Yes, it is a sign of good management to shear camels and to prevent mange and other skin diseases. Yes, it is hard work, but the camel pastoralists in different parts of the world, especially Great Thar Desert do it communally. Some cameleers shear their camel from a killer camel barber to make it attractive for ceremonies.
Is it easy and feasible?
The large herds and the semi-intensive camel farms (dairy) are a bit difficult at the moment. But I suggest to shear, especially the hump area. The calves must be sheared as they are very prone to ticks and hide in the hump and neck area hiding in the hair. If your camels are well trained and they know the commands of their human colleague, then it is good to sit the camel and shear the dense wool keeping them less susceptible to the tick’s infestation.
There are huge differences in wool quality depending on species, age, and body parts. Dromedary wool is difficult to use in clothing as it is short and scratchy. I think using part of it for mulching is a great idea.
Collection of camel hair is a painstaking task, from gathering the herd, and restraining the camels to shearing and collection and everything in between. This difficult process comes at a cost, and hence will only make economic sense if it’s used in an application that can absorb this high cost.
Does the camel wool shed naturally?
Yes, camel sheds its wool naturally. Camels shed their hair naturally Every year, without fail, between spring and summer. Usually, the camels manage their wool naturally but in semi-intensive care keeping camels in congested environments leads to problems, especially ticks and blood parasites, so shearing helps.
Beautification of camel fur
In Pakistan, especially Sindh and Punjab (The Great Thar desert and adjoining parts), the designs are made on camels. Some days are very important like Eid-ul-Azha) for such activities. The camel barber charges about 15 USD for one camel.
The camel wool is an important product. Among the Old-world camels, the dromedary has mostly coarse wool (tent & rope and Bisht wool), except the camels in very cold areas (having more fine wool, especially the calves). Tent & rope and Bisht wool meaning, the wool is mainly used for making tents, ropes, and Bisht (mostly by nomadic people).
Here are the major ideas I discussed in my discussion at the online seminar held by the Cholistan University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences in Bahawalpur, Pakistan, concerning camel milk. Although the topic of the conference was camel udder health, I chose to concentrate my discussion on the state and future of camel milk in Pakistan.
Poster of the camel conference in Bahawalpur, Pakistan
The main points of my talk
Pakistan is home to the world’s best dairy camels, such as Brela, Kharani, Lassi, Sindhi, and more
Pakistan has enough camels—above one million
The cameleers’ communities are still interested in the camel profession
Pakistani camels enjoy the highest level of welfare and well-being; they are kept by cameleers as their family members
Pakistani camels still have the facility of grazing; they produce very healthy milk enriched with a diversity of phytochemicals
Awareness about camel milk’s therapeutic power is increasing and many people are shifting to camel milk for health reasons
Some pastoralists move with their lactating camels and sell fresh milk to consumers directly near urban hubs
The camel milk business is mainly run and regulated by woman pastoralists
In some parts of the country, families are adding lactating camels to their family livestock; now you can see she-camels in the barn with cows and buffaloes
Some semi-intensive camel farming (small-scale) is being initiated to produce milk for urban hubs like Karachi and Lahore
Some small organizations are collecting milk from the pastoralists and selling it to consumers
The author, Dr. Abdul Raziq Kakar, is speaking at the conference
Investment opportunities and sustainable development
Camel milk channelization: milk collected from the cameleers and safely delivered to the consumer. A clear and safe value chain will bring great success to such projects.
Export of high-yielding camels instead of live camels: instead of selling live lactating/dairy animals, it will be the best choice for many reasons to sell the live embryos of the elite camels for dairy purposes. It will generate jobs at the country level and bring foreign exchange in return for genetic resources (camel embryos). However, such work must be performed under a policy/regulation to protect the proprietary rights of the camel herders as the custodians of the genes. Many farmers in different parts of the world are interested in camel dairy genetics from Pakistan.
Camel as a family dairy animal: We should support and develop the camel as a family dairy animal. It takes little effort and awareness-raising training to convince the livestock keepers to adopt the camel as a family dairy animal. The author has already worked on this idea, and there has already been some success, especially in Balochistan.
No to food export policyand corporate farming: All food items, including camels (live or meat) and camel milk, should not be allowed to be promoted and used as a source of foreign currency earnings. Corporate farming and food exports are not suitable for countries like Pakistan, where ordinary people are facing a food shortage.
