Here's something else about llamas - liver flukes. It's the main cause of parasitic problems in llamas. It's carried by snails and irrigation. The snails are the host to the fluke larvae. They crawl up on the grass blades and are eaten by the llamas. They can be a serious health problem.
Control is easy - IF you can find the right dewormer. I've used Ivomec Plus for years. The 'Plus' is the essential part for flukes. An SQ dose of 1ml per 100lb body weight twice a year does the job. In the last year, Ivomec Plus has become very hard to find in small quantities. Most llama owners don't need a 100ml bottle and the smaller ones have become very scarce.
I recently found out that Valbazen will do the job, too. It's a drench, though, that has to be given orally. I'm going to give my 1st dose of it in the near future. Again, the dose is 1ml per 100lb. The easiest way is to tie the llama with it's head high and just squirt it in with a large syringe with no needle. It remains to be seen how they like it.
Dose them after the 1st hard frost. That kills the snails and they can't be reinfected until irrigation starts in the spring. Depending on your climate, Nov and May might be the best months. Dec and June works, too. Both the Ivomec and Valbazen will also take out various other worms but the liver flukes are the main problem. You don't want to over due the worming, though. A low level of worms will actually help the llamas develop a bit of immunity to them. Twice a years is plenty.
