then you are risking the parasites becoming resistant to the Ivomec. At that point years ago when I had taken the OSU seminar, Dr Anderson had been seeing quite a few farms with resistance to wormers and this was several years ago. So I made the decision to take my chances and only worm in the fall for Meningeal worm. I really don't know what Dr Anderson is suggesting to do now. I figure, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. But the bottom line is you will have to figure out what is right for you. I was personally more worried about parasite resistance and have tried to worm accordingly so all dewormers still work on my alpacas.

Any type of airborn diseases could be transmitted to other alpacas. It looks like that Kansas State online seminars could be a really good start for you.

 

[Emmetts Dairy]

Regarding vaccinations, the best person to ask is a veterinarian in your area who is familiar with camelids

I agree 100%!!!.. Every area of the country has differant issues..and I consulted my vet on vaccinations..and I found there was alot of things that were not needed in our area of the woods here in NH...and I have my vet come and do vaccines once a year too..and we do all the rest...I just want him there with the "epi" if they have a bad reaction too...and you can buy alot of vaccines that are not good...being too old on warehouse shelf etc...I know alot of people who vaccinate themselves..but they have a safe source to purchase etc.....good luck and have fun....!!!

PS You'll never learn everything...expirence and time with them will show you...cuz as we are always saying on this forum..."Its always something" LOL...we learn alot as we go...(not putting you down its great you wanna learn..but they have this funny way of stumping us all from time to time)