Caring for the Elderly Llama (or Alpaca)

I'd been struggling the past week or so with what I should write about for my next blog post.  Then as I was outside this morning feeding April, I got my inspiration!  I've already written a post about cold-weather care, but nothing about caring for an older llama or alpaca.

Duque!

At the 2013 GALA Conference back in November, one of the vets mentioned that she likes to start "senior" care for lamas when they hit about 10 years old.  The average lifespan of a lama is 15-25 years, so that makes sense.  I've been doing "senior care" for two of my llamas for the past 8 years or so.  April is going to be 20 in the spring, and Duque will be 17.  I will give a disclaimer that caring for senior lamas can be very time consuming and expensive, but for me it is worth it!

I'm going to break the topic down into a few categories, to make it easier to follow...

Arthritis

Arthritis (or other physical/conformational issues) is fairly common in older lamas.  Just like humans, they get to the point where they are stiffer in the cold, and they are slower to get up and walk around. Dropped pasterns are also a big issue, especially for geldings (neutered males) or overweight animals.    (The lower amounts of testosterone in gelded males is thought to contribute to the breakdown of the pastern tendons.)  Unfortunately neither dropped pasterns nor arthritis can be treated, but they can be managed.

Duque's dropped front pasterns.

For dropped pasterns (and other tendon issues), there are a number of supplements that can be given.  There is an herbal supplement designed for llamas that is supposed to somewhat reverse the effects of dropped pasterns, but it didn't really work for Duque.  Plus it is a fine powder, which was impossible to get him to eat!  In regards to supplements, I have started using those formulated for horses, and giving 1/3-1/2 of the horse dose for a llama (roughly 300-350 lbs).  There are several tendon supplements for horses as well, and some come in pelleted form.

For arthritis, the common supplements are glucosamine and chondroitin (also commonly taken by humans and given to dogs).  There are also lots of joint supplements available for horses, as well as an arthritis supplement for llamas.  In severe cases, injections of glucosamine/chondroitin can be given, as well as pain meds (banamine or bute).

Duque has had dropped pasterns for several years.  He comes from a bloodline where this is common,  is a gelding (has lower testosterone than intact males), and has been overweight for most of his life.  His pasterns started dropping when he was only 5-6 years old, and thus had to be retired early from the show ring.  Now that he is almost 17 years old, he doesn't like to stand for long periods of time and he walks rather slow.  There are days that I really worry about him, but the next day he will run around the pasture with the young animals so I have to make myself stop worrying!  Duque has been on glucosamine and chondroitin supplements for horses for years.  I currently have him on a 1/2 dose of SmartFlex III Resilience Pellets.  It is hard for me to tell whether or not they are working, but I'm afraid to take him off them completely so I'm just going to keep feeding them!  The nice thing about the pellets is that they are very easy to get him to eat.

Miraculously, at the ripe old age of 20, April has still yet to show any signs of arthritis.  I'm amazed, and will consider to count my blessings in this regard!

Obesity/Overweight

It may sound a bit counter-intuitive, but obesity can be a big issue in older llamas.  They don't move around as much, they tend to get babied more (aka extra/better feed!), and the weight just packs on.  Being overweight can be just as detrimental to their health as being underweight, and it is a lot harder to fix!

The best way to get weight off a lama is exercise!  Take them for hikes if you can (gradually building up time and distance), or put them in a big pasture.  One great tip I heard was to put their hay and water at the opposite end of the pasture as the shelter, so that they had to walk back and forth frequently.

Duque going for a hike!

If exercise isn't a viable option (such as an old llama with bad pasterns or arthritis), you will have to cut their feed.  A normal lama needs 2-3% of its body weight in roughage (grass/hay) daily, but if you have an overweight animal they can survive on 1-1.5%.  Personally I think the key is to reduce both the amount and the quality of the hay they are given.  I prefer to give 1.5-2% of their body weight in a first cut, stemmy hay (with low protein- under 10%).  Eliminate grain, just offer free choice minerals and fresh water.  Make them clean up all their hay before you feed more.  Obviously this is a lot easier to do in the winter when they aren't on pasture, but it can also be done during warm weather.  You can dry-lot the obese animal (put on a pasture with little to no grass), or lock them in a stall and only give them a few hours outside to graze.  It may sound mean, but getting the weight off is imperative to their health!

