The Girls with the Christmas Tree ears

 Tulip and Shilingi

Time spent with camels is never wasted. They are easy-going, often affectionate creatures, and Tulip and her friend Shilingi are no exception. These two were bought by Sarah, a camel-addicted woman who edits this journal, based on their er…personalities. On every occasion that she came to see them, they would extract themselves from the main, milling milking herd and walk over to see her, lavishing her with sweet cooing noises and kisses. In return she stroked them and brushed them, and even taught them how to pick up their feet and have their first headcollars on; as you can imagine, the camel herdsman thought this was hilarious.

Ekomwa - thinks I'm slightly potty

Both camels are reaching maturity and live within a herd that includes their mothers, siblings, and aunts. In time it is hoped that they will become pregnant by the new bull and produce milk for their calves and the conservancy.

Tulip and Shilingi both have Christmas tree ears, markings notched into them which indicate in which month and year they were born. It is hoped that this practice will shortly be eradicated, and replaced by microchips which are injected into their necks - still not a pleasant experience but very quick. 

"When I arrived from the UK, I brought with me a set of luminous, elasticated collars which I normally use on my semi-feral New Forest Ponies so that they can be seen in the dark, thinking that it would help me to identify my particular camels. As it was, they presented themselves every morning, apparently very happy to see me. The collars - which are sturdy but breakable - may still be useful for longer distance identification in the future and Tom is looking at that."

"My love affair with camels began with one that I dubbed 'George' when I went on a camel safari at Sabuk Lodge a few years ago. As a horse-trainer, I was interested in the body language and behaviour of camels and how it compared to horses. I spent some time making friends with George before we set off in the morning, but with his rather grumpy expressions, and gravestone-like teeth, he seemed rather emotionless. Anyway, I rubbed his neck, trying to reach his soul and not just his skin, but received nothing in the way of feedback - at least he didn't bite me or cover me in spit."

"Late in the afternoon, we crossed a deep, fast-moving river between cliffs of solid rock. Our destination for the night was a sandy 'beach' on the other side where the camels were unloaded and released. Before they went off to browse, each one meandered down to the river to drink, rolled luxuriously in the sand. Except for 'George'/ George entered the river, standing knee deep in the water to drink, and then rolled extravagantly. When he stood up, he looked around for me and walked directly up to me."

""Now, about that rubbing," he seemed to say, "please, carry on." I felt like the romantic heroine in an African movie, giving my beloved camel a glorious massage before he wandered off, and every so often he would come back to me to point out some elephant thorn that had become buried in his velvety nose, asking me to remove it forthwith. I fell in love!"

"Back in the UK, I helped out with some Bactrian - two humped - camels which live about half an hour from my home, but I always dreamt of owning my own even if would have to be a long-distance relationship. I found it very hard to leave Tulip and Shilingi when I came home this time, but sparked by my interest, the camels and camel team now have regular visitors who always make a fuss of my two. Camel-visiting is also on the agenda for any guests and I would highly recommend it."

Ekomwa and Moses