The chart above illustrates alpaca cria growth rates under Australian conditions. The solid line represents what is reasonably and ideally achievable by alpacas grazing pasture with appropriate supplementation, whilst the dotted line represents a minimum goal.
Some rules of thumb to ensure your crias are receiving adequate nutrition:
- Crias should double their birth weight by 30-60 days of age.
- Crias should be weaned at approxmately 4 months of age weighing > 25 kg.
- Crias should weigh 45 kg by 12 months of age.
If your crias are not achieving these goals, reasons may include:
- Inadequate dam & cria nutrition view PDF (214kb).
- Inadequate vitamin D supplementation.
- Treat at least every animal born in 2014, 2015 and 2016, or if in doubt, treat the entire herd.
- Treat now, and again in July and September.
- Each animal should receive 2000 iu vitamin D per kg bodyweight, injected under the skin.
- Read the bottle label carefully and weigh your animals to ensure accurate dosage.
