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Actinobacillosis in an alpaca (Lama pacos)
1MAF Technology, Flock House Agricultural Research Centre, Private Bag, Bulls, New Zealand.
New Zealand Veterinary Journal
|March 1, 1992
Summary
A six-week-old alpaca died from acute polyarthritis. Post-mortem examination revealed multiple organ lesions, with Actinobacillus suis identified as the likely cause in this alpaca and other flock members.
Area of Science:
- Veterinary Pathology
- Alpaca Medicine
- Infectious Diseases
Background:
- Alpacas can suffer from polyarthritis, a debilitating joint condition.
- Acute polyarthritis in young alpacas can be fatal.
- Identifying causative agents is crucial for herd health management.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe the clinicopathological findings in a fatal case of acute polyarthritis in a young alpaca.
- To identify the etiological agent responsible for the disease.
- To assess the prevalence of the identified agent in the affected flock.
Main Methods:
- Necropsy and histopathological examination of the deceased alpaca.
- Bacteriological culture of tissue samples, including heart lesions.
- Pharyngeal swabbing of clinically normal alpacas within the same flock.
Main Results:
- Post-mortem findings included fibrinous mural endocarditis, lung abscessation, liver congestion, and suppurative nephritis.
- Chronic nonsuppurative polyarthritis was also diagnosed.
- Actinobacillus suis was isolated from the heart lesion and from four of six clinically normal alpacas.
Conclusions:
- Actinobacillus suis is a potential cause of fatal polyarthritis and systemic disease in young alpacas.
- The bacterium may be present subclinically in clinically normal alpacas within an affected flock.
- This highlights the importance of diagnostic investigations and herd surveillance for Actinobacillus suis in alpacas.