Constraints and Challenges
The constraints can be divided into 3 main categories
A. Shrinking grazing areas; sadly, this is a very painful fact about the present situation in the country. The demand for land is very high and there are no regulations to protect the grazing rights of the pastoralists. All government projects, conservation parks, corporate farming, land allotments, etc. are materialized on historical grazing lands. There is no policy or organization to protect their rights.
B. No policy-level support; There is very little or zero support to the pastoralists, small and medium farmers, especially the camel keepers. The issue is not only the grazing land shrinkage but also the lack of support in marketing the camel products.
C. The camel export: Camel is exported illegally; it is not recorded and not regularized, and the middleman is earning the major profit, not the farmers. Nobody knows what is going on. This area needs policy support to help in the controlled export of camels, but the profit should go to the cameleers so that the camel profession further flourishes and develops.
D. Milk Marketing and Channelization: As mentioned above, there is no support for the cameleers at any level in the country. The pastoralists strive at their capacity and level to sell the camel milk. Support in milk channelization will be a great breakthrough in the camel marketing area. I then witnessed 3 very successful camel milk channelization stories in Mongolia, Ethiopia, and Oman, I was the consultant for the projects.
Conclusion
Due to its exceptional ability to withstand weather-related disasters, camels are the greatest option for food security in the event of climate change. Camels are being used by pastoralists in various areas, particularly in Africa, to replace cattle. The camel is the most valuable livestock in Pakistan, which is in the red zone for climate change and needs to meet its food security goals. All that camel keepers need is policy assistance to bolster their industry and lay the groundwork for a sustainable means of subsistence.
Before being crowned one of Arabia’s’ most influential Arabs, Shihab used to wear a lab coat, leading cancer research at DAKO Industries. For 3 years, Shihab tried to develop monoclonal antibodies that can cure cancer, and failed, but it was also during her time as a researcher for the pharmaceutical giant that the Cambridge graduate first struck gold. “One day, a Bedouin man came by my office, and we were talking, and he told me that his daughter was cured because she only drank camel milk,” she recounts. “So I tell my professor, who is also the director of Cambridge University’s Institute of Biotechnology, about the encounter and how I’m curious to know more about the therapeutic properties of camel milk, so he encourages me to study it.”
My friend and fellow camel scientist and herder, Dr. Piers Simpkin, shared a video of his camels painted with fake eyes to protect them from lions. Some of his best camels were hunted by lions this year. According to Piers, it was not his idea, but he saw it on the cattle on a neighboring ranch and did some research on it in Southern Africa.
Looking Forward
I can’t wait for the results and outcomes. I’m in contact with Dr. Piers, as soon as I hear good news, I’ll let you know.
Hoor or Hur breed is good for milk (7–10 liter/day)
Ayden breed (multi-purpose breed)
Gheelab (riding, transportation, and work)
Agawayn is good for milk 4 to 7 kg/day (longer lactation)
Layro (multi-purpose breed with a milk average of 2-4 kg per day
More than 90% of camels are in the pastoral system and the rest the semi-intensive (mainly for milk in the peri-urban regions).
Drought and Disease Tolerance Score (DDTS)
I have worked with traditional livestock breeds in different parts of the world, especially the livestock cradle (Balochistan province of Pakistan). Have documented native livestock breeds based on their qualitative traits such as drought & disease tolerance (DDT), drought & disease tolerance compensatory ability score (DDCS), consumer demand, liveability/survivability, adaptability, mothering ability, etc. The most important and practical qualitative traits are given a score (1-5) as 1 is the lowest/weakest and 5 is the highest/strongest.
Mauritanian camels
There are two “breeds” (?), rather varieties as nobody has studied them: those in the East, where there is some vegetation, and they are tall and heavier than those in the West where the land is more arid and salty. Here they are short and light. People here say that those camels in the East eat too much and need a lot of water, while the Western camels are much more thrifty. Even so, the commercial milk sellers buy camels from the East and feed them and water them here, either together with their small camels if they are camel-owning families, or on their own if they are just business people.
