» Behavioral Considerations
Camelids create communal dung piles and often visit them upon waking in the morning. This creates an opportunity to collect fresh fecal samples or urine samples. Males and females both have the same basic stance for urination and for defecation—a semisquatting position—with urine directed caudally.
The ears and the tail can be useful indicators of the mood of a camelid. Relaxed animals usually have ears pointed forward or relaxed to the back or out to the side of the head, and the tail is hanging straight. Alert animals may have erect ears and a slight elevation of the tail. Mildly annoyed camelids will have more elevation of the tail, but it will still be below horizontal; the head is elevated and the ears will be held back and horizontal or below horizontal. Intense aggression is signaled by pointing the nose in the air, pinning the ears back against the neck, and elevating the tail above horizontal. This position is illustrated in Fig. 38.43. Camelids can spit stomach contents when they are intensely displeased. People handling them should be aware of behavioral signals indicating the animal may spit, although this is uncommon in interactions with people if the animals are used to being handled and are appropriately socialized.
Comprehension Check
The anatomy of the cervical region in camelids is unique when compared to other species. What features of the camelid cervical region make jugular venipuncture challenging?
What is the clinical significance of the fiberless region on the ventral abdomen of all camelids?
Compare and contrast the camelid stomachs to a ruminant stomach. Which stomach chamber is most closely related to the ruminant true stomach? Compared to rumen contractions in a ruminant, how many C1 contractions should be auscultated per minute in a camelid? Why are there more C1 contractions in a minute compared to rumen contractions in a minute?
What is the clinical significance of the unique camelid dentition?
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1 Fowler ME: Medicine and surgery of camelids, 3rd ed, Ames, IA, 2010, Wiley-Blackwell; Cebra C, Anderson DE, Tibary A, et al: Llama and alpaca care: medicine, surgery, reproduction, nutrition, and herd health, St. Louis, 2014, Elsevier; and Anderson DE, Jones, ML, Miesner MD: Veterinary techniques for llamas and alpacas, Ames, IA, 2013, Wiley-Blackwell.