When Lucky the camel developed a persistent itch, his owner Satee suspected mange. Unsure how to alleviate his camel’s growing discomfort, Satee turned to SPANA for help.
The desert town of Pushkar, India is famous for its massive annual camel festival which attracts huge numbers of tourists. For 21-year-old Satee, these tourists provide the only source of income here. Satee relies on his camel Lucky to carry visitors on short camel safaris. Recognising that without Lucky, Satee would struggle to feed his family, the diligent owner cares for his camel with plenty of rest, good feed and clean water. Despite his efforts, the close proximity of so many camels means that infectious conditions can easily be passed between animals and Lucky was no exception.
Lucky first developed a persistent itch and was becoming visibly uncomfortable, biting and rubbing at his skin. He began to lose patches of hair and his bare skin became thick and dry in the arid climate.
The skin around Lucky’s chest was cracking and bleeding – agony for Lucky every time he attempted to lie down on the hot sand. Satee didn’t know where to turn. But fortunately, help was at hand in the form of SPANA’s mobile clinic, led by camel expert Dr Swami.
The team knew exactly what the problem was as soon as they saw the large patches of scaly skin all over Lucky’s body. They ran some skin tests to confirm – a severe case of mange caused by mites all over the camel’s body.
The vets injected Lucky with a drug called ivermectin to kill the parasites before washing the infected wounds, applying soothing antiseptic cream and dressing the area.
The vets showed Satee how to apply daily antiseptic treatment, change Lucky’s dressing and administer his oral medication, all of which was provided free of charge to the struggling owner. The team explained that allowing Lucky to sit on the hard earth would delay his recovery so Satee made a soft bed to protect the animal’s delicate skin.
For many owners like Satee living in rural areas, there would be no treatment options available to them were it not for SPANA’s mobile clinics. Thanks to SPANA however, skilled veterinary care is now available in some of the most remote areas and a brighter future is finally available for owners and animals alike.
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