In extensive conditions, nobody knows how much milk the camels yield, since practically all the milk is left for the calf, and growing calves to sell is more important than drinking milk, particularly when there is no alternative feed. In the intensive milking-for-selling conditions close to towns, the camels that get pasture plus feed and enough water yield an average of 3 liters per 24 hours In our experience; It is very hard to get information from herders because they are afraid of the evil eye. That said, some camels yield much more than that, and in Nouakchott, they are milked three times a day and gove more. When asked how much milk a camel can actually yield (an abstract, theoretical question) they all know camels that can give 10 to 12 liters a day.
Sudani camel breeds
As a country, Sudan has reported the largest camel breeds in Africa.
Located among the terrain of the American Southwest, there’s a resilient survivor known as Larrea tridentata, or more commonly, creosote. This remarkable plant has adapted to its harsh environment in fascinating ways. In this blog post, we’ll explore the incredible adaptations and curious facts that make creosote a true desert enigma.
I developed a delicious camel milk cheese with a taste and texture similar to Haloumi. I used a plant to ferment. I placed it in the fridge below 20 degrees Celsius, but for some reason, the fridge switched off, and when I opened it three days later, there were some molds on it. Do you have any ideas concerning the cheese and molds? Please provide your feedback.
A. Taxonomically, the camelids are divided into 2 genera
Lama and sp. as (L. pacos, L. glama)
Camelus and sp. as (C. dromedarius, C. bactrianus, C. ferus). The ferus is wild
B. We can divide camels into 2 main categories (based on their fiber qualityand purposes of production)
Old-World Camelids (Arabian camel and Bactrian camel): Mainly for work, riding, sport, milk, meat, skin, and fiber. The wool is coarse
New-world camelids (Llama and Alpaca): Meat, wool, work etc. The wool is fine
The Old-worlds Camels’ Wool
Among the Old-world camels, the dromedary has mostly coarse wool (tent & rope and Bisht wool), except the camels in very cold areas (having more fine wool, especially the calves). Tent & rope and Bisht wool meaning, the wool is mainly used for making tents, ropes, and Bisht (mostly by nomadic people).
In this article, my main focus is the Dromedary wool. The main use is making the tents and ropes by the Beduins communities as the camel wool is very strong and doen’t absorb moist, so remain ligheter in weith. Bisht is made from camel wool that is spun and woven into a breathable fabric.
The Bactrian Camel Wool
The Bactrian camel wool is also categorized as fine wool, especially their calves’ wool is tremendously fine. Mongolia is leading in the Bactrian camel wool business and many fabrics are crafted by camel wool. You can read about the important features of the Bactrian camel wool in the following link.
In the dromedary camel in its original habitat (Arabia, Saharan, and Sub-Saharan Africa, Horn of Africa, South Asia, Persia, and Central Asia) sheds its wool naturally at the start of the summer season as the wool grows faster in winter and making a densely woven blanket that is difficult to separate or sort out.
As camels have protective outer coats of coarse fiber (grow up to 15 inches). The fine, shorter fiber of the insulating undercoat (grow up to 1.5–5 inches), is the product generally called camel hair, or camel hair wool, making a dense fur to minimize moisture evaporation from camel body and protecting from the cold waves in winter.
Camel hair beautification and dressing
Different tribes of camel keepers have different cultures related with camels in many different and unique places of the world. Camels’ innate beauty is accentuated in the Indian subcontinent by cutting their hair. The camel’s hair is styled to resemble a stunning work of art on its body. Some camel societies have a tradition of clipping contests wherein skilled weavers create exquisite artwork using the wool of the live camel. In the Great Thar Desert (India and Pakistan), these kinds of civilizations are quite alive. Art of Camel Hair Shearing~The Camels’ Attraction
Unique Idea of Camel Wool Consumption – A Mulching Agent
These days, with so many synthetic products made in China, camel wool’s use as a fabric (tent, rope, and Bisht) is low. In the early summer, a lot of camel wool is strewn out close to the camel farms. In the desert, the organically knitted woolen coat is seen tangled in various shrubs. The country is seeing an increase in tunnel farming, and the necessary organic materials, such as peat, are being imported from other places. This has led to another positive development known as the Modern Food Production Revolution. One of the most crucial steps in reducing water loss and shielding just germinated plants from pests and harsh weather is mulching. The finest material for mulching can be camel wool because it minimizes evapuration, conserves water for the plants, and naturally breaks down over time to give the plants nutrients due to its organic nature. NPK and other vital nutrients for plants are abundant in camel wool. It can shield plants from pests and take the place of synthetic fertilizer.
