Animal Hospital

Zac Sharpe visits two institutions that are as uniquely Dubai as the sports to which they cater for.

The smell of antiseptic is as prevalent as in any other hospital. Polished hallways lead to intensive care wards and surgery theatres. Concerned visitors stop by regularly to assess the patients’ progress. But these hospitals are quite unlike any other, catering for a very select clientele for whom the worries of medical insurance are of no importance.

Evolving from a royal passion for the ancient art of falconry and the modern alternative to the sport of kings - camel racing, two specialist medical and research centres were born.

A conservation-minded man, His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum has assumed a greater responsibility than his love of these two animals demanded. In order to ensure the falcon and camel populations received the finest medical attention available he established the Dubai Falcon Hospital and the Dubai Camel Hospital.

One lump or two?

Enjoying a coffee in company of the emirates’ softly spoken resident camel expert, the impulse to ask him if he takes “one lump or two?” quickly subsides.

Twelve years in the UAE have allowed veterinarian consultant Dr Jahangir Akbar to witness the evolution of these quirky oddities of nature from traditional farm animal to scientifically-honed racing thoroughbred. Six years ago Dr Akbar was given the onerous task of establishing a camel hospital. At that time camel racing was still a largely traditional pursuit more reliant on intuition than exact medical principles.

“When the hospital first started there wasn’t even a syringe on hand. Today our medical centre takes care of 4,000 breeding camels, 2,000 racing camels and conducts research into common afflictions,” said Dr Akbar.

Ten camels can be treated at any one time allowing the four veterinarians on staff to watch over more lengthy recoveries. The most frequent injuries are fractures and joint problems, including the bane of elderly humans, arthritis.

Vaccinations against diseases such as camel pox and treatment of bacterial and parasitic infections occupy the bulk of the remaining patient admissions. The hospital, like any other, is equipped with a mobile x-ray, ultrasound equipment and operating tables.

Special operational considerations need to be taken into account when the in-patient weighs 450 kilograms and doesn’t understand the surgeon’s good intent. But unlike the popular misconception of a spitting and stubborn animal, Dr Akbar insists the camel is a model patient. “You very rarely get one that needs to be sedated. Usually they have been trained and broken in and have become used to humans. You might come up against one that doesn’t want to behave but not very often. They are actually a very friendly animal.”

Purpose-built operating benches incline 90 degrees allowing the standing camel to be strapped to the table before it is lowered into place. “If a camel is seriously injured and unable to be moved we can travel to the location with our mobile x-ray van and usually provide makeshift relief until the animal can be brought back to the hospital for necessary surgery. The desert is not really an ideal location to perform an operation,” Dr Akbar said.

The shift in the role of the 50,000 UAE camels from a bedouin’s source of milk and transport to a pampered racer is relatively recent. For centuries the ‘drought animal’ was relied upon by the nomadic tribes of the Arabian Peninsula. It’s hump was thought to be a water reservoir which enabled it to roam the desert for two to four weeks without water, although science has since proven it to be a storage unit for fat which can be drawn upon for energy.

Today the bedouins are more likely to rely on the camel for prize money than milk. A champion camel, usually female as about 90 per cent of the runners are of this leaner and quicker sex, can fetch an owner as much as Dhs 10 million.

This sort of enterprise has brought with it the necessity to guard against the excesses which accompany professional horse racing. Using the latest in forensic medicine techniques, the Dubai Camel Hospital is responsible for carrying out drug tests on racing camels.

“Although the use of performance enhancing drugs in camels is very rare in the UAE, the only means to ensure it stays that way is to test the racing camels regularly,” stressed Dr Akbar.

With research continuing to breed faster camels in the same way champion race horses are bred it may be that by the twentieth birthday of the Dubai Falcon Hospital, the stereotype of the sedentary ship of the desert has transformed into sprint queen of the desert.

The hooded falcon does not twitch a muscle as the doctor runs an electronic scanner the length of its breastbone. After a series of beeps and blips a serial number appears on the LCD read-out.

“We keep track of all the birds’ medical records through a microchip we surgically implant in all the falcons brought to the hospital,” said hospital director Cheryl Remple without any hint of amazement in her tone.

Together with her veterinarian husband David, who was on a hunting expedition in Pakistan during this interviewer’s visit, the Remple’s have nurtured Sheikh Hamdan’s vision into a thriving hospital dedicated almost solely to the reparation of injured and ill hunting falcons. Fifteen years ago the hospital treated 74 falcons in a small out-of-the-way shack with the bare essentials in terms of tools and technique. Since then 12,000 birds have been treated.

“About 99 per cent of the birds we treat are falcons. Because it is such a specialised area we can concentrate on hunting falcons specifically,” said Remple.

Modernity has had a more immediate and literal impact on the safety of hunting falcons than most would assume.

“Most of the injuries we get in here are related to birds hitting fences, signs, cars and posts. There are more things to hit nowadays,” explained Remple.

Traditionally bedouins trapped migrating falcons in autumn when they flew south from central Asia, especially Kazakhstan. They in turn used them to hunt the tasty houbara, a migratory bird common to this region. As a traditional hunting weapon and modern symbol of the UAE, the falcon today holds a special place in the consciousness of the national population.

In the face of technological advances, urban encroachment on former hunting grounds and modern lifestyles the sport, or art, of falconry continues to thrive.

Conversely, modern medical technology is actually being used to prolong the productive life of the Saker, gyr and peregrine falcons. And breeding programs and conservation efforts are being directed toward the preservation of the other integral element of hunting - the prey. The houbara needs undisturbed open desert spaces with good vegetation to thrive and ensure the longevity of falconry.

The parade of men walking into the Dubai Falcon Hospital is a sign that the sport is still being passed from father to son.

According to zoologist Dr Nigel Barton, the understanding of the falcon’s health needs are better understood than in the early years of the hospital. There was still room for education, however, among bird owners.

“Many of the injuries we get in here are preventable with the right sort of care and attention. We see a lot of foot injuries which can only be treated so many times before it surgery becomes a lost cause,” said Barton as he made an incision into the soft padded foot of an anaesthetised patient.

“Foot injuries come about from the birds spending prolonged periods on soft cushions or perches which allows infection to take hold much easier than if the bird was in its natural habitat,” he explained.

The one kilogram birds also suffer from bacterial build-up in the thin air sacs which dominate their insides. Calmed by the leather hoods over their eyes, several such sufferers perch in the wardrobe-sized intensive care unit.

While poor management is attributed to many cases brought to the free-service hospital, the sheer demands of owning a hunting falcon are usually enough to guarantee the bird’s welfare, according to Remple.

“A bird needs to be worked every day of the year for about three hours a day. For anyone willing to dedicate themselves to spending this much time looking after their falcon they are usually going to take good care of them.”