Duque (and several of my younger llamas) has battled obesity for most of his life.  My mom really liked to feed the lamas grain every day, whether they needed it or not.  At his worst, Duque got up to about 400lbs.  After moving to the new farm in August, he has since lost about 20 pounds by limiting his grazing and feeding low-protein hay.  Now at a slim 330 lbs, he is where he should be!  I'm back to feeding him a bit of grain every day so that he doesn't lose more weight.

Duque during his "fat" years.

Underweight

After having April on my farm for almost 14 years now, I feel like I'm an expert when it comes to feeding underweight lamas!  April has always been really thin (I think she just has a really quick metabolism), and it has been a challenge to keep her at a good weight, especially now that she is quite old.

The only way to put weight on a thin lama is feed, feed, FEED!  And you also need to look at how you are feeding: a lot of thin lamas are at the bottom of the pecking order within the herd, so they are often the last to eat.  It is imperative to separate any thin lama while they eat, so that they aren't bullied.

April eating in her pen.

There are a ton of different feeds that you can give a thin lama to encourage weight gain.  The foundation of your feeding program for an underweight animal is a high quality hay, preferably with a bit of alfalfa.  I would aim for something with at least 14% protein if you can.  Feed this high quality hay free-choice, so that they can eat as much as they wish.  The second most important feed to give is a good llama/alpaca supplement (also referred to as grain or pellets).  Again you want something with high protein.  Follow the feeding guidelines for the supplement, but you could feed an extra 0.5-1.5lbs of the supplement daily.

Next comes the long list of add-ins...  My favorite is Calf-Manna, a high protein supplement designed for a variety of livestock.  Our old vet said we could safely feed 2lbs of Calf-Manna daily without having to worry about copper toxicity.  April has been on at least 1lb daily for the past 10 or so years, and she seems just fine!  Something new that my new vet recommended was rice or wheat bran.  It is high in protein and fat.  It comes in many forms, commonly oil and pellets.  I chose to give April the pellets (manufactured by Manna Pro), since I didn't think she would eat the oil.  I'm giving her 1/3 of the horse dose.  After doing a bit more research this fall, I decided to start April on alfalfa pellets and beet pulp.  Both are supposed to be great for weight gain.  Due to a recent choking episode, I chose to soak the pellet mixture in water to re-hydrate them before feeding.  It took a few days, but she eventually learned to eat them.  And now that it is cold I soak them in boiling water to make a warm mash.  It is hard to measure the pellets since they expand after soaking, but I figure she gets about 1/2lb of a 50:50 mix daily.  I also recently decided to try adding a little bit of oil to the mash mixture...I had recommendations for corn, soybean, and canola oil.  I've read that you can feed up to 1/4c daily, but work up to that amount slowly.  April got 1T today (day 1 of adding it in).

Alfalfa pellet/beet pulp mix, before re-hydrating.

There are still more things that you can feed underweight lamas!  Some people swear by corn or oats, but I don't like that they appear to pass undigested.  I've heard recommendations for Equine Senior (a horse feed), but it has much higher copper than Calf-Manna.  I've also heard a lot about Chaffaye (sp?), which I believe is shredded hay with molasses.  I just can't find any local!

Cold/Heat

A lot of older lamas have issues with the cold and heat.  Luckily my 2 do fine in the heat, but they both get very cold in the winter.  Now they both have insulated coats to wear, and I put them on at the first sign of shivering.  April will end up wearing hers most of the winter, while Duque can tolerate a bit more cold.

April in her awesome coat!

When it comes to heat intolerance, there are a few simple tricks to keep them cool.  Shearing is a must, as is fresh cold water.  Fans and shade are also important.  If it gets really hot I like to hose their bellies off to cool them down.

There are also a few tricks for cold intolerance.  Lots of good food (hay generates more body heat as it digests than pellet/grain supplements), shelter from the wind, deep hay/straw bedding to lay on, fresh warm water, and blanketing if necessary are just a few suggestions.  For more in-depth explanations, see my previous post.

