More and more alpacas in the Netherlands, but who takes care of them?
UTRECHT – Alpacas are indispensable in the Netherlands. You can see them at the petting zoo, in meadows along the railway or even in large backyards. Not crazy either. The mountain llamas from the South American highlands are woolly, gentle and can take a beating. But the latter of course does not mean that they never have health problems.
And therein lies the problem. Because the Netherlands actually only has two specialized alpaca vets, says Mara Houmes-Vlaander of the Alpaca Rescue Netherlands Foundation. That is why she and five of her alpaca drove from Zeeland to the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine in Utrecht to enthuse a future generation of veterinarians for the four-legged friend. “An alpaca is not a cow, horse or dog. So it is important that more knowledge about it and that it is disseminated.”
The stand for a day in a meadow in front of the entrance of the animals and look around curiously. They attract a lot of attention. For example, at the gate are several second-year Veterinary Medicine students who ask questions to Mara. And says they want to shoot themselves.
Not a sheep of cow
The alpacas were brought to Utrecht at the initiative of the study association. In this way they want to offer an addition to the curriculum, which mainly involves more standard animals, says Guus Hulshof of the association. “You learn a lot about dogs, cats, horses and cows, but not so much about alpacas. But a lot of vets are wanted in, for example, the bird and special animal sector. I think it would be useful to create more habitats for that. “
In any case, his fellow students’ enthusiasm is fueled. Future vet Carola admits that she knows very little about the animals and that is why she came to the university especially today. “You don’t see them very often. But you do run into them later in your work.” She plans to specialize in farm animals. “So it is possible that you end up at a petting zoo where they also have alpacas. Then you have to know what to do of course.”
Mara already sees that more vets are studying the alpaca. “Every little bit helps. Everyone who owns alpaca has a responsibility to pass on the enthusiasm for the animals.”
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