Worms in Camels - Why They are Such a BIG Problem? **Camel Vet Explains!**

camel health camel husbandry & care Feb 23, 2024
Worms in Camels Camel vet talk parasites in camels

Why are worms in camels such a big problem...?

 

Dr Margie Bale, from CamelVet.com.au,  explains why worms in camels are such a big problem. 

 

We love how Dr Bale puts things so simply and in a non-scientific way that anyone can understand.

 

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TRANSCRIPT...

 

[Dr. Margie Bale] 

 

I’d like to say a big statement that is really important for [camel] people to know about [worms in camels].

 

Why are camels so bad with worms?

 

Why is it such a “thing?”

 

One of the reasons is, that these [domesticated] camels have not evolved WITH worms.

 

The camels physiology and digestive tract evolution has been in a desert environment that hasn’t had to deal with worms or parasites. Camels, naturally, have grown up in a desert environment that hasn’t had to deal with these worm issues.

 

In one thousand to ten thousand years from now when the camel is domesticated and everybody has a backyard camel - hopefully! - we will have a group of camels that have HAD to evolve with our worms and you will get some inherent resistance. 

 

The current problem is that we have a camel population that are naive to worms and parasites.

 

We’re putting domesticated camels in an environment where we are often making them eat down low [eating pasture] instead of up high, as camels are naturally browsers not grazers, and it’s the pasture & grazing where the worm eggs are.

 

The worm or parasite problem in domesticated camels is a combination of the fact that the camels are naturally supposed to eat up high so that they are never exposed to worm eggs, but we’ve put camels in an environment where they are now eating grass or pasture - which, I’m not saying is a bad thing - it’s just life, but this grazing is now exposing the camels to worms which they have never been exposed to before which means they have no immunity, no resistance and no natural ability to get rid of the worms or parasites. 

 

This is why worms are such a problem with camels. It’s not that camels are weak, it purely stems from the fact that they have not evolved with worms.

 

 

Which comes to the conclusion, if you own or care for camels then they MUST be on a parasite control program!

 

What does a Camel Parasite Program entail…?

 

Some really simple animal management strategies, remember you signed up for this whole “camel thing” so as a responsible owner you’re going to have to learn some new things (which we’re sure you’re already are aware of).

 

  1. Get the Know How on how & why camels are prone to parasites and get familiar with the parasites that are on your property (NOTE: No one property is the same, that is why learning this information is SO important to learn).  

 

  1.   Get the camel(s) tested for parasites regularly (ideally every month) using the ‘camel specific’ parasite test (normal Float Test will not suffice). Here is the proper testing print out.

 

  1.   Believe it or not, the next step isn’t all about deworming. Deworming comes last after the important steps that we cover in the 3 part, Camel Parasite Control Program series in our Cameleer Academy Membership.

 

The thing is, maybe you’ve landed here to get a straight answer on what to deworm your camel with or just learn why your camel has worms. 

 

Unfortunately there is not one answer to this. Parasites are complex things, more so for camels! Veterinarians spend a lot of their “study time” learning about parasites in animals. 

 

We can’t give you a straight answer on worms in camels and deworming camels (because it’s SO different for every property), but we CAN offer you the Know How and knowledge you need to keep your camels free form those pesky worms that can deteriorate a camel’s health - sometimes quite severely to the point of death (we’ve seen this many times).

 

If you becoming a member of our Cameleer Academy and you’ll not only get access to the 3 Part, Camel Parasite Control Program but a library of camel information which includes...

 

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Become a member today (cancel your membership at any time - no hard feelings!) and start diving into this important information you need in order to keep your camels healthy and worm free!

 

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