Dreamcatcher Alpacas
Alpaca health · Weather & environment

Snakebite in Alpacas

Updated 2026-10-02By the Dreamcatcher Alpacas editorial team6 peer-reviewed references
!

Emergency — call your vet now

This condition can kill within hours. Get veterinary help immediately.

Rattlesnake and other venomous snake bites usually strike the face, causing swelling that can block breathing.

Category
Weather & environment
Urgency
Emergency

Signs & symptoms

  • Rapid swelling of the nose or face
  • Puncture wounds, bleeding
  • Difficulty breathing through the nose
  • Weakness

Related symptom guides: Swollen Leg or Joint, Swollen Face or Nose.

What causes it?

Curious alpacas sniffing snakes in tall grass and around rock piles.

Risk factors

  • Southern and western U.S., Australia
  • Rocky or brushy pastures

How vets diagnose it

History and examination.

Treatment

Call your vet immediately. Keep the alpaca calm. Your vet may place tubes in the nostrils to keep the airway open and give antivenom or supportive care.

Do not wait to see if it improves. Camelids hide illness, and by the time signs are obvious the problem is often advanced. Call your veterinarian.

Prevention

  • Clear rock and brush piles near barns
  • Keep grass short around shelters

Background

A snakebite is an injury caused by the bite of a snake. Most snake species are non-venomous, but bites from venomous snakes may result in envenomation, in which venom is injected into the victim. A common sign of a bite from a venomous snake is the presence of two puncture wounds from the animal's fangs. Envenomation may cause redness, swelling, and severe pain around the bite, which may take up to an hour to develop. Vomiting, blurred vision, tingling of the limbs, and sweating may result. Most bites are on the hands, arms, or legs. Fear following a bite is common with symptoms of a racing heart and feeling faint. The venom may cause bleeding, kidney failure, a severe allergic reaction, tissue death around the bite, or breathing problems. Bites may result in the loss of a limb or other chronic problems or even death.From Wikipedia — “Snakebite”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Research & references

PubMed lists 28 peer-reviewed papers on this topic in camelids. The most relevant include:

  1. Nanobody-based recombinant antivenom for cobra, mamba and rinkhals bites. Ahmadi S, Burlet NJ, Benard-Valle M et al. Nature, 2025. PubMed 41162699 · DOI · Free full textOpen access · cited 27×
  2. Nanobodies as novel therapeutic agents in envenomation. Alirahimi E, Kazemi-Lomedasht F, Shahbazzadeh D et al. Biochimica et biophysica acta. General subjects, 2018. PubMed 30309831 · DOI · cited 30×
  3. Current research into snake antivenoms, their mechanisms of action and applications. Silva A, Isbister GK Biochemical Society transactions, 2020. PubMed 32196542 · DOI · cited 58×
  4. Pros and cons of different therapeutic antibody formats for recombinant antivenom development. Laustsen AH, María Gutiérrez J, Knudsen C et al. Toxicon : official journal of the International Society on Toxinology, 2018. PubMed 29534892 · DOI · cited 136×
  5. Engineering of single-domain antibodies for next-generation snakebite antivenoms. Fernandes CFC, Pereira SS, Luiz MB et al. International journal of biological macromolecules, 2021. PubMed 34118288 · DOI · cited 13×
  6. Anti-Metalloprotease P-I Single-Domain Antibodies: Tools for Next-Generation Snakebite Antivenoms. Silva MCS, Pereira SS, Gouveia MP et al. BioMed research international, 2022. PubMed 35909472 · DOI · Free full textOpen access · cited 9×

Frequently asked questions

What is snakebite in alpacas?
Rattlesnake and other venomous snake bites usually strike the face, causing swelling that can block breathing.
What are the signs of snakebite?
Rapid swelling of the nose or face, puncture wounds, bleeding, difficulty breathing through the nose and weakness.
How do you prevent snakebite?
Clear rock and brush piles near barns. Keep grass short around shelters.
Is snakebite an emergency?
Emergency — call your vet now. This condition can kill within hours. Get veterinary help immediately.

This page is educational and does not replace advice from a veterinarian who has examined your animals. Camelid medicine uses many drugs “extra-label”, so dosing must come from your vet. In an emergency, call your vet first. Read our disclaimer · How we write and review content.