We visited Al-Hasa, KSA on 4-5/11/2016 in order to meet Dr. Faisal Almathen at the Camel Research Center in King Faisal University (KFU). We spent the first day at the KFU School of Veterinary Medicine where we admired the amazing infrastructure projects at KFU and the facilities that aid in providing a pleasant academic atmosphere. In a meeting that lasted over three hours, we discussed with Dr. Faisal Almathen the state of camel research and the possible collaborative short and long-term projects. We spent the rest of the day exploring Al-Hasa with Dr. Fasial.

The second day was devoted to research. We drove to the Camel Research Center in the morning, where Dr. Faisal made the necessary arrangements prior to our arrival. Our main objective was to collect samples from the three available camel breeds—three individuals of each of the Megaheem, Wadh, and Sufor breeds were prepared prior to our arrival. The Megaheem camels are the dark-colored breed, whereas the Wadh are the light-colored breed, and the Sufor are the brown-colored breed. We met Dr. Watheq at the center, an expert camel researcher, along with Abdulraheem and Abo Alhasan—two camel workers who are experts at handling camels. We spent around six hours sampling the camels.

Trip summary:

1) Camels are large

2) Megaheem camels are especially huge

3) Wadh camels are relatively easier to work with

4) Hair samples are better collected from the tail than the neck (and other regions)

5) Hungry camels are whining machines

6) Camels attract a lot of flies! Get used to them

7) A team is essential for the sampling process

8) It is important to secure an escape route when working with large camels!

9) Having camels devoted for research speeds up the research process

10) Collaborations are fun, and essential

11) We had so much fun, that we plant to visit again!

We attach some photos from the visit below. We thank thank Dr. Faisal, Dr. Watheq, Abdulraheem, and Abo Alhasan for their help during our trip.

Hasan Alhaddad

Bader H. Alhajeri