hi Laurel - Fonzie had a very rough birth - he was his mom's first cria and she had a hard time, and was very unhappy - when he did struggle to his feet to nurse, she knocked him over and he stayed down - we kept him warm but he lay there and his mom was obviously still very unhappy after several hours - after being unable to reach any vet, or experienced alpaca farmer, and being here on my own, i finally phoned a man (who i'd never met) who owned a llama farm and asked him if he had any frozen llama colustrum - he did, brought it over and i fed fonzie the warmed up llama colustrom - he was up nursing within the hour. The ironic thing is, i had ordered all of the supplies for birthing, and they all arrived the next day, one day too late.
his mom is still not overly maternal but she lets him nurse when ever he wants to, and then she wanders off - he has been eating pellets and hay since 2 1/2 weeks - before his eye injury he was the bossy one who led all the other crias in their pronk, and would even sneak up behind the other boys and butt them, then take off running. His mom is small and her mom is small, so some of his size might be genetic- i don't know what all the CBC Biochemical profile etc is,but i will discus it with the vet on Wednesday.
i have been writing this email in bits and pieces as i have time to sit down - i just came in and fonzie's eye is already open and he is obviously feeling better - bossing the other boys around as usual - i don't know what was in the shot the vet gave him, i'll have to ask him, vet did say it would speed the healing up - but i am still doing the eye drops and before dark will put in the BNP ointment. I will continue with the eye drops every 2 hours all weekend until i see significant improvement (vets's instructions) - it's good to feel i know what i'm doing now - i hate that helpless feeling'
The good thing is i've been able to spend the whole day outside, doing chores amongst the alpacas and just visiting them as well as tending Fonzie. What could be better?.
thanks for all your support
Wendy
DreamWeaver Alpacas
Port Alberni, BC
----- Original Message -----
From: Shouvlins
To: AlpacaTalk@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Friday, January 11, 2008 12:38 PM
Subject: Re: [AlpacaTalk] more on gucky eyes
Wendy,
If the eye is cloudy, then you have exceeded the limits of topical medications. I am glad the vet is coming. I would bet that he needs an antibiotic in the least.
I apologize for not remembering, but how was this guy as related to his birth. Are you sure he received immunity from his mom's colostrum etc. Since he is kinda small etc, is he getting enough milk? May be time for a more thorough assessment. I would consider a CBC, Biochemical Profile, Thyroid, IgG and PCR for BVD.
When one of our llamas developed an infection that clouded the eye, the vet injected antibiotic right into the area below the eye. It was terribly horrific looking, but boy, within two days the eye was almost clear again.
Glad the vet is on the way and let us know how things go.
Laurel
Tim & Laurel Shouvlin
Bluebird Hills Farm
3617 Derr Rd.
Springfield, Ohio 45503
bluebirdhills@voyager.net
www.bluebirdhills.com
937-206-3936
----- Original Message -----
From: Wendy Edwards
To: AlpacaTalk@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Friday, January 11, 2008 1:39 PM
Subject: Re: [AlpacaTalk] more on gucky eyes
hi Sheri - i will make a point of finding Euphrasia, i prefer homeopathic measures to drugs anytime - i will at least have it on hand if this ever happens again, and i can treat right away. - i'm waiting to hear what the vet has to say today -
i'm thinking fonzie has poked himself in the eye with a twig or branch as he is not responding to conjunctivitis treatment. I'm going to give him a little rescue remedy right now as he is not a happy boy with all this handling - i should have thought of this before
thanks
Wendy
DreamWeaver Alpacas
Port Alberni, BC
----- Original Message -----
From: Sheri Hewitt
To: AlpacaTalk@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Friday, January 11, 2008 10:27 AM
Subject: Re: [AlpacaTalk] more on gucky eyes
Hi,
This sounds a bit like an injury or stigmatism (sp). There is a
homeopathic remedy that is supposed to be good for this sort of
thing. It is Euphrasia. You can get a 30C almost everywhere
homeopathy is sold. Without knowing exactly what the dose us I'd
give one dose and watch closely. If nothing happens in a couple of
days I'd give it again. It might take a while to clear.
Best of luck,
Sheri
At 10:24 AM 1/11/2008, you wrote:
>hi all - my little guys eye has not improved - started using gensin
>yesterday, every two hours, but this morning it's not good - his
>eyeball itself is cloudy - using a flashlight i can't see anything
>embedded anywhere or any ulceration - i got through to the vet
>yesterday and we had our fourth conversation this morning - thank
>goodness he will be here just after 12 noon. This is not his
>regularly timed visit to the valley and i appreciate him making the
>trip, especially in this awful (snow, rain, ice) weather.
>
>this cria is the one i almost lost at birth - it was really
>touch-and-go for a whle - he is still small for his age (4 1/2
>months) but eats like a horse, nurses well and has seemed pretty
>feisty (read bossy) with the other crias - now i'm wondering if his
>immune system was compromised at birth - we have been blessed so far
>not to have any medical problems, except with this one little boy -
>and of course now he is the family favourite.
>
>I appreciate all of the advice and support i've received - it is a
>relief to be able to talk about alpaca problems with other alpaca people.
>thanks
>Wendy
>DreamWeaver Alpacas
>Port Alberni, BC
>
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