Nine-month-old Mariah draws near the gate as Ahmed Tibary opens it. Once inside the pen at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Tibary rubs the llama’s head and neck, getting a furry nuzzle in return. Great clumps of wool belie it, but Mariah is underweight; that’s why she’s at WSU. She won’t eat properly. Tibary scoops up a handful of hay pellets, but Mariah turns away from it.

Two others working with Tibary to understand Mariah’s problem, primary clinician Steven Parish and George Barrington, have discovered a slight abnormality in the llama’s soft palate, but that alone shouldn’t interfere with Mariah’s eating. Another possibility: Until last week, she was with her mother, which might account for Mariah’s continued preference for milk. The majority of baby llamas—called crias—are weaned by 4-6 months old, and even at a few weeks of age, they will nibble grass. But in a herd structure, young llamas can nurse with their mothers for up to a year.

It’s the mystery of Mariah, and all camelids for that matter, that fuels Tibary’s work and life.

"Every case is something new. Every case, even routine cases, can have some impact on how you do things, how you look at things," Tibary says. "It’s really a process of keeping the perspective that every (camelid) that walks in will teach you something."

Tibary is one of the world’s few and highly regarded camelid reproduction specialists, based at WSU’s College of Veterinary Medicine since August 1998. The large animal theriogenologist works on animal gynecology, obstetrics and artificial breeding of horses, cattle and camelids. Tibary, also an assistant professor in Veterinary Clinical Sciences, cowrote with Moroccan veterinarian Abdelhak Anouassi a camelid reproduction book, Theriogenology in Camelidae: Anatomy, Physiology, Pathology and Artificial Breeding, among other published works.

Tibary has worked extensively on both Old-World camelids (single-humped and double-humped camels) and New-World camelids (alpacas and llamas). His objective at WSU is to continue his work in comparative theriogenology, with the hope of developing a strong research, teaching and service program, in particular for camelids.

Such expertise is much needed in the region. Washington, Oregon and Idaho have the largest concentrations of camelids in North America. The International Lama Registry estimates about 100,000 llamas and 14,000 alpacas in the United States and Canada.

North American interest in camelids started in the early 1980s. Today, according to the International Llama Association, camelids are bred and raised for packing, wool production, cart pulling, animal-facilitated therapy, companionship, exhibition in shows, parades and fairs, and guarding other livestock, such as sheep. They are becoming increasingly popular as a project animal for 4-H, Scouts, FFA and other youth activities. For the outdoor enthusiast and athlete, numerous activities and competitive events team up the llama and owner.

Tibary works with camelid owners on breeding and infertility management, Parish and Barrington on internal medicine. They handle questions and offer seminars regarding the day-to-day management of herd health, such as vaccinations and parasite control, as well as intervene when a camelid is sick, not breeding or aborting. Fortunately, alpaca and llama breeders "are religious about learning more," Tibary says.

The WSU team also serves as a referral center for veterinarians treating camelids. Tibary says veterinarians who graduated even 6-8 years ago had very little in their curricula about the animals’ care. For this reason, the WSU vet college will offer a special course in 2001 on camelid medicine and surgery.

"We saw the need to develop such a program," he adds. "We have the expertise here to provide a very good service in this area, be it management, medicine or surgery."

Camelid reproduction is particularly tricky because their physiology is completely different from other species, Tibary says. Camelids are induced ovulators, which means females don’t ovulate unless they are bred. So a llama or alpaca breeder can’t rely on signs of "heat" to predict whether females can be successfully impregnated.

Some females may behave submissively toward males, but this doesn’t necessarily signal acceptance to breed, Tibary says. Other aggressive females may reject a young male who isn’t aggressive even when she is ready to breed. And a small percentage of camelid females accept a male when they’re already pregnant. These behavioral quirks make it especially hard for the beginner camelid breeder to create a consistent breeding program.

"In nature, these problems are dealt with from the herd’s social organization. Males and females learn about specific breeding characteristics over time," he adds. "But people here are concerned about genetics and want to breed a female to a valuable male 500 miles away. If you don’t allow the animals the time to get acquainted, they won’t reproduce successfully."

The WSU team helps camelid breeders determine the best reproduction times through such tools as ultrasound. Tibary also works to get owners "very comfortable with the whole reproductive process"—knowing how to determine pregnancy, to care for females and fetuses during pregnancy, what vaccinations should be given before and after birth, making sure the crias have enough colostrum, or first milk, from the mothers. The attention to every reproductive detail from fertilization to birth and beyond is appreciated.

"Clients who come here are very, very happy with the service," he says.

That’s the first reward for Tibary. The second is learning something new about alpacas and llamas. That’s where Mariah comes in. She’s a mystery now, but in time, she’ll show Tibary something new.

"(If I) serve, gain new knowledge and teach that to others, then I’m happy with my day," he says.