Duque in his less than awesome coat (but it still keeps him warmer than without it!).

Teeth

Just like horses (and any animal really), a lama's teeth can decline rapidly with old age, and us owners usually have no idea!  I only recently discovered that April has no front teeth, so I can only imagine what her molars look like!  I've definitely started to realize the importance of having a vet (or doing it yourself, if your lama will allow it!) check out the lama's teeth every year or so.  Uneven chewing can cause sharp points, which can be easily filed down.  Weight loss in older lamas is often caused by bad teeth.  If you've ever seen small piles of half-chewed hay around your feeders, you most definitely have an animal with teeth issues.  The front teeth can also get too long, interfering with grazing.

Duque and his long teeth.  Luckily they aren't quite long enough to warrant trimming.

Parasites

Older animals are more susceptible to parasite infections than younger animals, and it will usually take them longer to recover after treatment.  I would pay special attention to doing regular fecals on older lamas, and would probably treat if they had a lower level than a young adult did.  I'm also starting to think that regular probiotic supplementation would be a good idea, to support the good bacteria in the gut.

View through the microscope of a fecal exam.  In the center (grey spot) is a nematodirus egg.

Conclusions

As I mentioned before, feeding and caring for an older lama is neither cheap nor easy.  I spend longer waiting for April to eat her food (in a separate pen) than it takes me to clean the entire barn and pasture each day.  I spend more on Duque's tendon/arthritis meds and 5 different types of feed for April than I do buying hay and grain for the entire group of 5 lamas!  But they have given me a lot of pleasure and joy over the years, so I feel like it is the least I can do for them.  I am realistic though, and if either one gets to the point where they are suffering, I will do the humane thing and let them go.  As much as I hate to think about it, Duque will certainly go lame in the next few years, so I know that hard decision is waiting for me.  Luckily I think April will be around for a good long while!

April!

Almost Done (Unpacking)!

I promise that I will eventually get the hang of posting here on a regular basis!  But in my defense, things have been quite busy around the farm for the past few weeks.  First was a week-long trip back to Indiana to pick up the llama trailer and (most of) the llama stuff, and since then I've been busy unpacking!

The most important thing to unpack was the stall panels!  The llamas have quickly eaten most of the grass in their pasture, so I wanted to set up the stall panels in some taller grass outside the pasture and let them graze in the afternoons.  I've let them in the pen for the past 4 days, and they seem to love it!  Hopefully it will help the pasture recover too.

The herd enjoying a beautiful fall day.

Also very important to unpack were the hay feeders.  I decided to stick the outside hay feeder in the grass just outside the barn...that way I don't have to shovel too much snow this winter!  We have to do a bit more rearranging before we can put the indoor hay feeder in place in the barn, so for now the llamas are still eating hay out of big buckets.

Hay feeder in place!

The biggest chore though was to unpack all of the little supplies and put them in my newly-cleaned storage room!  I spent several days before our trip cleaning out the dirt and sand in this little room, and cleaning the cabinet so I could paint it.

Feed bins, medical supplies, and heated water buckets in the storage room.

I primed and painted the cabinet this week, and it perfectly dry today and ready to be filled!

My beautiful painted cabinet, as well as a bunch of llama supplies.

I even got to "steal" this nice little vanity cabinet (from my parents' house) to store halters in!  It was installed today, but I still need to screw in the hooks.

Halter cabinet ready for use!

Now for some of the other random things I did today...  First was to fix the gate latch!  I had locked all the animals in the barn this afternoon so I could halter them one by one and collect fecal samples to process tomorrow.  I stepped out of the barn to re-arrange their stall panel pen in the yard and came back to the gate wide open and a broken latch board!  No idea what happened, but luckily it was easily fixed.

Somehow the board got broken right in half!

New board in place with the latch.  This one will be a lot harder to break!

The best thing that happened today...I figured out how to turn the lights on in the barn!  There are a million switches and plugs in this old barn, and somehow I had overlooked the one that turns on the lights!  I'm so glad I will have lights this winter, even if I have to walk half-way into the barn to turn them on!

