La crianza de camélidos domésticos, alpacas y llamas, es una de las actividades de mayor importancia e impacto en el desarrollo socioeconómico de la población altoandina del Perú, debido a su capacidad de adaptación a condiciones ambientales difíciles, por encima de los 4,000 msnm, y a su utilización como fuente de proteína de origen animal y de transporte y en el caso de la alpaca, para la producción de fibra de buena calidad. El Perú cuenta con más de 3 millones de alpacas (87% de la población mundial) y la segunda población mundial de llamas (+1 millón); sin embargo, las deficiencias en los esquemas tradicionales de crianza, como la crianza conjunta de alpacas y llamas, con los consecuentes cruces no programados, han contribuido a reducir la calidad genética de los animales, ocasionando una pérdida en la cantidad y calidad de fibra, reportándose que el 45% de la prod...

South American Camelids are receiving increased interest not only in South America but also on a worldwide scale. They possess some unique features such as their fine fibre and their high adaptivity to many climatic regions across the world. Apart from the important productive aspects, their physical attractiveness also makes them popular as pet animals. However there are still many gaps in the scientific literature with regard to South American Camelids. This collection of papers brings experience of both South American and European experts together. It considers current trends in reproduction, nutrition, health, fibre morphology and genetics and discusses as new topic aspects of the potential of meat production and commercialization in South America. The particular advantages of South American Camelids for the sustainable use of fragile ecosystems with native pastures are outlined. Rou...

The objective of the study was to compare the ovulatory response and embryo production in llamas (Lama glama) treated with a single dose of equine chorionic gonadotropin (eCG) alone or combined with intravaginal medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) at the time of follicular wave emergence. Llamas with a growing follicle ≥7 mm in diameter were assigned to one of the following groups: (1) Control (n = 28): Nonstimulated llamas were mated and embryos were collected 7 d after mating. (2) eCG (n = 32): Llamas were given 5 mg luteinizing hormone (LH) (Day 0) to induce ovulation, 1000 IU eCG on Day 2, a luteolytic dose of prostaglandin F2α on Day 6, mating on Day 7, and embryo collection on Day 14. (3) eCG+MPA (n = 34): Llamas were treated as those in the eCG group, but a sponge containing 60 mg MPA was placed intravaginally from Days 2 to 6. Llamas that did not respond to synchronization or su...

Sera of an experimentally Neospora caninum infected llama and a non-infected control llama were used to establish an immunoblot, an ELISA and an IFAT to detect antibodies against N. caninum tachyzoites. Subsequently, serum samples collected from a total of 871 South American Camelids (SAC: Lama glama, Lama pacos, Lama vicugna) of two farms in Peru and from 32 SAC of a farm in central Germany were examined for antibodies against N. caninum and Toxoplasma gondii. Based on the recognition of specific bands in the immunoblot, sera of SAC from Peru were differentiated into N. caninum-positive (n = 18) and T. gondii-positive (n = 30) samples and into samples negative or inconclusive for both parasites. Using the immunoblot results as the reference, a modified version of the p38-ELISA and the IFAT were evaluated for detecting N. caninum antibodies in SAC sera. Applying a cut-off as determined b...