Re: [AlpacaTalk] Re: shearing/toothe trimming
We trim incisors and fighting teeth with an OB wire, available from
Valley Vet for like $11 for 12 yards... something like that. Cut off
a piece of wire about 2' long. I wear leather gloves. Wrap the ends
of the wire around your gloved fingers a few times, or you can also
buy handles for the wire. Someone has to hold the alpaca's mouth open
a bit. Many people insert a small rope dog chew toy (not used by a
dog) to keep the mouth open. It also helps keep the tongue away from
the wire. Then for the incisors, you just begin sawing by pulling
toward yourself and keep at an angle parallel with the lower gumline.
It is often necessary to start slow to get the sawing started, then
as soon as the wire begins cutting, I put a lot of tension on the
wire to get the job done as quickly as possible. Diamond encrusted
wire is no longer available, but the regular OB wire cuts very
quickly if it's fairly new. WE used the same piece of wire for years
until it finally wore out. I can't believe how fast the new wire is,
and so inexpensive!
Fighting teeth are almost easier to do than incisors but they have to
be cut one at a time.
We find it's helpful to have one person to use the wire, one person
to handle the head and mouth, and at least one person to keep the
back end of the alpaca stationary.
We do try to use a dremel to clean up and rough edges, but sometimes
they've just had enough and won't tolerate it. Unless you need to
take pictures of the newly trimmed teeth, it's not a big deal and
they'll smooth themselves in a short period. Grass is very high in
silica and constantly wears down the teeth, which is why their teeth
don't stop growing.
Heather
On Jan 20, 2009, at 6:54 PM, Mary Jane Fox wrote:
> Hi, I don't feel comfortable about trying to explain how to trim
> teeth,
> there are alot of variables.There have been discussions on other
> alpaca
> yahoo groups just recently on this subject. Again maybe do a search on
> trimming alpaca teeth and see what comes up, I use a dremmel with
> different attachments for different jobs. Alpacas love cool nights and
> warm sunny spring days it is their favorite weather, just like in
> South
> America! Maybe try to get your guy to shear before the wheat season.
> Mary Jane
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posted by Chaddo at 12:16 PM
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