We have light!!!

And last but not least, my "fecal station" countertops!  I've decided to use an old laundry sink to run fecals, but there isn't any table/counter space to set the centrifuge.  So I bought some plywood at Lowes last week and plan to set the pieces on top of the sink to create a temporary counter top.  They can also be removed when I need to use the sink to wash things after running fecals!  I wanted something that was fairly water-proof and easy to clean, so I primed and painted the plywood pieces (just like the cabinet), and then applied 3 coats of polyurethane.  Hopefully they will be dry tomorrow so I can run fecals!

Painted "countertops" ready for the spray coat.

So that was my day today...and the past few days have looked about the same!  Now that the trailer is unpacked I hope to go get another load of hay next week.  We also have to unload all the rubber mats from the back of the truck (as well as some of the obstacles), and get those in place in the barn!  It will be so nice to have everything done!

The Llamas Are HERE!!

As I started thinking about writing this blog post last night and early this morning, it was with a feeling of pure excitement...now that feeling has turned to pure terror.  The llama/dog introductions did NOT go well this morning, and I learned that I have a lot of work to do on the fence and barn pen, but hopefully we can come up with a way to keep two of the dogs out of the enclosure.

Going back to the beginning...

After receiving a phone call about two weeks ago that the llamas could be coming SOON, I kicked into high gear for the remainder of the fence building and barn cleaning chores.

It took about 4 days to clean out the barn, which consisted of wetting down the hay in the bottom of the barn, shoveling it out, and then hosing down the remaining organic matter.  I also went through and "disinfected" with a strong solution of PineSol and water.  It is such an improvement!  I only cleaned about 60% of the barn, as the other 40% is still going to be filthy as my in-laws kill chickens this fall, but I plan to clean out the rest after they're done harvesting the last batch.

A dark, but clean barn!

We also finished attaching the fence and hung the gate and cattle panels.  Unfortunately, one of the dogs found a way to get under the fence, so I have more work to do reinforcing the bottom of the fence (with dirt or rocks), and possibly running a strand of electric wire along the bottom.

Finished fence!

I also set up a temporary fence to block off a muddy area that I need to dump dirt on and reseed.

Temporary plastic posts and flag tape.

The other big step was building the pens in the barn.  It took another few days, but we got the cattle panels stapled in place, the new support beam installed, and the wood trim screwed in.  It looks pretty good if I say so myself, but apparently the dogs can get through the manure troughs (which they couldn't before the llamas got here!), so we have more work to do...

Building the pens and gates.

Finished (and filled) pens!

And finally, the llamas got in about 11:30 last night!  Unloading was a little rough, since we had to work our way through the maze of a barn, but they managed to get through unscathed.  They settled in nicely though.

This morning was another story...I went out with Abby first thing in the morning.  The llamas were happily grazing in the pasture.  Abby went wild barking for about a minute, but then quieted down.  We then (a bit hastily I will admit) let the other two dogs out an hour or so later.  The Pyr managed to crawl through the manure trough and get into the barn pen, where I luckily caught him and hauled him out.  The Bull Terrior got under the fence somehow, but for some reason didn't go after the animals.  A few minutes later they were both trying to get through the fence into the pasture, and in all the excitement got into a huge fight.  Everyone is okay, but the fence definitely needs some adjustments!

Enjoying the grass.

Comical Ralph!

Beautiful Kara.  She is huge!

My tack "room".

Hay!  Hopefully the llamas like it...its a bit stemmy but should do the trick.

Running Fecals

Well, the weather has been downright nasty this past week in upstate NY, so I don't have much progress to share on the barn/fencing front.  The week started off as super hot, followed by lots of rain, and ended with super cold and rainy...not fun!  But the weather is supposed to turn nice tomorrow, so hopefully we can get started finally!

