Wombaroo Alpaca Milk Replacer

Typical Analysis

Protein    
35%

Fat    
20%

Ash    
5%

Moisture    
4%

Energy (ME)    
19 MJ/kg

Ingredients

Whole milk solids, whey protein, casein, lactose, vegetable oils, omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B9, B12, C, D3, E, K, biotin, choline, inositol, calcium, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, magnesium, zinc, iron, manganese, copper, iodine, selenium.

Feeding Guidelines

Use Alpaca Milk Replacer for hand-rearing orphaned cria or as a supplement when mother's milk is limited. Newborns that did not receive colostrum from the mother may benefit from feeding about 120g of Impact Colostrum Supplement, preferably in the first 24 hours after birth.

Making up Milk

To make 1 litre of milk: Mix 170g of powder to 850ml of warm water.

Add half the water first and mix to a paste. Then make add the remaining water and mix thoroughly. Pre-boil the water to ensure it is sterilised. If the water is too hot it can cause the milk to curdle. If it is too cold then it will be difficult to disperse the powder. An electric whisk can be used for mixing. Milk can be stored in the fridge for up to a day or can be frozen for up to 2 weeks. Once thawed out, discard any unused milk, and wash feeding utensils thoroughly.

Feeding Guide

Warm milk to about 35°C. Feed from a bottle and teat, with the bottle held vertically to simulate suckling from the mother's udder. This extended neck position allows fluid passage directly to the third stomach compartment where milk digestion occurs. Feeding milk via an elevated teat is preferred over bucket-feeding as this avoids milk from entering the first stomach compartment and causing digestive upset due to fermentation. Feed every 2 hours for the first 4 days, reducing this to every 4 hours by the end of the first week and every 6 hours by week three.  To avoid dehydration during periods of hot weather give drinks of pre-boiled water between feeds. Always have clean drinking water available. Consult a veterinarian or experienced breeder for particular advice about cria husbandry.

Growth

Depending on its sex, alpaca cria should weigh from 6 to 9kg at birth and gain about 200g per day during the hand-rearing period (figures are higher for llama cria). They typically double their body weight by 4 to 6 weeks of age. Where possible, weigh cria regularly to verify weight gains and determine the volume of milk to feed. Overfeeding milk can cause diarrhoea so feed the suggested volumes in the feeding guidelines.

Weaning

Mother-reared cria are usually weaned at 6 to 9 months of age. However it is usually impractical to hand rear a cria for this amount of time so many owners will begin weaning as soon as possible. We would advise feeding milk for at least 3 months (or approximately 25kg body weight), requiring about 75 litres of milk replacer in total. Cria can be offered high quality, digestible feed and hay from 7-10 days of age. This starts the development of microbial digestion of plant material in the first stomach compartment, and promotes weaning on to solid feed. Once they start to eat sufficient quantity of solid food, reduce the milk and increase the solids until they are fully weaned.