Re: [AlpacaTalk] My Boy Won't Eat Grain - Help!
Hi Pia,
I would recommend following up on the vitamin D. His lack of
activity relative to our weather is not necessarily surprising, but not
gaining weight since November combined with his lack of weight gain is a
big red flag. Ricketts would be a major consideration since it is
winter, he is coated, and he is a royal barn potato. He is at high
risk. Heather'
Vitamin D in it is a good one.
A chem panel, fecal (insist
on Ohio State), CBC, and thyroid test,
I would be going right now. To make the grain a bit more inticing and to
even enhance his use of all of his calories, you might want to top dress
with Diamond V, a yeast product that is very good at helping ruminants and
other species to better utilize feed. It is also naturally high in B
vitamins that can help increase appetite. They love the taste and
smell.
The test results will give you clues for how to proceed
from here. If they all prove negative, you may want to consider a rumen
transfer. He may not have the right flora in his gut to help him
effectively digest what he is consuming.
Lastly, don't be
fooled by milk moustaches. Just because there is one, does not mean that
he is getting enough. He may not be getting as much milk as everyone
assumes, but at this point, you would have a hard time getting another
source of milk in him...just something to keep in the back of your mind
for the next cria this dam has.
Good luck and keep us
posted,
Laurel
Laurel Shouvlin
Bluebird Hills
Farm
Springfield, Ohio
937-206-3936
www.bluebirdhills.
bluebirdhills@
> Hi Heather, my boy stopped gaining weight
in November and has been wearing
> a coat the entire
time. I don't know about the ADEB paste. Right now he
> weighs about 40 some odd pounds right now. Mom is average
sized, but
> not on the larger side like some of my other
dams. Dad weighs about 190 -
> 200#. He is
eating plenty of hay, is constantly chewing his cud, and is
> getting loads of milk still from mom (evidenced by his messy lips
after
> nursing! :-) He's just not interested in grain, the creep
feeder, or
> playing for the last number of weeks.... He
did start bunking under the
> hay feeder in November, and as you
know a lot of hay collects there. It's
> always seemed like
he liked it there because it was warmer, even with his
>
coat on....
>
> Pia
>
> Best
regards,
> Pia M. Al-Ubaidi
> Fiori del Campo Suri
Alpacas
>
>
>
>
>
____________
>
> I do agree about
the Thyro-L, that's not really something to treat
> with unless
it's medically necessary - prescribed by the vet. That's
> why
it's not an over the counter item! :) And checking for E mac is a
> good idea.
>
> Does your farm give crias ADEB12
paste? That should be done at least
> monthly, especially in the
cold and less sunny months. It does help
> stimulate appetite and
does furnish some calories.
>
> So how much does your
boy weight right now? If his body score seems
> good, there may
well NOT be a problem. He is likely to be cold if he
> doesn't
have a cria coat on. Suris are susceptible to cold because
> they
don't have that fluffy fleece at the topline. If he weighs 50
>
lbs, that's quite normal. We like to see 60 lb weight by 6 months,
> generally.
>
> Also, some crias don't have an
interest in pellets even at 6 months.
> It's frustrating to the
humans, but there's not a lot to do except
> try to convince them
that they're tasty! We've even had some
> weanlings who weren't
too quick to show interest in pellets.
>
> Another
thought, he may be a small alpaca. We have a one or two crias
>
who, even with good appetite and energy levels, normal bloods, just
> turned out to be on the small side. They do continue growth until 5
> years of age, so you can't know what his full size will be at 4
1/2
> months.
>
> Finally, all crias do grow at
different rates. Mothers' milk
> production rates differ, so
crias of the same age won't always be the
> same size. We have
one 8 month old here, who is as big as our 18
> month olds. No
kidding! And we have a little 6 month old who is a
> good 10 lbs
or more smaller than a 5 month old. But they're all doing
> fine,
in their own way.
>
> Heather
>
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Change settings via the Web (Yahoo! ID required)
Change settings via email: Switch delivery to Daily Digest | Switch format to Traditional
Visit Your Group | Yahoo! Groups Terms of Use | Unsubscribe
posted by Chaddo at 10:31 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home