Anyway...I decided instead to talk about something fun you can do indoors...running fecals!  When my family first got llamas, running fecals was never discussed.  We were told by our mentor farm that we should deworm the llamas 4 times a year, and use a different dewormer every time to reduce resistance. After a few years we decided to do our own research, and realized how bad this advice really was!  We started sending fecal samples to our vet every few months, rather than deworming everyone.  The vet also suggested NOT switching medications every time, but instead use the same medicine 3-4 times, and then switch to something else.  After a few more years of sending samples to the vet (at $20 a sample, it wasn't cheap!), and not really being satisfied with the results we were getting, I started doing even more research on the subject.  Once I found the wonderful resource that is Alpaca Nation, I learned that alpaca breeders around the country were starting to run their own fecals, and were getting better results than most vets.  I also learned about parasite resistance and how to choose which medication was best for which types of internal parasites.  So I decided that I was going to start running my own fecals, and see if I could save some money and get better results than the vet!

After more research on Alpaca Nation, I decided to buy a microscope and centrifuge, as well as the various supplies needed to run the fecals at home.  Some of the basic supplies are:

• microscope (with a movable stage if possible)
• centrifuge
• test tubes that will fit the centrifuge (mine are 12 mL)
• glass slides
• glass cover slips
• popsicle sticks
• paper/plastic cups
• tea strainer
• gloves (latex, rubber, vinyl, etc.)
• plastic baggies or small tupperware containers
• float solution (saturated sugar solution in water)

My supplies all set out to use!  From L to R: tupperware containers with liquid fecal mixture, sugar float solution, strainer and paper cup, test tube rack with tubes, and centrifuge.

And if you haven't caught onto my pattern yet, I went BACK to Alpaca Nation to figure out the best method for actually running the fecals.  The methods I use are a compilation from a few different people, and have been changed a bit in the 4-5 years that I've been running fecals.  The methods that I'm currently using:

1. A day or two in advance, make up the saturated sugar float solution.  You can also use a saturated Epsom salt solution, or even buy prepared solutions, but this seemed easy and cheap, and was widely used.  Heat 12 oz water, add 1 lb sugar, and stir til the sugar is dissolved.  Allow the solution to cool, then store in the fridge.  I like to allow the solution to warm to room temperature before using.
2. Collect your samples.  I tend to go out in the evening after we feed (which only works in the winter, summer is harder since not everyone gets grain), or sometimes I catch everyone and take them to the pile one by one.  Ideally you should collect samples from everyone, but I realize that isn't always possible.  I've been lucky enough for the past few years to have exactly 6 animals, and my centrifuge holds 6 tubes!  If I had a large herd, I would take a representative sample, and probably take more samples from "at risk" groups, such as new moms, weaned babies, older animals, etc.  When I take samples from the pasture, I turn a plastic baggie inside out, and use it as a scoop to collect 5-6 beans from each animal.
3. Next is the overnight soak.  The best new tip I have is the importance of weighing samples.  Beans can vary widely in weight, so the only way to be able to compare an animal's parasite load over time is to start with the same amount of material, and follow the same procedure.  I've started using 3 g of fecal material for testing.  I place this in a small tupperware container (or a new baggie works too), and then add 15 mL of water.  Mix up the beans as much as possible, and let sit overnight (preferably outside in the cold or in the fridge).

The LABELED tupperware containers filled with 3 g fecal matter and 15 mL water.

1. After a soak of 8-16 hours, I start the bulk of the procedure.  The next step is the first spin.  I pour the liquidy sample through the strainer, into a paper cup.  The contents of the cup goes into a clean test tube, the solid stuff in the strainer gets discarded.  Sometimes not all of the liquid will fit, and sometimes I need to add more water to get the same amount of liquid in each tube.  It is very important that all the tubes have the same amount of liquid, otherwise the centrifuge may get off balance.  I spin the tubes for 15 minutes.

Straining the liquid solution into the cup.

Filling the test tubes with the liquid solution.

