Veterinarians log on for specialized training
CE Program focuses exclusively on llamas and alpacas
Kansas State University Veterinary Medical Continuing Education Office
Press Release
March 9, 2009
Educators in the College of Veterinary Medicine at Kansas State University received a $20,000 gift from the Mid-America Alpaca Foundation (MAAF) to create the world’s first Web-based continuing education program focused exclusively on llamas and alpacas.
These members of the camelid species require specialized medical training and knowledge. Growing interest in camelids and the emergence of 6,000 alpaca farms nationwide has prompted the need for veterinarians to broaden their expertise in working with these valuable animals.
This “virtual training” program will allow veterinarians from anywhere in the world—Kansas to California to Peru and beyond—at any time of the day or night to gain access to critical training information at their leisure or in times of crisis. “Veterinarians may need immediate access to information to better care for or diagnose life-threatening conditions in llamas or alpacas,” said Dr. David Anderson, professor and head of agricultural practices at the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital and program co-creator. “The partnership with MAAF is vital to our ability to provide up-to-date, accurate information in a growing global market,” Anderson said.
Veterinarians often cannot afford to spend critical time and resources attending in-depth continuing education programs dedicated to one species. “A program of this caliber allows us to broaden our teaching mission while solidifying the MAAF and K-State as leaders in veterinary education innovation.”
Pete Caffrey, MAAF president, emphasized that K-State was the logical partner given the renowned faculty experts and shared commitment to education. “Our foundation has made educating veterinary students about alpacas a top priority because the health of members’ herds rests squarely with the quality of medical care these animals receive,” Caffrey said. This program launches the second phase of the foundation’s effort, Design for Education.
Dr. Meredyth Jones, assistant professor and coordinator of the Alpacas on Campus program at K-State, said demand is high for this information. “We receive phone calls daily from practicing veterinarians with questions regarding camelid cases needing the latest information available in camelid medicine and surgery,” Dr. Jones said. “We very much enjoy this interaction with practitioners and see this as another way to serve them.”
Drs. Anderson and Jones are collaborating with Dr. Dusty Nagy at the University and Missouri and Dr. Melanie Boileau at Oklahoma State University, internal medicine experts who share an interest in veterinary education and alpaca health issues.
More information about this program is available online by visiting K-State’s Veterinary Medical Continuing Education Office at http://www.vet.k-state.edu/CE/camelid/camelid.htm.
HERD MANAGEMENT:
Morris Animal Foundation:
Inbreeding Weakens Camelids
(Reprinted from “Animal News”, the newsletter of the Morris Animal Foundation, Vol. 7.4. The Alpaca Research Foundation, Inc is the full sponsor for Dr. Marin’s study)
Wild and captive camelids, such as llamas, alpacas, vicunas and guanacos, as economically and ecologically important species to South America and, at the same time, a rapidly growing population in North America as well. Unfortunately, these animals are often inbred, which can cause an increase in inherited diseases, reproductive problems and congenital abnormalities.
Dr. Juan Carlos Marin and his research team at Universidad Mayor in Chile decided to learn more about these species and their health issues. Using MAF funding, Dr. Marin collected samples from wild, semicaptive and captive populations of camelids in South America. He learned that, unlike intensively managed and inbred domestic lamas and alpacas, captive guanaco and vicuna populations that were founded from recently captured individuals didn’t lack genetic diversity. Similarly, wild guanacos and vicunas showed a low frequency of abnormal traits. In fact, captive and wild guanaco populations revealed few differences, which may be explained by the establishment of recent breeding programs.
These findings highlight the importance of preserving genetic diversity through good breeding programs. Dr. Marin will use this information to identify the genes involved in defects in these populations, significantly improving breeding programs and making these animals healthier.
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Emergency/Disaster Response:
ICI Sets up Communication System for Disaster Response and Relief
Sheila Fugina, IRC Council
(National Lama Intervention & Rescue Coordination Council)
(Reprinted from ORVLA Newsletter, August, 2008)
As a result of the networking efforts of several camelid organizations, a communication system for disaster responses and relief has been set up on the web site for the International Camelid Institute (ICI). The tornadoes and floods in the Midwest were the more recent impetus to putting such a plan together, but the wildfires and droughts in other parts of the country started the discussions much earlier. Contact information and links have been provided on the site for national, regional, and local agencies involved with disaster preparedness response and relief for both people and animals. A list of owners with immediate needs such as water, pasture, ay and shelter will be posted on the site shortly, as will a list of people offering help (transportation, pasture room, water, etc.) The list will be updated often over the next several weeks a IC receives additional information. Specific concerns and suggestions from camelid veterinarians regarding disaster response and relief will also be posted on the site. Much of the date in several of the reports was compiled by Sandra Wallace and her team members on the Alpaca Owner and Breeders Association (AOBA) Affiliate Congress who then worked the ICI and the IRC Council to get the actual communication system in place. Though the current concern is with the Midwest, the system is intended to provide immediate communication regarding any disaster nationwide. Please inform your members they can go to the ICI’s web site at:
www.icinfo.org
and click on “Help for Affected Flood Owners” under the “Hot Topics” section for information and help not only for this latest weather related crisis, but also for future disaster concerns.
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GOVERNMENT RELATIONS:
To check on the latest information concerning the National Animal Identification System (NAIS), you may go to the ICI website: www.icinfo.org Entry in the Missouri State Fair and other livestock shows has required animals to have permanent ID.