Are llamas and alpacas at risk? Unfortunately, the answer is both yes and no. Yes, llamas and alpacas have been infected with FMD. No they do not appear to be very susceptible to it. FMD infection in alpacas in Peru was confirmed in the 1970's. FMD risk in llamas and alpacas was researched in the USA and Argentina. Routes of infection included tongue scarification, intramuscular injection, intradermal injection, intravenous injection, and cohabitation. Llamas and alpacas appear to be fairly resistant of infection by natural exposure (cohabitation) but can and do succumb to infection when any of the other exposure methods were used. Infected llamas developed mild clinical signs including fever, anorexia, lesions to the footpads, and lameness. Virus did not persist in any camelids beyond 14 days after infection. Certainly, the risk of llamas or alpacas becoming infected seems extremely low.
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