Sick LLama!!!

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Permalink Reply by Caroline Welk on August 20, 2008 at 12:11pm

Hi Heather, since your boss is ignoring his responsibilities, it's great you are there to look over them and thank goodnes they have you.

I'm just going to share what I would do personally and in no way do my suggestions supercede that of a vet's advice (which unfortunately you are not going to get with your boss' attitude). It's hard to know how to treat his/her diarrhea without knowing more about this llama, what he/she eats, it's current weight and living conditions, how long he/she has had diarrhea, the approximate age of the llama, etc. I'm going to assume it is an adult and go from there. It is obvious that all of these llamas should be put on a regimen for worming and vaccinations each year and how often and with what products depends on where this farm is located (region).

However, the most important thing is getting this llama well and feeling better. Diarrhea can be caused by all sorts of things such as change in diet, stress, etc. Is it a male or female, if a female, is it nursing a baby? Can you put the llama by himself/herself to keep an eye on him/her to see if he/she is eating or drinking or is he/she down and not eating or drinking at all? There are lots you can do, but first you need to start assess him/her to try to figure out why he/she may have diarrhea and then go forward with treating him/her. Does the diarrhea have a bad odor or does it have mucous in it? If you have a way of listening to this llama's stomach/intestines (belly), it can also tell you alot. If there are no sounds present, that is a good sign. If there is a lot of sounds, then chances are there is fermentation going on which can cause the llama to be gaseous and bloated., which causes pain and diarrhea, too. If he/she is not eating or drinking at all, that is not a good sign and immediate action should be taken as the llama is in discomfort. Once a llama goes down, if action isn't taken to make him/her feel better so they get up, it could be a hard road ahead. Taking this llama's temperature right now would be a good start, too, to see if it is high there is likely infection or if the temperature is low, that is a tell tale sign this llama may be in pain.

What I would do if I were you would be to go down to your local feed store, get a big feeding syringe and get some Pepto Bismol down him/her orally. Put the llama on a halter and put your syringe towards the back of the throat and depress it slowly to make sure the llama is swallowing it and doesn't inhale it (aspirate). This may at least make his stomach/intestines feel better so you can move forward to any secondary problems such as dehydration.

Remember, it's important that he is drinking to get over diarrhea, not so important that he is eating at this time. Go to the store and get yourself a big turkey baster, a bottle of Pedialyte in the children's section or some flavored Gatorade. It is full of electrolytes, which he/she needs right now. Syringe the fluids into him/her the same way you did the Pepto. It's going to be messy, so don't give up. You'll know how much you get into him/her or have a good idea if you take your time. Depending on the llama, if it is an adult, I would give him/her 24 cc's of Pepto morning and night for the first day. I would give it once a day after that for 3 days or until you see his/her diarrhea has stopped. I would get as much Pedialyte/Gatorade down him/her that she/her will tolerate. It doesn't taste good plain, so get the flavored Pedialyte/Gatorade. Use your own judgment on how much to give him/her, apply the logic to what you would do for yourself. Such as a whole bottle isn't going to hurt me, I would normally drink that if I was really thirsty. So, add that logic to your llama and keep in mind he is bigger than you, so you can't overdose him on fluids. Lastly, you should get a product called Probios at your local feed store, it comes in a paste and make sure he gets that down him for a few days morning and night. Follow the directions on the tube. If you can't find it, go to the store and get yourself some plain yogurt which contains live bacteria. It is important that this llama's rumen stay normal. I would syringe about 24 cc's of yogurt into the llama's mouth (the same way above) for a few days, too.

Hopefully he/she will be feeling better soon. Once that happens, worm the llamas and get them on a schedule. Keep up the good work, observation is everything and you have a done a great job.

Hope this helps, good luck.

Caroline

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Permalink Reply by Heather Johnson on August 20, 2008 at 1:41pm

Thank you so much for all your helpful information. I went and gave her an injection of ivermection at 2cc per 100lbs at 300lbs. Unfortantly I either didnt give her enough or she was too far gone, but she didnt make it. These llamas have had no human contact so their almost impossible to catch. Ive managed to convince my boss to just give the llamas to homes that can care for them properly, but now Im having a tough time finding any llama resque groups in my area. I live in WNC and if you have any suggestions Id greatly appericate it. The important thing now is getting the other 11 llamas the care they need before they get too bad off. Thanks a ton -Heather

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Permalink Reply by Becky Mitchell on August 25, 2008 at 7:39pm

Heather - So sorry the llama died. Once a llama goes down it can be very hard to save. I hope you can convince your boss to release the rest of the llamas before anymore go down. Have you contacted the Southeast Llama Rescue (SELR)? They are a good bunch of people. I looked up their web site and the contact person for NC is Pat Cothran in Leicester,NC 828-712-5450.

Good luck and thank you for caring!
Becky

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Permalink Reply by Heather Johnson on August 26, 2008 at 6:47am

Thank you for your comment and helpful information! Yes actualy Ive been in contact with Pat for a few days now, and we're working on getting them into better homes!

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Permalink Reply by Caroline Welk on August 20, 2008 at 4:24pm

Hi Heather, oh that is sad. I'm sorry to hear that the llama passed away. It is definitely hard to work with animals that are feral, but there are experienced llama owners out there that may be able to help you. The Llama Association of North America has a great rescue group called Llama Lifeline. Their website is www.llamainfo.org. Llama Lifeline is a safety net for llamas. It's a network of individuals, businesses, and organizations that will take action to intervene on behalf of llamas in precarious life situations through consultation, networking, education, and/or placement of lamas in new homes within the lama community. The contact person is Gary Kaufman who can be reached at 360-867-0833 or email by gary@roadsendllamas.com.

Good luck, I'll be sending positive thoughts your way for all of your efforts in helping these llamas.

Caroline Welk
www.winsomellama.com

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Permalink Reply by Lauren Puma on September 11, 2008 at 12:08pm

I have found that Panacur is a good help for digestive problems. A down llama is a medical emergency! Good luck!

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