In order to achieve the best results, camel wool is utilized as a mulching agent in Alain, United Arab Emirates, as seen in the following photos.
A: Yes, because of many reasons but a camel for dairy doesn’t mean the monocultural cow dairy model.
Q: What should be the salient features and goals of a dairy camel?
A: There are many characteristics that are considered the best tools to select a camel for dairy purposes.
A female camel with good reproductive performance like first calving (5 years of age), calving interval (2 years), zero or very low abortion rate
A camel owing the dairy characteristics (discussed in many articles)
Thriftiness (but not feed conversion efficiency like in the cow model), in camel farming we provide according to the needs but not as a reward for milk
Mothering ability (the connection with the calf and the presence of the calf) is very crucial for milk production in camels
Efficient milking ability (machine milking ability as well)
Social, friendly, and good in temperament (happy and friendly camels produce in stress-free conditions
Having an average production above 1500 kg per lactation (300 days)
A very typical example of a high-yielding dairy camel. Udder, teats, milk vein, and rib cage of a high-yielding camel. Such signs will help you in selecting a dairy camel. This camel is producing >20 kg per day. The udder conformation (in the following image) tells most of the dairy traits in camels.
Camel milk production is stable in almost all seasons, which is very important for pastoralists when the milk of other animals is seized in the dry period. Camel intake per kg of milk produced is very low, making it an efficient biological model. Understanding the potential of the camel as a milch animal.
As a desert ecologist and camelogist, the hump is the tool, nature gifted to the camels to sustain in challenging climatic conditions. The hump (s) developed when the natural course of climate change started in Asia and Arabia (35000 years before?).
Why Dromedary has single and Bactrian have double humps?
In some regions, there was one climatic challenge (hot dry weather like Arabia), the summer season but the other regions had 2 challenges (extreme cold and extreme hot like Mongolia). Nature gifted one hump for the single challenge (Arabia) and a double hump for the camels surviving in the 2 challenges (Mongolia). Mongolian Bactrian Camel -Breeding, Milk Production, and Lactation Curve
A smart idea
D, if you turn D one step anticlockwise, it will make one hump, making dromedary camel
B, if you turn B one step anticlockwise, it will make 2 humps, making Bactrian camel
Dromedary or single humped camel. Also known as Arabian camel. Double humped Bactrian camel in Mongolia
Q: Does the hump originate in the snowy desert of the sandy desert?
She says “The sediments associated with the fragments suggest this animal’s habitat consisted of forests and peat-bogs. Beaver, horse, bear, rabbit, and tiny deer fossils are also found within about six miles of the site. Though soft tissue-like humps are not ordinarily preserved in the fossil record, the modern camel hump is a fat-filled structure that would have greatly facilitated the survival of this large herbivorous animal through the Arctic winter darkness” https://answersingenesis.org/natural-selection/survival-of-the-fittest/humps-key-to-ancient-camel-arctic-survival/
In the following image, I’m going to tell you about the salient features of the dairy camel. A very typical example of a high-yielding dairy camel. Udder, teats, milk vein, and rib cage of a high-yielding camel. Such signs will help you in selecting a dairy camel. This camel is producing >25 kg per day. The udder conformation tells most of the dairy traits in camels.
Camel is a Sustainable Dairy Animal
Camel milk production is stable in almost all seasons, which is very important for pastoralists when the milk of other animals is seized in the dry period. Camel intake per kg of milk produced is very low, making it an efficient biological model. Understanding the potential of the camel as a milch animal.
