Control of Coxiella burnetii shedding in a dairy goat herd by annual offspring vaccination.

A Coxiella burnetii vaccination program, targeting only doelings, was introduced on a German goat farm to curb bacterial shedding. In 2018, adults were vaccinated with a C. burnetii Phase I vaccine at three-weeks apart following pathogen diagnosis, with a booster administered six months later due to sustained high shedding.

Relationships between body condition score, body weight and body measurements in alpacas.

Background: The nutritional status in alpacas is often masked by their dense fibre coat. Its assessment is commonly approached by different body condition scores (BCS) that rely on manual palpation of defined anatomical regions. However, BCS is an important diagnostic tool to aid recognition of diseased South American camelids (SACs) and low BCS has been associated with conditions like anaemia and neutrophilia.

The influence of different examiners on the Body Condition Score (BCS) in South American camelids-Experiences from a mixed llama and alpaca herd.

Particularly in unshorn llamas and alpacas with a dense fiber coat, changes in body condition often remain undetected for a long time. Manual palpation of the lumbar vertebrae is hence a simple and practical method for the objective assessment of body condition in South American camelids (SAC). Depending on tissue coverage, a body condition score (BCS) of 1 (emaciated) to 5 (obese) with an optimum of 3 is assigned.