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vintagealpacas
389 Posts |
 Posted - 11/04/2009 : 07:14:42 AM
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I am getting worried about one of my crias. She is 6 weeks old and nurses constantly from her "skinney" mother. The dam has never had ALOT of milk, never had a chubby cria, but seems to have milk to feed the cria. I had one of my vets look at her and the cria, his remark was that the mother has milk and that the cria is thin, but if the cria eats hay and grain then I need not worry as it won't starve itself to death. Well, I worry less....but I wondered if there was anything I could give her to put some "meat on her bones?" For the last week I started giving her the nutri-drench which I have used a few times before with great success but that was a very old alpaca. I was thinking a syring of yogurt everyday? Oh - BTW, she won't have anything to do with a bottle and when I tried giving her the bottle it just made her and her mother angry, which lead them to stay as far out in the pasture away from the barn as possible... so I am not going to chase them down to get them angry unless it's necessary. So bottle feeding is out. If I only handle the cria for a minute or two a day the mother is much more accepting to that...so I wondered if there is anything out there that can give a quick caloric increase? Any and all advise here is appreciated!
Kim
Kimberly Rassi
Vintage Alpacas
alpacanation.asp/vintage
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nyala
2251 Posts |
Posted - 11/04/2009 : 07:38:06 AM
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Hi,
could you set up a creep feeder for the cria?
Ann
D. Andrew Merriwether, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Anthropology and Biology, Binghamton University
and
Ann and Andy Merriwether
Nyala Farm Alpacas,Vestal, NY
www.alpacanation.com/nyalafarm.asp |
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meadowsong
142 Posts |
Posted - 11/04/2009 : 07:49:27 AM
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Hi Kim,
Is it chilly where you are? If so, it might help her hold on to the calories she's getting if she's coated. My other thought was the same thing as Ann's. I'd try providing a creep feeder for her.
Good Luck,
Diane Pedrotte
Meadowsong Alpacas
Capac, MI |
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kipaca
665 Posts |
Posted - 11/04/2009 : 08:30:57 AM
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Hi Kim,
I have the same situation, but I chose to feed the mom the extra calories and it is helping.... She gets three meals a day of alfalfa (just the leaves)+ Alfa Supreme (chopped alfalfa with molasses)+ 1/2 cup Calf Manna (Sunshine pellets)+ 1/2 cup regular pellets at each meal.
She is producing more milk and the cria is gaining well. He is now gaining about 4-5 oz a day, but before he's gain 2 oz, then lose an ounce, gain 3, lose 2...so he was growing very slowly.... at 8 weeks he is up to 35 Lbs....he is now eating grain and hay too.
P.S. My vet said NOT to use Nutri Drench in alpacas! But you may want to give mom some RedCell...about 6cc every other day...only for a couple of weeks.
Laila
Laila V Roukounakis
Graceland Alpaca Farm
Lisbon Falls, Maine
207-353-2171
info@gracelandfarm.com
www.alpacanation.com/graceland.asp |
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PheasantRidgeAlpacas
102 Posts |
Posted - 11/04/2009 : 9:08:45 PM
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Hi Kim!
Last year I used some powdered milk replacer called 'Sav a Lamb', from TSC. Our vet ok'd it. It can be fed in a bottle or dry on the feed. My cria was too old to take a bottle and wasn't gaining enough. She loved the stuff-it smelled like vanilla. If yours is already eating grain, just try some mixed in. It was an easy fix. We also fed grain and alfalfa to her. This year our cria who is the same age as yours is eating his dam's beet pulp, so maybe yours might like that as well?
Good luck!
Heidi
Heidi Ellefson
Pheasant Ridge Alpacas LLC
Bangor, Wisconsin
http://www.alpacanation.com/pheasantridge.asp |
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vintagealpacas
389 Posts |
Posted - 11/04/2009 : 10:29:41 PM
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Thanks all!
I think out of all this advise I will try the alfalfa first. I have a good source for some nice green bales with tender and plentiful leaves so I will get that tomorrow. The cria has no idea how to eat pellets yet as she is too busy nursing the entire time her mother is eating grain! While the other cria nose around in the trough, this cria is busy under mother every second. So the creep feeder is a bit of a ways off. I am feeding the dam 3 times a day too, as she is my skinny-minnie and always has been. I feed very good nutritious pellets and rolled oats on top. I have a coat on the cria day and night to keep in her heat too. Ok - let me start with the alfalfa and work from there....all were great responses and I appreciate your concern 
Kim
Kimberly Rassi
Vintage Alpacas
alpacanation.asp/vintage |
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rgoss1
193 Posts |
Posted - 11/04/2009 : 11:15:16 PM
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Hey Kim - I've had good success using Dyne. Normally I've used it in a bottle but the directions say that you can use a syringe:
http://www.lambertvetsupply.com/Dyne-High-Calorie-Supplement-1-Gallon--pr--015TRPY40020522
150 calories per ounce in a palatable, easy-to-administer formula.
Can be fed orally with a syringe or dropper or added to drinking water.
Aids in nutrition for pregnant and lactating mothers.