A typical healthy and productive dairy camel. Phenotypic traits are very helpful in the selection of camels for milk production. #camel_breedpic.twitter.com/no7oJLqIn9
— Prof. Dr Abdul Raziq Kakar ډاکټر رازق کاکړ (@DrRaziqKakar) October 24, 2023
A beautiful dairy camel
I conducted a comprehensive scientific study (my Ph.D. research program) to chalk out the lactation curve of mobile camel herds in the above-mentioned mountainous region. The study revealed that camel is a potential dairy animal (average milk 10.22 liter/day) with a lactation yield of >3,000 liters. This production was harvested from the camels depending on the natural grazing with good access to water. This yield was gained from a unique eco-friendly, low inputs, free of drugs & antibiotics production system, providing safe milk. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/precious-camel-milk-resource-unappreciated-among-policy-kakar/
Camel was originally domesticated for milk to fulfill the nutritional requirements of the people living in the desert ecosystems. Among many cultures, the camel is a very important animal and highly valued asset, therefore only sick or unproductive camels are sold and slaughtered. The camel as a source of meat is rarely studied and investigated. Though I’m a camel lover and strongly advocate camel milk globally
The Camels are Happy Browsers
I have my own opinion about the salient features of a meat type of camel. Camel meat is as special as their milk because of many reasons. Camel meat is a potential alternative to red meat for human consumption worldwide. Camel meat is nutritionally as good as any conventional meat source, in fact has an edge over beef or lamb due to its low intramuscular fat, low cholesterol content, and high iron content.
Camel meat contains 76–78% moisture, 19% protein, 2.9–3% fat, and 1.2% ash with a dressing percentage of about 55–70% and is thus considered a good source of nutrients. Camel meat is much better than beef in that it has lesser fat than all the other red meats such as beef and mutton. The major fatty acids in camel meat are palmitic (26·0%), oleic (18·9%), and linoleic (12·1%), with smaller amounts of other fatty acids. Among them, Linoleic Acid is essential, and can’t be synthesized in the body. I hereby share some photographs of a camel that I consider to be fulfilling the purposes of a meat type of camel.
A healthy camel with a well developed humpCamel have much more meat in the shoulder and neck regionA meat type of camelWell defined body figures Thigh and hump region of the camel bodyThe main part of camel body
Speaking with a camel in Gobi desert, Mongolia. The author is a camelogist, camel lover, advocating camel for life.
Right now I’m going back home from the desert camel farm. I met by chance at a grazing and roaming camel herd. It is 3 p.m. on 22 June 2023 (World Camel Day), the longest and one of the hottest days of the year. It is 45 C. You can see the camels grazing on highly adapted shrubs/bushes enjoying the challenging weather (absorbing heat now which will dissipate in the night). I’m talking from my car and making a video, already released on the YouTube channel Camelogist.
From the field at the eve of World Camel Day 2023
In 2009, the author conceptualized the idea of a World Camel Day (WCD) to aware people of the importance of camels as food security agents in climate change scenarios. Here is the link to read about the history of World Camel Day.
Why do we choose the date of 22nd June as World Camel Day?
In the original habitat of camel (Arabian Peninsula), 21 June is the longest and hottest day of the year. Camel sustains its performance in such harsh and hostile environments.
Further important reading about the World Camel Day
The author is taking camel milk in Jigjiga Ethiopia
A case study from the Somali Region of Ethiopia
I always tried to spend my time with the camels’ related explorations and research work. This year (2023) I visited 2 important camel communities;
1. Dhofari camels in Salalah Oman
2. Somali camel community in the Somali Region of Ethiopia (Jigjiga)
Here is my take on the case study in Ethiopia
I visited 2 farms (semi-intensive camel dairies) and many mobile camel herds in the Somali Region of Ethiopia. The camels are very healthy, active, and kept at a very high level of well-being. The pastoralists and the emerging camel dairy herders are keeping camels in a very good state of situation. The camels have the freedom of roaming and grazing on natural pastures. They consume diverse types of flora, some flora are rich in nutrients for camels, some act as medicine keeping animals healthy, and some flora have higher transferability from healthy promising nutrients from the camel to the consumers through camel products, esp milk.
Camels are consuming thorny cactuses in the Somali Region of Ethiopia
1. Higher demand for camel milk
There is a high demand for camel milk in the Somali region of Ethiopia, the same is the phenomenon in most parts of East, Central, and West Africa. The camel herders attain very reasonable prices for camel milk. The price per kg is 3 USD in the Somali Region of Ethiopia (SRE). The camel milk is provided to those customers who have already registered for camel milk. The milk quality is very good, coming from naturally grazing camels. The surroundings of the camel farms are very clean naturally and rich with a lot of diverse vegetation and trees. No flies, ticks, or other problems in the near surroundings were noticed. I shot many videos and images and documented a lot of facts about camel dairying in SRE.
