Hi camelfriends,
there's a one year old female camel. We tried to put on a halter when she was 8 months old. She really dislikes the idea and always runs away. Now she's 14 monts old. We don't want to try with force yet. What do you think, what training procedure do you recommend ?
In general, should one start much earlier to put on a halter on young camels ? At what age ?
Thanks
So today I decided to put on the halter. She wasn't very pleased about it. She alway ran away, so we trapped her in a smaller enclosure and caught her with a lasso. Then I jumped on her head and put on the halter. Of course she jumped around and spit. Anyway she was fine and calmed down after.
I was having some trouble putting a halter on too. I talked with Scott and he told me to take a bucket of grain and hold the halter over it,if the camel wants the grain it has to go through the halter. It works great, it may take a few days, but it works.
I agree with the grain idea. You need to make it as positive as possible or more bad habits will arise that you'll have to deal with. You don't want to condition the camel to run when he sees you. You don't have to halter right from the get go either. Break it up into steps... Example 1. accustom the camel to being around you and coming up to you for grain. 2. start rubbing head. Placing hand over nose while camel is eating grain or grain afterwards.
3. Carry halter and continue with step 2. etc. etc. Slowly working the halter onto the camels head.
I saw two droms that were trained to touch their noses to the palm of the handler (i.e. target). They would then hold the halter in such a way that when the camel would target to the palm, he would actually be putting his nose in the halter. Pretty handy since the lady was only about 5'4" and the camel was about 7'8".
if it belongs to me carry food with you to catch it!!!!!that way on the days you don't have any feed you can still catch your animal of choice!!! depending on time frame (if we have the time) we will put the halter in the bucket so the animal has to nose around in the halter to get the feed!!! then after a while start working the halter up and over the head! if the animal in question is not a chow hound or you don't have a day or two to spare just flip a rope around his neck and snub him off (example: John Wayne the cowboys, or my personal favorite Hatari..!)put the halter on him and leave it on a few days tie them up for hours at a time and in a day or so there broke to lead with out ever pulling on them they just sort it out on there on and there broke to lead and if you will spend a few hours handling there head while there tied you can halter them to!!!! multi tasking while the animal is doing all the work S.Originally Posted by CamelPA
thanks a lot for the advice.
Don't chase your camel to put the halter on! You will create a predator situation with your body language. Instead pet, comb, or give a carrot anything to get it to come to you. (I am not a fan of hand feeding, but sometimes you have to go with the greater good). Halter training starts with lowering the head. So when it comes close to you pet the back of the neck and get it to relax putting slight pressure on it untill it lowers its head. Reward it and offer a treat as soon as it owers its head and gets nice and soft (relaxed). Do this excersie several times, putting your arm over the neck and getting it to drop its head. (You may want to do this for a couple of sessions). Once you get it to drop its head everytime (when you ask it), take the halter out of your pocket and show it to your camels nice and calm. if it bolts, start over again. Try to get a little further, stroke the camel with the halter, if it bolts start over. Once you succed in a step, you will need to decide if you are going to go further or quit on a good note (EX if it takes you an hour to stroke it with the halter and it finaly submits quit! If it takes 60 seconds continue). Try and pull the halter up its nose, if you succeed take it back off immediatly, stroke the camel and reward it. Once you can bring it up its nose a couple of times without a reaction, bring the strap around its head, but do not buckle it, take it off and pet it and reward it. Continue the process if it ever panics or bolts go back a step. Eventually you will buckle it and reward and pet him. Once you get it on, take it off (don't go to work on it right away). I don't even attach the lead to the halter untill they realize that the halter is nothing to be afraid of. These lessons may take one day or it may take a month, but the point is to break it down, make it positive, and show it there is nothing to fear. Make sure you get the camel to lower its head to remove the halter. Do not let it pull its head out of the halter when you release it. Instead remove the halter gently if it pulls hold onto it with both hands as tight as you can untill it relaxes and then gently remove it. Pet and reward the camel when you take it off. Do not leave the halter on an unattended camel! Although this method may take longer than just chasing one and haltering it, but remember you are shaping the mind and safe and easy haltering will have to be done before anything else that you do (riding, trailering, pulling, etc) so invest the time and do it right! Donovan
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