“Because her tendons are too long, the knee is hypermobile. As a result, it not only bends forwards, but can also move backwards,” explains Van Leeuwen. The owner of owl and animal park De Paay bought his first camel six years ago. “I preyed on a piece of land owned by the neighbor, who jokingly said I could only buy it from him if I put a camel there.”
‘relaxed’
No sooner said than done. “The neighbor, of course, thought I was crazy, but he kept his word.” With the arrival of ‘Bump 6’ – the baby camel is still going through life without a name – the counter in the zoo now stands at four adult camels and two calves. “They are very relaxed and the visitors also think they are fantastic,” says Van Leeuwen.
The first two weeks in the early life of ‘Bult 6’ were not exactly a bed of roses. Walking was difficult and the calf did not lie down ‘the camel way’ either. “Normally they lie with their legs folded under them, but she couldn’t. She just lay completely flat.” The calf also does not want to drink. “She couldn’t find the mother’s udder.”
Van Leeuwen has been very busy with it. In order to be able to bottle-feed the calf, the zoo owner personally milks the mother camel for a week. “They are gigantic beasts of about 700 kilos, which can kick forwards, backwards and sideways. In addition, they can also bite and spit a lot, so that milking is not without risk.”
But Van Leeuwen says he has ‘super camels’. “Mine are actually very sweet. Milking went quite well.”
Manual
The calf is fed by hand about ten times a day for the first week. The vet also visits several times for the disabled leg. “That should recover on its own, but I was not reassured.”
That is why the Beesdenaar takes matters into his own hands. An employee gives him the idea to measure a brace on the calf, which he then orders via bol.com. “However, it didn’t fit for a meter and that’s why I made a brace myself from an old stovepipe.”
On Wednesday afternoon, the calf got braces on her leg with the help of the vet. “Hopefully in a few weeks her tendons and muscles will be strong enough to hold the knee joint itself in place.” Until then, the unlucky person is under close surveillance. “But it looks favourable. The vet was impressed with the brace and the calf is now drinking on its own.”