2. Camel milk taste is driven by what they eat (sweet milk)
As for the flavor, unlike in cows, it is 100% dependent on what camels are eating. We can tell the difference between milk from camels feeding on dunes or on sebkhas (salty flats) near the sea, just a mile apart. With salty browsing, the milk leaves a pleasant salty taste on one’s lips, but from euphorbias on the dunes, it is much sweeter. When camels eat particular trees like Acacia (locally called Askaf) herders say the milk is incredibly healthy, and they love the taste, but in fact, it is a bit bitter and (to me) slightly unpleasant but the shrub grows in a particular environment and may well be as healthy as they say. Camel lactose is different from cow’s, having a different molecular structure which doesn’t cause any lactose intolerance issue. I found thestrange fact that the camel milk was sweeter like honey.
Camel are consuming cacti and other highly adapted native flora
3. Bottling of raw milk
It is interesting that the milk is poured directly into bottles after milking, without even filtering (e.g. through a cloth). I thought a lot about asking the camel dairy entrepreneur to filter the milk after milking but decided that the cloth would not be washed or not washed well enough, so it would be more dangerous than just delivering the milk with all the dirt in inevitably in a rural desert setting it contains sand, hair, cells, insects, dust, etc. Another factor is that consumers in that sort of setting have nice strong immune systems, so there is less risk. Also, there is no H&S inspection to require any sanitary standards. I think it is optimistic to believe that there are no pathogens or insects involved, but the operation looks nicely thought out and done. Here is the link to a video about the bottling of camel milk in SRE.
A herd of lactating camels grazing on cactus plants in Jigjiga
I visited camel pastoralists in the Somali Region of Ethiopia (SRE), mainly Jigjiga and found very interesting and new facts about camels and pastoralism.
A very amazing piece of information about the camel population in the region is that there are 6.5 million camels in SRE. Please tell me your views in this regard. The total camel population in Ethiopia is more than 8 million. (as per oral information provided by Pastoral Bureau)
The other fact I found personally, is the taste of the milk of the Hoor or Hur camel breed in the the region. It was very strange for me as I have visited many different camel herding communities globally and tasted the milk of many camel types (Dromedary and Bactrian) but never found the taste like it was in the region. I drank camel milk in Jigjiga, and believe me the taste was like the taste of honey. The milk was acquired from the naturally grazing camels. There is a wide floral diversity and the camels consume it regularly while grazing/browsing in the rangelands.
When I shared this information in the Camel4Life International (camel advocacy forum) WhatsApp group, many cameleers from different parts of the world responded with their experience of the camel milk taste. https://www.thenationalnews.com/uae/health/al-ain-doctor-sees-potential-in-camels-beyond-their-milk-1.51957 I can easily imagine! Our milk also can be very sweet (Ilse Kohler Rollefson, a German camel lover residing in Rajasthan with the camel herds). Dr Piers (camel owner and PhD in camel production from Kenya) responded as;
“My milk in Kenya does too, almost like coconut milk sweet. I am sure that the sweet flavour is the natural flavour of all free-ranging camels that have the liberty to choose what and how much they want to eat. Depending on the natural plants and ecology it can be salty, or sometimes very bitter if they eat flowering Vernonia shrubs for example. It’s like natural honey from bees, the flavour depends on the plants. Someone should open a shop selling all the different flavours of natural camel milk over the different seasons globally.
For further good reading about the incredible camels and my camel advocacy work, CLICK THE LINKS
The structure of the whole camel lactoferrin. Lactoferricin and lactoferrampin peptides have been highlighted
Lactoferrin is a magical protein
Lactoferrin is the second major protein after casein found in camel milk. Lactoferrin increases the shelf life of the milk, therefore the camel milk with a higher content of lactoferrin (62–651 mg kg−1) has a longer shelf life without any external support. Some references are available below.
The camel herders use this quality of camel milk (Bio-preservative) to preserve camel milk (CaM) for a longer period of time. They just store camel milk in a skin bag (sheep/goat) let it get sour (fermentation) and then use it for a very long period of time.
