Problems With Conformity
An underweight alpaca might have a parasite or a nutrition problem. He/she may have failure to thrive syndrome possibly from not getting enough colostrom at birth. An alpaca could be undersized because of a possible lack of Vitamin D. This deficiency leads to a loss of frame size which results in less fleece. Alpacas can also be overweight. This is usually a chronic problem. It can lead to fertility and milking problems if not addressed. A narrow chest is often accompanied by narrow front legs that almost touch. Knock-kneed or bowlegged refers to knees that turn in or out. This condition is either inherited or is related to poor nutrition. Conformity problems may be related to high or low withers. This can cause your alpaca to look out of balance. His/her gait may be affected. The body of the alpaca might look too long or too short. The body may sway or hump up along the back. Humping could be a cowering behavior or possibly related to colic. Narrow hind quarters or a narrow back is refered to as "cow-hocked". This conformity problem can lead to legs that are too close and touching. A high tail set is not desireable. The tail can be absent, abnormally short, bent or twisted. A crooked tail may lead to spine deformity in cria. A short or choppy stride can indicate a hump back or hock condition. Paddling or swinging the legs outward when walking can mean problems with the spine or legs. Rope walking is when the back feet go inside the track of the front feet. Feet may even cross one another. Weak or cocked legs can create problems with grazing or foraging. Saddle hock is an extreme angulation of the rear legs from a side view. Post legged is straight rear legs also from a side view. Splayed toes are widely spaced toes. This could be related to untrimmed toenails versus a hereditary problem. Pigeon toed is a possible nutrition problem. The neck can be too long or too short. It can also be crooked which is indicative of a spine problem. A muffled face is the presence of fleece on top of the nose and below the eyes. This condition may impair vision. Blue eyes are often related to a loss of hearing or blindness. The alpacas' eyes may also have cataracts characterized by a "fuzzy" look. We have a female with a one hazy or white eye. This was a result of an infection and not a deformity. Ears may be too short or stubby. This is referred to as "gopher ears". Ears can also be fused. A long banana shaped ear is considered llama like and undesireable in an alpaca. The nose could be crooked. A very large head with a thick long nose is also considered llama like. Your male alpaca may have only 1 teste or none. Undescended testicles are possbile. A female with a small, fused or tipped vulva may have difficulty in breeding. A female alpaca may have more than 4 teats. They are usually not functional. The sire could be the source of this problem. Testes of uneven size could cause problems with ovaries in cria. Too small testes might cause small nonfunctional ovaries. One teste can indicate one ovary in a cria. Soft testes may lead to infertile ovaries. Fleece might not grow to a full 3 to 6 inches in a year. Coveage may be poor especially in the legs and face. These conformity problems are what herd owners attempt to breed out of their herd. If the condition is not related to heredity a change in nutrition and/or general care may take care of the problem.
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Conformity problems or faults are an absence or alteration of positive traits. Some problems are not linked to heredity and thus cannot be improved through your breeding program.