Disclaimer: Fostings Alpacas are not a veterinarian body and this is not a substitution for veterinary consultation and advice. Always consult your vet when creating a health plan for your herd and before administering medication.
What is Clostridial Disease?
Clostridial diseases include Pulpy Kidney, Pasteurella, Bighead, Blackleg & Tetanus. They all derive from the Clostridium bacteria and can be prevented with vaccinations. They largely affect sheep, goats and cows, but are possible in alpacas.
Symptoms of Clostridial Disease in alpacas
Typical symptoms of Clostridial Disease include abdominal pain, diarrhoea, fatigue, decreased appetite, disinterest in movement, lack of appetite or even sudden death.
How to treat Clostridial Diseases in alpacas
There is no effective treatment for Clostridial Disease, so it must be prevented from occurring in the first instance. To prevent Clostridial Diseases, alpacas need to receive an initial two doses, spaced 4-6 weeks apart, followed by annual boosters in Spring (and possibly another in Autumn, depending on your vet’s advice).
How to prevent Clostridial Diseases in alpacas
To prevent Clostridial Diseases in alpacas vaccinations are usually recommended to be administered on a bi-annual basis in Spring and Autumn. Vaccine options include Lambivac, Bravoxin-10, Covexin-10, Ovivac-P and Heptavac-P; your vet will be able to advise on which vaccine is most suitable for your herd. The vaccines are live vaccines, so must be kept refrigerated (take a cool bag if you are collecting and keep the bottle in a mug of ice water when in use) and are only viable for 8-10 hours once the seal is breached, so be sure to plan carefully to avoid wastage.
How to vaccinate cria OPTION #1
If the dam was vaccinated within 4 to 8 weeks of birth, the cria has received some immunity via the colostrum, so vaccination can wait until 10-12 weeks of age. Subcutaneously administer the recommended dose to the cria. Then repeat the dose again with the SAME TYPE of vaccine 4 to 6 weeks after this. From then, they can fall into the annual routine with the rest of the herd.
How to vaccinate cria OPTION #2
If the dam was not vaccinated within 8 weeks of birth, the cria has not received immunity and needs to be vaccinated much earlier. Subcutaneously administer the recommended dose to the cria at 3 days old. Repeat this dose with the SAME TYPE of vaccine at 3 weeks old.
Lambivac vaccine is gentler on the young cria's immune system, as it has less clostridial strains that the other options. However, when they are old enough, it is best practice to administer one of the vaccines that offers more strains so they will be protected against a wider range of Clostridial diseases.
So, when the cria is aged 4 to 6 months, subcutaneously administer 1ml (for any weight of cria) of Covexin-10 or Bravoxin-10. Then repeat the dose again with the SAME TYPE of vaccine 4 to 6 weeks after this. Following that, they can fall into the annual routine with the rest of the herd.
IMPORTANT:
DO NOT vaccinate females within 1 month of giving birth - although BAS say “There is data to show that vaccination close to birthing can lead to an aborted pregnancy (BVCS Conference)”, it’s best to avoid it!
Avoid injecting at shearing time, as the stress can reduce the efficiency of the vaccine.
Ideally do not give first initial course of a vaccine within the first or last trimesters of pregnancy and do not give boosters in first 4 months of gestation (as it raises the body temp and causes a flu-fighting-like response in the body which can lead to reabsorption of the foetus).
How to vaccinate adults not previously vaccinated
For any alpaca that has not previously received clostridial injections (or you are unsure of their history), subcutaneously administer 1ml (for any weight of alpaca) of Covexin-10 or Bravoxin-10. Then repeat the dose again with the SAME TYPE of vaccine 4 to 6 weeks later. After this, they can fall into the annual routine with the rest of the herd.
How to vaccinate adults
After the initial course, alpacas can receive annual boosters, usually carried out in Spring and Autumn. You can go down in the number of strains, i.e the initial course administered was a 10 way vaccine (e.g Covexin-10) and you would now like to use a 7 way vaccine (e.g Heptavac-P) without needing to do another initial course. But, if you go up in the number of strains, i.e the initial course administered was a 7 way vaccine (e.g Heptavac-P) and you would like to use a 10 way vaccine (e.g Bravoxin-10), an initial course of the higher strain vaccine must be administered for it to be effective.
Disclaimer: Fostings Alpacas are not a veterinarian body and this is not a substitution for veterinary consultation and advice. Always consult your vet when creating a health plan for your herd and before administering medication.
Learn how to look after alpacas
This 110 page E-Guide is packed full of information for new and prospective alpaca keepers, covering Alpaca 101, Essential Requirements, Diet & Pasture Management, Costs to Purchase & Keep Alpacas, Routine Husbandry and Common Disease & Parasites in Alpacas. The E-Guide is downloadable upon purchase so you can dive straight in! For the full contents list and to get your copy, just click the image below!
