Ensayo de tres programas de vacunación anticlostridial en alpacas

Enterotoxemia is the most important infectious disease in alpaca neonates. Its control depends on preventive handling measures and the application of immunoprofilaxis. The present study applied three programs of anticlostridial vaccination during three parturition seasons (years 2001, 2002, and 2003) in a cooperative farm in Puno. An anaculture with strains of Clostridium perfringens, predominantly of ovine origin, and a strain type A isolated from alpaca was used. The effect of the vaccine was evaluated by comparing rates of total and associated enterotoxemia mortality that occurred before the introduction of the vaccine (year 2000) in the farm. In the first program (year 2001), two doses of vaccine was administered to all pregnant mothers (n=2,952) and one dose to all neonates. In the second program (year 2002), only newborns were vaccinated (n=2,647) using one dose; and in the third program (year 2003) only pregnant mothers were vaccinated (n=2,760) using one dose. The application of the vaccine reduced total neonatal mortality from 33.4 (year 2000) to 25.2 (year 2001), 23.7 (year 2002) and 9.4% (year 2003). The vaccine equally reduced the mortality associated with enterotoxemia from 19.5 (year 2000) to 7.2, 9.1 and 1.0% in the same number of years. In conclusion, the anaculture (vaccine) was effective for the control of enterotoxemia in alpacas, independently of the type of application program; nevertheless, the reduction in mortality was greater in the program involving the vaccination of pregnant mothers.