Dubai: Camels have long been a part of life in the Gulf region. Often called the 'ships of the desert', they can travel long distances, provide meat for farmers and nomadic tribes, and are also a regular source of milk.
Lately, camels have also been used for racing - a popular pastime in the UAE. Back in 1989, Dr Lulu Skidmore arrived in Dubai to establish the Camel Reproduction Centre under the patronage of then Minister of Defence Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
Far from just breeding camels, the centre studies camelid reproduction techniques, carries out genetic studies on old and new-world camelids, collects and transfers fresh and frozen/thawed embryos and carries out artificial insemination with fresh or frozen semen. It is now the main camel reproduction research centre throughout the UAE.
"Old world" camelids denote the Dromedary (one hump) and Bactrian (two hump) camels, while "new world" camelids are the llama and alpaca, guanaco and vicuna, which are used extensively in South America.
A new race
People often say, Skidmore continues, that the best racing camels are "ones that run fast. A lot of it is genetic, if you've had a female that's produced a good racing camel, you can use that combination again.
"No one can really say what makes a good racing camel, and it isn't just about having long legs," adds Skidmore. Camels at the centre aren't just studied for their racing capabilities, but also for their milk production, for example.
"The techniques we use could be used in countries where they eat camel meat a lot and use camel milk, such as Africa, Egypt, India and Pakistan. We do the research, publish the work, attend conferences and show how to increase a milk and meat-producing herd," she said. Breeding camels for good milk production is based on a number of factors.
"It mostly depends on nutrition and a lot on genes. She's got to have had a calf and be fertile, and then you see what she produces. Stress is a big factor, so you need to have happy camels."
While time seems to have stood still for Skidmore in her desert surroundings, her research has taken great leaps.
Ten years ago, Rama the 'Cama' was born as the world's first viable hybrid between a camel and a guanaco (related to the wild llama).
Looking a little like a small camel with a soft coat (minus the hump) Rama is still doing well in his tenth year.
In February, the centre had another breakthrough success when twin calves were born to different surrogate mothers, using embryo micro-manipulation (splitting of an embryo under the microscope).
Although they were born to different mothers, Zahi and Bahi are very much twin-like, eating, sleeping and even running in twin formation.
"It is a bit of an isolated job," Skidmore says from her desert laboratory, "especially in the early days when there were just three of us."
However, she continues, the opportunity to work on something truly unique has been amazing. After spending so much time with her camelid counterparts, Skidmore has made many observations about the dromedaries that she breeds.
"Camels live in groups and certain camels bond with each other and don't like to be separated. They need nice, clean pens, lots of water, hay, feed, shade and companions. Then you have a happy camel," she said.
