Tours offered at Ramona camel dairy

By: ERIKA AYN FINCH - For the North County Times | Friday, January 30, 2004 11:16 PM PST ∞

RAMONA ---- Contrary to popular opinion, camels don't spit and they don't stink, or at least the herd living in Ramona doesn't live up to that reputation.

"They only do that when they're treated badly," said Gil Riegler, co-owner of Oasis Camel Dairy in Ramona, the only camel dairy in the country. "If you treat them well they respond in kind."

Riegler and his wife, Nancy, own the 34-acre dairy that is home to 13 camels, including several cows and geldings and one bull.

The couple, newlyweds who have been married about a month, bought the ranch a year ago and recently began offering public tours.

For people who haven't spent much time around camels, the animals' behavior is a sight to behold.

During a visit Friday, Gil Riegler called some of the herd grazing in a pasture by whistling. Eight camels raised their heads and promptly made their way toward him, more like obedient dogs than mean-spirited desert dwellers.

"They're a cross between a cow, a horse and a dog," Riegler said as the camels crowded around him, grunting loudly and making Chewbacca-like sounds. Riegler cuddled and kissed the animals like most people respond to their house cats and the camels were clearly enjoying it, all vying for their owner's attention.

"They are so affectionate and they love attention," he said, petting a velvet nose and hugging a spindly neck while he continued talking.

Camels, he said, typically live to be about 40 years old. Those in his herd are considered dromedaries because they only have one hump and originate from Arabia.

Riegler said he started raising camels when he trained exotic animals to become therapeutic pets in Santa Cruz in the early 1990s.

"Our director got a camel and when I looked at her big beautiful eyes, I knew what I wanted to do," he said.

The Rieglers met in Santa Cruz but Nancy Riegler, at the time Nancy Kobert, was living in San Diego where she trained birds for the San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park.

Within a year, the two moved to a house in Ramona and began raising eight camels, taking them to fairs and shows all over the West Coast.

In 1998, the couple traveled to Israel to learn about milking camels after reading on the Internet about the health benefits of camel milk.

When they returned to Ramona, the Rieglers decided to turn their camel show into a camel dairy.

"It took a long time," Gil Riegler said. "First you have to breed them and then there is a 13-month gestation period. At first we nearly gave up."

Camels lactate for one year and are milked twice a day. Unlike other milk-producers, camels need their baby present in order to lactate and then they only produce milk for 90 seconds. The average camel produces six to seven liters of milk during one milking.

Gil Riegler said camel's milk is the closest thing to human milk, and is high in protein and vitamin C but low in fat.

Nancy Riegler said she sees the dairy as a pioneering operation.

"When you tell people we milk camels they have the idea that it's dirty and gross but they are such clean animals," she said. "Right now we are laying the groundwork to change the social consciousness regarding camels."

Part of that groundwork includes public and private tours. Groups come in for an hour at a time and pet the camels, learn about their behavior, take pictures and even watch one of the babies be bottle fed.

The next public tours are set for 1 and 3 p.m. Feb. 8. The couple also offers private and school tours.

"We have had a really good response," Nancy Riegler said. "I mean, why come here rather than see a panda? It's because this is our family. You have a chance to be immersed in our lifestyle."

The Rieglers' family includes two dogs, a cat, a sheep named Stormy, Byron the pot-bellied pig, a monkey and numerous birds that Nancy Riegler still travels with when she presents her bird show at local fairs.

While the Rieglers currently don't sell milk to the public, they do sell soap made with 25 percent camel's milk.

"It feels so good on your skin," Nancy Riegler said. "It's really luxurious. Any milk-based soap is such a beauty treatment but the chemistry in camel milk is even more beneficial than some of the popular goat milk soaps."

Rieglers sell the soaps on the Internet, at fairs and during tours. A 2-ounce bar sells for $4 and a 4-ounce bar sells for $6.50. The Rieglers are currently developing camel milk-based hand and foot cream.

The Oasis Camel Dairy is at 26757 Highway 78 in Ramona. Public tours cost $10 for adults and $7 for children. Reservations can be made but are not necessary. For more information, visit www.cameldairy.com or call (760) 787-0983.

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