Welfare
Figure 4: ‘Baby’ teeth are replaced at various stages by permanent teeth. In this alpaca, the ‘baby’ incisors (white teeth at the front) failed to shed when the permanent teeth (greyish teeth at the back) erupted. It is not always necessary to remove these retained ‘baby’ teeth, especially if the bite is satisfactory and the gums stay healthy.
/ CLA), a saliva cyst, a reaction to a foreign body (eg, a black thorn),
retaining a cud in the cheek, and insect or
snake bites. Taking x-rays is invaluable to establish the cause of the
swelling, backed up by ultrasound. In some cases, a MRI or CT scan is necessary to obtain a clear picture.
What causes dental disease? Some changes are inevitable with age, for example, uneven wear of the cheek teeth. Sharp points and edges can develop, leading to irritation of the mouth lining. Uneven wear may also affect the jaw joint, leading to discomfort. The gaps between neighbouring teeth widen with age. Food becomes impacted, leading to inflammation of the gums. In severe cases, the gum line recedes and teeth become loose. Occasionally, the eruption of the permanent teeth is
abnormal with, for example, other teeth blocking the way, the ‘baby’ tooth not shedding on time, or teeth erupting at a wrong angle. Just as in people, animals can suffer from caries with erosion of the tooth enamel. A diet high in concentrates is often a factor in the development of caries. When it comes to tooth or tooth root infections,
the main cause is as yet not determined in alpacas. Possibilities include spread of infection through the blood stream, feed becoming impacted around teeth at the time of change from ‘baby’ to permanent tooth, and teeth fracturing. There may be physical or toxic insults to the dentin-forming cells, eg, because of a generalised illness, damage to the pulp, or possibly dietary factors. If the cap formed by the ‘baby’ teeth is shed prematurely, before the erupting permanent tooth is fully mature and hardened, feed may become trapped and the pulp may be exposed. Some dietary factors have been linked to dental
disease in other species, but again we do not know to what degree they play a role in alpacas. For example,
Figure 7: Swelling of the jaw and drooling of saliva may also indicate dental disease.
Alpaca Summer 2012 41
Figure 5: Alpaca often do not show any specific signs of dental disease, especially in the early stages, and it is important to regularly check their teeth. A tooth problem should be considered in animals with weightloss, and those taking longer to feed or dropping their food or cud.
Figure 6: Tooth discolouration can be a sign of dental disease. This llama has partially lost the enamel cover of one the incisors, leading to brown staining of the tooth (photo courtesy of Jane Brown).
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