Lactoferrin is a magical molecule found in camel milk
Lactoferrin can also be used for the biopreservation of foods such as milk, meat, fresh-cut fruits and vegetables, and their products to increase shelf life. While visiting the camel herder communities in different parts of the world, I found the unique fact that some communities use camel milk as a bio-preservative and add to other kinds of foods to increase their shelf life naturally.
Not only boost immunity but increases the shelf life of the milk
CaM lactoferrin has several biological functions, including iron metabolism, promoting immune function, and providing defense against pathogens through its bacteriostatic and/or bactericidal properties. Some scientists have named lactoferrin as the micro-bullet, killing the pathogens. For further reading about the natural healing power of CaM, please click the link.
The structure of the feature image is taken from the article with the citation below. TY – JOUR, Pirkhezranian, Zana, Tahmoorespur, Mojtaba, Monhemi, Hassan, Sekhavati, Mohammad Hadi. PY – 2020/12/01 SP – T1 – Computational Peptide Engineering Approach for Selection the Best Engendered Camel Lactoferrin-Derive Peptide with Potency to Interact with DNA VL – https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10989-019-10012-7 JO – International Journal of Peptide Research and Therapeutics ER –
The camels are marked or branded for 2 purposes; 1. Identification (family mark) 2. Treatment of ailment, especially tendons and ligaments
Identity sign
The mark or the mark is a specific sign that is placed on a specific place in the body of the camel so that the owner of this camel is known, and it is ironed with fire. Some tribes/families with their identity signs in the following lines. The marking on camel skin is almost equally common in all camel communities in the world.
The name of camels among the Arab Bedouins has deep connotations other than the fact that it differentiates between them. The camels are marked with a starting point after reaching a year and a half, about 18 months. It is marked in the groin or neck area, or sometimes both
Azila puts (a family name tag) that distinguishes it from the rest of the tribe.
Al-Sima had a role in preserving the camels, and the invaders, when they found the camels, had the hands of one of the strong tribes, avoiding their invasion of the power of their people.
Acknowledgment
The material for this post was provided mainly by Muhammad, a camel lover and activist from Morocco.
Speaking with a camel in Gobi desert, Mongolia. The author is a camelogist, camel lover, advocating camel for life.
What is the MERS?
MERS was first detected in 2012. But since then, it has been regularly reported from multiple countries in Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) is an illness that can cause respiratory infection. It is caused by a common type of virus called coronavirus. These viruses cause mild to moderate respiratory illness. But in some cases the symptoms are severe.
The Latest News (July 2023) of MERS
A 28-year-old man hastested positive for (MERS-CoV) in Alain, Abu Dhabi on the border with Oman, the World Health Organization said on Monday. The affectee had no contact with the camels.
There is no immediate cause for worry or concern, a public health analyst and epidemiologist have told Down To Earth (DTE) a day after the World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed that a man had been infected with the deadly Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Dr. Abdul Raziq Kakar, international camel dairying consultant, founder of World Camel Day, and Camel4Life International, who resides in Al Ain, however, told DTE that the case should not be used to villainize camels.
A MERS Case Reported was from UAE in February 2021
The case is a 39-year-old male national, owner of a camel farm. He developed a fever and cough on 18 January and visited a private hospital several times with no improvement. The condition of the case worsened, and on 24 January, a chest X-ray confirmed the diagnosis of pneumonia. On 26 January, he was admitted to a private hospital and was transferred to a governmental hospital on 28 January. A nasopharyngeal swab was collected on 31 January and tested positive for MERS-CoV by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) on 1 February at the Shiekh Khalifa Medical Center laboratory in Abu Dhabi. He has no underlying conditions. SARS-CoV-2 testing was performed more than once, and it was negative. No history of previous infection or exposure to SARS-CoV-2 was reported. The case reported a history of close contact with dromedary camels at his farm in the 14 days prior to the onset of symptoms. No travel history was reported during the same period. Currently, the patient is in stable condition. https://www.who.int/emergencies/disease-outbreak-news/item/2021-DON314
Is MERS Really Transmitting from Camel?
It is the burning question of the day. An article was published in a local newspaper regarding the presence of MERS-CoV in camel nasal discharge. As per the ‘The National’ newspaper report, the MERS-CoV is present in almost the majority of the camels in Africa and the Middle East.