1. After the first spin, I pour the liquid out of the tubes (and discard), and add the sugar float solution (again, the same amount of liquid in each tube).  I mix the solution with the remaining fecal pellet in the tube, and then centrifuge for another 15 minutes.  The parasite eggs have a higher specific gravity than water, so they sink in the first spin.  Thus, the water poured off shouldn't contain any eggs.  The sugar solution has a higher specific gravity than the eggs, so it makes the eggs float.  The liquid after the second spin should contain the parasite eggs.
2. I have a fixed rotor centrifuge, so I don't feel comfortable filling the tubes all the way while they are in the centrifuge.  Thus, I have to add more sugar solution after the second spin, in order to get a meniscus (bubble of liquid) on top of the tubes.  After the second spin I add the sugar solution little by little until a little bubble appears on the top of the tube.  I place a glass cover slip on top of the tube, and it should come in contact with liquid on the top of the tube.  If liquid spills over, I dab at it with a paper towel so that it stops spilling.  There's a bit of discrepancy in how long to let the cover slip set on top of the tube...  Originally I did a 1 hour float, which seemed to work well, but a recent recommendation has me now running a 4 hour float.  In the future I want to do my own comparison and see how which is actually better.  You could even let the cover slip sit overnight, but the heavier eggs tend to sink faster, so you may not see as many of them.

Filled test tubes with glass cover slips.

1. After the float time is up, I remove the cover slip and place it on a glass slide.  I label my tubes and slides with the numbers 1-6, and each number corresponds to a specific animal.
2. Then the fun part...reading the slides!  Starting in one corner, I work back and forth across the slide, zig-zagging my way to the opposite corner.  You will want to move slowly so that you observe and count every egg visible on the slide, and don't miss anything.  I typically use the 10x magnification lens.  I make tally marks on paper to count the number of eggs I see for each type, and then add them up at the end.  If you weigh out your sample at the beginning, you can divide that number by the number of grams you started with to get a EPG value (eggs per gram).  (Sorry, these pictures aren't as zoomed as I had hoped...)

A view through the microscope.  The green/yellow stuff is digested vegetable matter (grass/hay), the big silver/black dot on the right is an air bubble, but the three small grey ovals are strongyle eggs.

More plant matter and a bubble, with a nematodirus egg in the middle.  These are quite a bit bigger than the strongyle eggs.

1. The last step is the hardest...deciding who to treat and with what!  This is very subjective, and I definitely suggest you involve your vet!  For me, a lot depends on the physical health of the animal, and what their parasite load was in the past few months.  If I had a young animal who had a sudden increase in parasite eggs, I would probably treat at a lower level than if the animal was fully grown and had a fairly constant level of eggs.
1. Some parasites are more dangerous than others.  Typically strongyles aren't considered as dangerous, but if you see a really high load, you should consider the possibility that the animal has Barber Pole worm (Haemonchus).  It is a very nasty strongyle that causes anemia and often leads to death.  Unfortunately, it is impossible for the naked eye to distinguish between barber pole and a less-dangerous strongyle, so samples must be sent to Oregon State or the University of Georgia for specific testing.  Barber pole is now fairly wide-spread, and very easy to pick up at shows...  E. mac is a more dangerous type of coccidia, which is also important to watch for.  Small coccidia are not quite as bothersome, unless a young animal has a very high load.  Nematodirus and trichuris are two more that are typically treated even if the load is light.  Tapeworms are one of the few internal parasites that are almost impossible to see in a fecal, but they are very obvious in the manure piles so they are easy to spot.  Most vets don't worry about treating for tapeworms, but I liked to get rid of them just for my peace of mind!
2. What you decide to treat with can also be dependent on which animal you are treating, as well as what part of the country you are in.  In most areas, ivermectin is no longer effective against internal parasites due to being overused to prevent Meningeal worm.  Safeguard/Panacur is becoming less effective, unless given at very high doses.  Valbazen is still fairly effective (we have seen resistance in strongyles, but it works for nematodirus and trichuris), but should not be given to young animals or bred females.  I love using Equimax to treat tapeworms, but I haven't tried it for anything else.  Strongid may also work for strongyles, but I haven't used it in years.  One of the new "big guns" for strongyles (Barber pole in particular) is Quest.  It worked great for us in eliminating a load of strongyles.  For coccidia, different meds are required.  Corrid is the old standard, but you should supplement with vitamin B.  Albon is what we typically used, and it seemed to work well.

