Lavington was the location for a heavy dose of Mayhem on Mother’s Day (Sunday, May 12).
Mayhem, the two-year-old Bactrian camel, was on display for hugs and cuddles at the second annual Mother’s Day Fundraiser.
Mayhem the camel provided laughs and lots of love during a fundraiser for the Lavington Ice Rink and Salvation Army on Mothers Day! #myvernon pic.x.com/BSj9c0RyVN
— Vernon Morning Star (@VernonNews) May 12, 2024
The silly and fluffy, two humped ungulate was adopted by couple Alex Schlosser and Alysha Bartlett in March of 2023.
“Alysha always wanted a camel and I lived in the Middle East, so we always joked that I would bring one back,” Schlosser told The Morning Star. “But the camels in Saudi (Arabia) were single hump dromedary’s, not made for this kind of climate. But we literally saw an ad for him (Mayhem) on Kijiji.”
Schlosser explained that they weren’t initially going to get him, but wanted to drop by and say hello.
“We had a great day with him and we just though afterwards, ‘man, we want this camel.’”
Camels are not typical in B.C, due to climate. However, the Bactrian breed comes from Mongolian and Afghanistan roots, which has a similar climate to the North Okanagan.
“They are used to very cold winters and very hot summers, so it is a pretty good climate for him here.”
Mayhem continues to grow in size, as Schlosser said he will top out around 500-600 pounds.
Guests were able to drop by and say hello to Mayhem. Donations were being accepted for the Lavington Ice Rink and Santa’s Anonymous North Okanagan.
“It was just an idea last year, 24 hours before Mother’s Day we just threw it on Facebook and we had a great turnout,” Schlosser said of the reason behind hosting a unique event like this. “This year, we gave three days notice and tried to do a few more extra things, we have a raffle and wanted to raise money for the ice rink and for Santa’s Anonymous.”
Guests were invited to take a photo with Mayhem, grab a couple flowers, and create a card for one’s mother. The raffle tickets were to win a free bucket of gravel dropped off locally.
READ MORE: Okanagan camel is just a baby ‘growing like a weed’
READ MORE: Camel cuddles offered at annual Lavington Mother’s Day fundraiser