Provides high quality calorie intake for animals recovering from debilitating illnesses.
Extra nutrition for runt puppies.
Increases stamina for peak performance
Good Luck!
Roxanne Goss
Lands End Alpacas LLC
Vermilion, Ohio
gossr@roadrunner.com 440-225-4138 |
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bobvicki
1874 Posts |
Posted - 11/05/2009 : 01:23:10 AM
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Kim,
On 10-25-09 you wrote on another thread:
quote:
I stopped feeding the grain most of the summer... saw no bad side effects, but have re-started my feeding program just 2 days ago
In retrospect maybe this female should have been kept on the extra grain as the vitamins and minerals may have helped her to keep this cria fed. (And you from worrying about her!)
Bob
Bob & Vicki Blodgett
Suri Land Alpaca Ranch
3288 Halter Avenue
Newton, Iowa 50208
641-831-3576
alpaca@iowatelecom.net
www.alpacanation.com/suriland.asp |
Edited by - bobvicki on 11/05/2009 01:24:03 AM |
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vintagealpacas
389 Posts |
Posted - 11/05/2009 : 07:29:40 AM
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Bob,
no, don't think it would have mattered for this one especially since I have such large grassey fields and free choice hay 24/7. Plus my grain is not a calorie producing grain.. remember, I took out all the fat and added fiber... this was to the benefit of the entire herd. Somehow I just don't think "more fat" was the answer for the skinney mom since she has been skinney since the day I bought her and has given me 5 crias so far... every one with this same "skinny" concern. So, I don't think the change in grain over the summer would have improved her condition or milk output...
Kim
Kimberly Rassi
Vintage Alpacas
alpacanation.asp/vintage |
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vintagealpacas
389 Posts |
Posted - 11/05/2009 : 07:39:59 AM
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Good suggestion Roxanne, I will compare labels to the nutri-drench. As per my very experienced vet here in northeast Ohio, I have used nutri-drench successfully on my 17 year old alpaca. He weighed in at 110 last fall, and I got him to 125 within a month on nutridrench. My only concern was that both nutridrench and Dyne seem to be alot of sugar... maybe that is ok??
In this case, I am more concerned about getting fat on the cria than treating the dam for anything. The dam is comfortably sitting at 16o lbs... which for most folks may be a good weight for a female but on my farm that is somewhat on the thin side... plus she is 10 years old and I don't like the fact that I can feel her spine and hip bones... I much prefer a nice soft, non-boney feel to the barrel of her body. BTW, I rebred the dam 15 days postpartum and she conceived without delay. I don't think she would conceive so easily if she were undernurished. At least that is what I have read.
Kim
Kimberly Rassi
Vintage Alpacas
alpacanation.asp/vintage |
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redroofranch
234 Posts |
Posted - 11/05/2009 : 10:34:40 PM
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Hi Kim,
I had a cria last year who wasn't gaining like I wanted. Mom was a maiden & had milk, but just didn't seem patient enough to let the cria nurse as often as she wanted to. This cria would never take a bottle, but surprisingly she would accept milk through a syringe. The first few times it was a bit of a struggle, but eventually she would be waiting at the stall door for her milk. She would actually stand there and open her mouth for the syringe. I tried numerous times to switch her over to a bottle, but she adamantly refused every time. When I tried to get her interested in grain, she would have nothing to do with it. I would put a few pellets in her mouth each day for a couple of days, and then she began to eat it on her own. I also got her eating alfalfa. She's over a year old now (normal weight) and still comes to me at feeding time to hold her bowl. : )
Good luck with your little girl. I'm sure you'll have good results.
Kathy
Kathy & Rick Tinkham
Red Roof Ranch Alpacas
Cadiz, KY
www.alpacanation.com/redroofranch.asp
(270) 522-0379
"We create our tomorrows by what we dream today." |
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gatewayfarm
1104 Posts |
Posted - 11/05/2009 : 11:42:54 PM
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I always consider weight problems to be a symptom, rather than a problem in themselves.
Have you checked for parasites? I bloodwork normal?
I would rule out anything physical before leaving it at suplemental feeding. The problem is you might be treating a symptom and leaving the underlying problem untreated - until too late.
We did, once, have a young animal (less than two months if I remember) come up with a serious parasite load that needed to be treated. Caught us by complete surprise given her young age (and she was the only one with a problem to boot!).
Gateway Farm
Alpaca, a natural elegance... |
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laura0554
12 Posts |
Posted - 11/06/2009 : 3:32:52 PM
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I just took delivery of a 13 year old female with a 3 month old cria by her side and she was bred before shipping. She is VERY thin and the blood test done before she was shipped to us tested positive for Mycoplasma haemolamae. One of the most obvious symptoms is weight loss. Now that I know what she has we can treat her for it. In the future, if we have any sudden weight loss despite normal consumption, this is a test we'll have run. It is blood bourne and there are no preventative vaccinations for it. Despite being thin, these dams will conceive and very often will have normal deliveries, although the cria may be small.
R Half Pint Farm
Spotsylvania, VA |
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help with weight gain on cria