Now that I'm running fecals on my own, I like to do them as frequently as possible, and treat as infrequently as possible.  I typically try to run fecals a few weeks following the last show of the season, again in early spring, and in early summer.  If I had a large breeding herd, I would test new moms a few weeks after birth (there is a lot of evidence in other livestock that parasite loads increase after birth), and weanlings a few weeks after being separated (again, evidence that stress increases parasites).  I would also test my show string at the end of show season, and any breeding animals that left the farm.  As far as when to decide to treat, I try not to medicate my animals too often.  No animal should ever have a totally clean fecal (otherwise something was wrong in your procedures), and you need to figure out what each animal's "baseline" levels are.  Pay attention to external symptoms (weight loss, anemia, diarrhea, etc.), and combine those with your fecal EPG values to determine who needs to be treated.  If an animal has very high levels, I will typically treat no matter what.  But if the animal has borderline levels, I will usually wait a month or so and run another fecal...if the level is about the same (or hopefully lower), I wont' treat, but if the level has increased, I will treat at that time.

Hopefully this has helped convince you to try running fecals on your own!  The first time I ran them myself I was convinced...I split samples and sent half to the vet, and ran half on my own.  The vet told me that the samples were all clean, but I was finding several parasite eggs (of a few different types even!) in each sample.  After that I knew I would never send them to the vet again!

There are some great resources out there for fecal protocols and parasite identification.  Here are a few of my favorites:

• Parasite Pictures
• Parasite Pictures and Medications

I haven't really found a "one stop shop" for treatment options.  I prefer to search Alpaca Nation or the Facebook group Paca This and see what vets are recommending for other farms.  I don't always trust my vet to be completely up to date on what medications are working, but hopefully you are luckier than I am!

Fiber Business Progress

For the past several years, things have been up and down with my fiber business.  When I first started Etsy was very new, so I got a ton of sales.  Now the competition is fierce, and I'm looking for some ways to make my shop stand out!  I'd love to hear your suggestions!  I'll give out 20% discount coupons to anyone who comes up with a good tip, or will review my current shop and give suggestions!

So first, the past...  Again, Etsy sales started of good, but quickly dropped.  For some reason, I don't get a ton of repeat customers.  I've had fairly good luck with craft fairs, but I just moved so all of the past ones are now out of reach.

My display at a craft fair last fall.

Now, the present...  Etsy sales are picking up a bit from 2012, but it is early.  I've built back up my inventory of woven rugs, and made a few llama/alpaca batts to sell (but none of that has sold yet).  I found a nearby yarn store that *might* be interested in selling my handspun...I'm visiting Friday, and hopefully something positive works out from that!  I've also been having a lot of luck with my new fiber CSA!  I'm already almost sold out of fiber for the 2013 shearing.  I have just started advertising my new custom handspun, handknit llamas, and there seems to be a lot of interest.  Hopefully after shearing season I'll get some orders!

Luscious llama/angora rabbit batt, available in my Etsy shop.

And most importantly, some of my thoughts about things to do for the future.

I'm thinking about entering the world of bulky/artsy handspun yarns.  Unfortunately I have quite the stash of luxury fibers that want to be spun thin (I'm going to aim for fingering weight for most of those), but I'm thinking about investing in a few pounds of neutral wool roving, and a bit less of some dyed roving (in a few colors).  That way I can play around with bulky yarns, as well as art yarns.  I can also break out the drum carder and make some blends of my own (either just mixing the wool rovings, or adding in some silk/bamboo or llama/alpaca).  I should probably get a few colors of silk/bamboo too, as well as some thin thread/weaving yarn for plying.  I don't really want to get into dying, but I think with a few well-chosen natural and dyed colors of roving I could create some good blends on my own.  I probably won't bother trying to sell any more batts though...

Collection of luxury roving I need to spin...merino/silk, silk, silk/sea cell, mohair, and 2 merino/cashmere/silk.

An example of a past art yarn...merino/tencel plied with silk.

I really need to either find a better (probably in person) venue for selling knit items, or give up trying to make/sell them all together.  They just aren't selling on Etsy, and I'm not sure where I can advertise to get more traffic.  Maybe I will look into some new craft fairs for the fall (nothing knit sells in summer!). The few I have done in the past seemed to work out pretty well.  I'm not a huge fan of craft fairs, but I suppose if I limited myself to one or two it wouldn't be too bad.

