Medicine and Surgery of Camelids. Группа авторов

Figure 2.28 Photo demonstrating trimming of an alpaca's toenails while it is standing on the ground.

No‐Restraint Injections

      When you put something sharp into an animal, it is likely that it is going to move. With this assumption, most people restrain the animal before they inject. The fallacy with this approach is the restraint causes the animal to fight before the needle touches the skin.

Given a camelid's long neck, it is exceedingly difficult to eliminate bodily movement by tying the head, even when the animal is inside a chute. Complete and total restraint takes a lot of time and can be dangerous to do before an injection is given. Containing the animal instead of restraining it and learning to stand in a way that produces predictable movement eliminates the need for restraint (Box 2.2).

The easiest way to give injections is in a catch pen or in a trailer. If you are doing herd health, pack the pen as described earlier (the author prefers to do herd health work in groups of 8–10). Put as many animals as will comfortably fit inside the catch pen. The animals will appear crowded; leaving approximately 20% of empty space in the pen. Eight to ten alpacas or 5–6 llamas in a 9 × 9‐ft pen is ideal. For situations where there are not enough animals to fill the pen, the pen can be made smaller with bales of hay, or the panels adjusted to make a smaller area.

Box 2.1 Tips for trimming camelids toenails

       Use a holster that fits on the lower leg. This allows you to retrieve your nippers without moving very much. A lot of movement attempting to get nippers out of a pocket will likely take the animal out of balance.

       Trim very conservatively at first – we all quick an animal now and again but you don't want it to be the first time the animal is trimmed.

       Allow the llama or alpaca to put his foot down a few times during the trimming process if he needs to. The more practice he gets picking up his foot and getting it back the better off you both are.

       Trim toenails after a rain. The toenails are much easier when they are moist. If you live in a dry climate, wet down a small area and keep the animals in this area for a few minutes before trimming.

       Don't be reluctant to use a sedative for really difficult animals if you need to. Wrestling to trim toenails makes the process more traumatic and only teaches the animal to resist more.

Box 2.2 Advantages of the No‐restraint Method of Administering Injections

       There is less movement

       The movement is less violent, less erratic and more predictable

       The animal stays calm

       The muscles are not tight

       There is less likelihood of abscess

       It is faster and easier

       One can work alone, saving time, labor and makes the patient feel safer

      Crowding the animals slows them down and they feel safer in a group. If you are giving injections to one animal, it is still useful to pack the pen with others; the patient will be much more cooperative with company and the other animals will help facilitate the injection process. The animals in a group pen are less reactive and do not kick or lie down as much. If there is an animal that is known to spit readily, the author recommends treating that animal first and then allowing it to leave.

There are several options for injection sites (Figure 2.29). Subcutaneous injections can be given just ahead of the shoulder blade about halfway down the body by reaching over the body to inject on the opposite side. In this way, the animal moves toward the person giving the injection when the needle enters the skin, and it is easier to keep the needle in the animal without the need for restraint. It is convenient to give intramuscular (IM) injections in the triceps muscle using this method as well. The triceps muscle is a large muscle and accommodating for IM injections. This muscle mass will accommodate up to 5 cc of medication for alpacas and slightly more for llamas (personal communication with Dr. David Anderson). Injections in the rear end are difficult to do without restraint and are difficult to inspect later or treat if there is a problem with the injection site.

Figure 2.29 Illustration of proper location for giving a subcutaneous and intramuscular injection.

Techniques for No Restraint Injections

      Working Alone

Decide which animal is to receive the injection; fixate on that animal, and do not change target animals throughout this process (Figures 2.30–2.33). Hold the syringe in your dominant hand. Approach the animal from behind its line of sight when the animal is parallel to a panel. Make sure to stay behind its line of sight, position yourself on the side of the animal toward the center of the pen with the animal tracking around the outside next to the panels. The handler puts their left hand firmly on the opposite side of the animal just over the top line in the area where the neck and shoulder come together; this is the injection site. Note the injection site is on the side opposite from where the person is standing. Most importantly, reach forward and stay behind the animal's line of sight. At the same time, keep your hip as close to the animal's hip as possible. The animal changes direction by pivoting around the shoulders and using this technique, the animal can be prevented from changing direction. The animal has a forward escape route and will use it. It is not possible to give injections without restraint unless you can prevent the animal from changing direction. Working in a packed pen helps with this immensely. Though it may seem daunting to work in a group of animals within a pen, in the author's experience the animals are much less fearful, which means they kick, rear, and spit less.

      Working with an Assistant

If the person giving the injection is having trouble managing the animal's direction by using their body position and hip, they can have a helper use the bracelet technique or the handler helper to assist with this by steering the animal into the forward escape route (Figures 2.34 and 2.35) It is especially important to impress upon the helper that his or her job is only to steer and NOT to attempt to slow the animal down or hold it still. If your helper puts pressure on the handler helper or attempts to hold or stop the animal, the animal will begin to fight and move erratically, often rearing, making the process of injecting much more difficult, resulting in the need for restraint.

For subcutaneous injections, use the fiber to tent the skin and inject into the subcutaneous space as the animal takes a few steps. It is not necessary to visualize the tent; it can be felt. Push the needle under the skin, being careful not to insert