Bats and Camels are the Natural Reservoirs of MERS CoV
MERS-CoV is found in Bats and camels both. Both animals are the reservoirs for it. One Chinese study revealed that it is found in the Bat only.
Conclusive Remarks of Famous Camelogists
According to Bernard Faye (the famous camelogist and veterinarian), in his camel farm in KSA, all the camels were MERS-CoV positive but there was no sign of Virus transmission among the workers. Also, no camel showed signs of infection in the 3 years period of time. (Pers. Comm.)
FAYE, Bernard, famous camelogist. He is a French Veterinarian and global camel researcher.
The author (Camelogist Dr. Abdul Raziq Kakar) has been working closely with camels for the last 9 years and has contact with at least 400 camels daily. Also, many members of my team have close contact with camels on a daily basis. We have not noticed any camel or human has shown any sign of sickness. But if we check the nasal and fecal samples, we will find the viruses and other microorganisms including MERS CoV.
Many other colleagues (camel owners, farmers, workers, and more) said that they had not noticed any such infection. According to a very reputable research study conducted by Dr. Wernery and his team (Wernery is the scientific director of the central veterinary lab of Dubai), the virus is rarely transmitted from camel to human.
Some very important and conclusive remarks/findings
Only there is very little chance of transmission for those who are already very weak and sick and facing immuno-depression.
It does not affect the camel’s health either.
Only nasal discharge can be noticed in newborn calves infected with MERS
The virus is found in nasal discharge and transmitted via nasal way, therefore studies conducted used nasal swabs as the source of the virus
The camel products, especially the milk and meat are 100% safe as this virus has no viability below 4C and above 20C
Also, the virus is not discharged in milk and meat. There is no reason to consider that camel milk or meat could be a way of contamination as the virus is excreted only by the respiratory way
The deep reality
When I read much more about MERS and camels, I reached the conclusion that blaming camels for MERS is a political/business motive to terrify the people and sell vaccines in the future. In business, there is no rule at all.
The take-home message
So there are no worries, do not avoid camel products. Please use camel milk as before. Camel milk is a natural pharmacy, that boosts immunity and keeps infections at bay.
Camel is really a unique and incredible player of the worlds' driest and arid ecosystems
Who is a Camelogist?
A desert explorer in the UAE, commonly known as a “camelogist,” is someone who specializes in the study and understanding of camels and their behavior in desert environments. These experts have extensive knowledge of camel physiology, behavior, and their adaptations to survive in arid regions. They often work closely with local communities and organizations to promote sustainable camel husbandry practices and conserve camel populations. Camelogists may also play a crucial role in camel racing events, camel milk production, and research related to camel health and genetics. Their expertise contributes to the overall understanding and conservation of camels in the UAE’s desert ecosystems.
Dr. Bernard Faye, French Camelogist
While camelogists may not be as well-known as some other fields of study, there are several notable experts and researchers who have made significant contributions to the field.
Here are a few well-known camelogists
1. Dr. Bernard Faye: A renowned French veterinarian and camel specialist who has extensively researched and worked with camels in various regions, including the UAE and Africa.
3. Dr. Ulrich Wernery: A German veterinarian and researcher who has focused on camel diseases, camel reproduction, and camel milk production in arid regions.
4. Dr. Ilse Köhler-Rollefson: An ethno-veterinarian and camel advocate who has worked with pastoral communities in India and Rajasthan, promoting sustainable camel husbandry and conservation.
These are just a few examples of individuals who have dedicated their careers to studying camels and their role in desert ecosystems and human societies. There are many other researchers, veterinarians, and experts around the world contributing to the field of camelogy.
The founder (author) of the World Camel Day addressing to the audience
Like before, World Camel Day was celebrated this year in different parts of the world. The author of this important day (Dr. Abdul Raziq Kakar) participated in the events held in Alain and Dubai of the United Arab Emirates.
Visit of the Camel Lovers, activists, researchers,s and businessmen to the Alain Farm (Camelait Milk)
Ahmed, camel traveller with the authorThe group photo in front of camel milk factory Alain
The Camel Post Cards in Camel Day Event Dubai
The speakers talked about camel and camel milk
Some random clicks from the event
Some very important but basic information about the World Camel Day.
