This ongoing serologic survey of up to 1,500 alpacas, including healthy and unhealthy alpacas, will also attempt to identify the pestivirus in cases of abortion, diarrhea, pneumonia, and necrotizing stomatitis on high-prevalence farms. The study will include well-managed as well as communal mixed herds. The first year of this project was funded cooperatively by AOBA and the llama community. We see this work and the area of molecular biology as very important to the alpaca community, and we anticipate that the results will be a vital management tool for alpaca breeders. Brad Smith, at Oregon State University, is working with the Kentucky group on the genetic portion of choanal atresia.
Hepatic lipidosis is currently an important issue as it is being increasingly identified.
It may in many cases be a management problem but other potential entities may cause hepatic lipidosis. To this point 25 of 250 intended samples have been collected and no predominant organism identified. Proposals in Final Review for Potential Funding At this time, nine new alpaca and llama project proposals are undergoing their final review by the Scientific Advisory Board of the Morris Animal Foundation. Included in those nine are two Johne's Disease proposals. This entity, as many of you know, has been an area of concern in Australian alpacas.