A Christmas Camel

Recently we were contacted by a self-proclaimed wise man called Bathasar, whose dromedary camel, Erin, had developed a worrying problem. His hump had shrunk and now flopped to one side. He had consulted his two wise friends, but they too were stumped by the floppy hump.

Eventually a mutual friend, Mr Claus, recommended he contact Cogges Veterinary Surgery, as we had successfully treated Rudolph (one of his reindeer) for an infected nose. Mr Claus offered Balthasar and Erin a lift on his fancy sleigh and after making an appointment they arrived at the surgery. Quite a sight! Unfortunately my camera ran out of batteries during this time, so I don't have picture of this historic moment.

After getting a full patient history, it became clear what the problem was: a camel's hump is is a mound of fatty tissue from which, when food is scarce, the camel draws energy, and this causes the hump to shrink. And flop.

Now the three wise men had been traveling for quite some time in the direction of Bethlehem, following a star (for lack of a better SatNav). Food supplies were low and Erin had used a lot of energy carrying the gift of gold.

No time was wasted in starting treatment. A prescription was given of Christmas Pudding with plenty of cream, to be eaten three times a day, along with some chocolate every six hours. Luckily we had some chocolate in stock in our tearoom - we now need to replace this!

Balthasar called us with an update a few days ago and we are pleased to report that Erin's hump is back on top. They've taken Mr Claus along and expect to arrive at their destination round about the 25th of December.