South American camelids in the United Kingdom: reproductive failure, pregnancy diagnosis and neonatal care.

The results of a postal questionnaire survey conducted between December 1992 and March 1993 indicated that a third of mated female South American camelids in the United Kingdom failed to produce offspring. This failure did not include abortions or stillbirths, which accounted for up to 4 per cent and up to 3 per cent of further reproductive losses respectively. The most common method of pregnancy diagnosis was observation (40 to 70 per cent). Plasma progesterone estimations and ultrasonography were used by a small proportion of respondents. A combination of methods was seldom used. Between 25 and 46 per cent of camelid owners housed their animals at parturition and 50 to 82 per cent routinely dipped the navel of the newborn calf. Neonatal mortality was an important cause of loss.