Thrummed mitts...currently available in my Etsy store.

I already have plans to get more roving made from my llama/alpaca fleeces.  I didn't sell any of my fleeces last year, so I'm going to get 2 batches of roving made.  One batch will be Bluff/Duque, blended with a silver BFL fleece.  The other batch will be Ralph blended with a black Cormo fleece.  I'm planning on trying to sell the roving next year, but even if I don't I can spin it myself!  The sheep fleeces I'm going to buy are local (NY), so I will have a local, eco-friendly product to sell.  I had considered starting to make knit items (to sell) only out of my own (or other local) fibers, as a way to enter a different niche market, but I'll have to see what sorts of venues I can find for selling knit items in general.

Some of Ralph's roving...now all sold.

I also need to work on advertising...  I am not a huge fan of social media, but I've tried to be active on Facebook in attempt to get traffic.  Not sure it is working though...  I'm going to try and be better about posting here on my blog too, but I need help figuring out how to draw more people in to actually read what I post!

I had a few other ideas about things to try, but now I think I'd rather focus on yarn.  I was thinking about making my own patterns for bulky weight knit items (hats, scarves, mittens, fingerless gloves, cowls, etc.) that I could make to order and sell on Etsy as custom items, but that's not really the direction I want to go anymore.  I think I'll be better off focusing on just knitting for myself (and for gifts), and getting more serious about spinning to sell.

Some of the handspun yarn available in my shop.

So...my request for help...  If you'd like to take the time to review my current Etsy shop, or give suggestions about things I might try in the future, I would really appreciate the help!  I'll even tempt you with a coupon for 20% off anything in my Etsy store!  I'd really like 2013 to be a big year for me, but I'm going to need help, and the best tips come from customers!  Thanks in advance!

Thanksgiving Sale on Etsy!

In between class, working in the lab, and writing my thesis, I've updated most of my Etsy inventory (most have lower prices!) and added a bunch of new handspun yarn and woven rugs!

In honor of the holiday this week, we're having a Thanksgiving sale!  Use the coupon code FALL20 to get 20% off your purchase from our Etsy store!

And check back daily for the rest of the week for more updated pictures and new knit items!

Check out our store!  There's a gift for everyone!

Skin Issues

Skin issues are not uncommon with llamas and alpacas.  Over the years we've seen our share...bare noses, scrapes and small sores, bare spots on the legs, etc.  Usually they're not anything to worry about, but it is important to watch for warning signs of infection or parasitism before choosing a treatment.

This spring I noticed two of our girls with small skin issues.  Bluff has two little spots of elephant skin on the "armpits" of her front legs.  They're not red or inflamed at all, just dry.

April  has developed quite a few bald spots on the bottoms of her legs (where the hair is short).  Again there is no sign of infection or parasites, and the skin underneath looks completely normal.  I have a feeling it is just a symptom of old age (she turned 18 yrs old in April), but I decided to try and get the hair to regrow anyway.

The dark spot in the middle is Bluff's elephant skin spot.

The pink spots are bare skin on April's back legs.

Big bare spot on the bottom of April's back leg.

I did a bit of research, and came up with a few key ingredients that I wanted to put in my "skin mix".  Vitamin E oil, tea tree oil, and MTG (a commercial horse liquid skin product) made the list.  I also ended up adding in some udder balm (for cows) and natural diaper cream (for babies).  Between them, ingredients include zinc oxide, lanolin, oils, and moisturizers.  I decided to make 2 different mixes...a liquid that I could spray on April's legs, and a cream that I could rub on Bluff's "armpits".  The liquid was mostly the MTG with a bit of vitamin E and tea tree oils; the cream was mostly the udder balm and diaper cream with some vitamin E and tea tree oils.

My ingredients.

I haven't been very good about applying the products to the llamas so far, so I can't really comment on their effectiveness, but they are easy to apply!  I'm hoping to see good results by the end of the summer.  Now I need to make up more of the liquid mix...I've run out already!