Have you ever wondered what it would be like to ride on a camel?  Did you know that camels can carry as much as 1,000 pounds on them during a safari causing them to be known as “ships of the desert?”  Even if you haven’t ever thought about this before, doesn’t it sound kind fun and intriguing?  Well, the Naples Zoo has just started offering camel rides to patrons visiting the zoo this season.

With the Zoo always looking to promote conservation and education, they have decided to offer camel rides for the first time in the Zoo’s 41 years of being open.  The Zoo is trying to get people to learn about “strange” animals, and boy does this speak to that.  These animals weigh 2,000 pounds and stand 8 feet, 6 inches tall. The two at the zoo right now actually came to Naples in a semi-truck.

According to National Geographic, camels have been domesticated for approximately 3,500 years.  The camels at the zoo are Arabian camels (also known as dromedaries) and have one hump.  It is reported that camels can travel up to 100 miles in the desert without water because of the fat stored in their humps that they break down into water and energy for survival in such harsh conditions.  These animals also don’t sweat, so when they actually consume water they can conserve it for very long periods of time.  I have read that if they are really thirsty they can consume 30 gallons of water at one sitting…yikes!

If you are up for a little fun and adventure, you should head over to check this out at the Zoo off Goodlette-Frank Road.  The rides cost $5 on top of zoo admission, and are available from 11am to 4:45pm daily.  The two camels’ names are Joshua, 12, and Josephine, 11.  The owners of the animals, the Sears, say the camels are bathed every day and don’t spit.  Apparently, they have raised these two animals since they were born as “preemies” at their farm called the Hole in the Wall Farms, a nonprofit animal sanctuary in Ohio.  Hopefully, you can find some time to go check it out.

Enjoy and send pictures!