Camel Abuse Denied By Didier Farms

LINCOLNSHIRE, IL — A farm has responded to claims by a patron who says she witnessed the mistreatment of a camel during its harvest festival earlier this month. According to the farm, an investigation determined that the camel was undergoing medical treatment at the time. Didier Farms, in unincorporated Vernon Township, hosts the Animal Land Zoo in October as part of its Pumpkinfest, which runs from mid-September until Halloween. In addition to camels, the menagerie has included kangaroos, zebras and parakeets, according to the farm's website.

A widely shared Facebook post attributed to Laura Kowalski describes an incident during a visit to the farm a few weeks ago.

"While walking past the camels, I witnessed something truly horrible," she wrote. "One of the camels in the back was a little antsy. A worker approached the camel, grabbed him, and slammed his head into the wall – hard. The poor camel was stunned and then shaking. It was so incredibly heartbreaking and infuriating."

Kowalski said she'd contacted Didier Farms and provided "ample time" to respond but they did not.

"I believe that these types of places will still feature abused entertainment animals as long as there's a profit, so I think it's up to us to not participate in using animals for our own fun," she said, asking readers to reconsider visiting the farm.

On Wednesday, the farm responded on Facebook, saying it was "very concerned." According to the post, an investigation determined "the camel was receiving a routine preventative vaccination and was being restrained."

"I find this highly unlikely. What I saw was a camel moving around more than the handler liked. The handler then approached the camel and slammed his head. I'm not sure how that possibly could have been a vaccination," Kowalski responded, saying she did not know what a camel would need a vaccine at 5 p.m. during business hours.

Kowalski wrote that she disagrees with using exotic animals for entertainment but would not have publicly shared her account had the farm "immediately and sufficiently" addressed her concerns.

"Say what you want, I saw that animal suffer with my own eyes and I can't accept that," she wrote. She did not respond to a series of questions about the incident Thursday.

Didier Farms said it was been working with the operator of the Animal Land Zoo, Shaun Wendt, for several years and has "never had any issues," according to a statement to Patch. According to the website of Wendt's company, Animal Enterprises, the family-owned business has participated in Pumpkinfest since 2012.

The statement went on to say that the owners of the farm will never tolerate abuse.

"When the Didiers became aware of the Facebook message, the owners of the animal was asked if he had any issues with the camels on that day. The only issue was that one of the camels had a gastro-intestinal issue and was given an oral medication as well as an injection. During the injection, the camel's halter was held by another worker as the owner gave the injection. The camel did jolt."

Another patron who says she witnessed the incident along with Kowalski said she "didn't see a vaccine" in the hand of the camels owner.

Neither Kowalski nor Didier Farms was able to confirm that the incident she described was the same one recounted by Wendt.

In response to the allegations, Vernon Township Supervisor Daniel Didech sent a letter to Lake County Board Chairman Aaron Lawlor formally requesting an investigation into the reports.

"A transparent, comprehensive investigation of any animal abuse that may have occurred at Dider Farms is necessary so that public will be confident that allegations such as these are handled with the seriousness and professionalism that they deserve," he wrote.

_{Top photo: Camel at Didier Farms, Oct. 29, 2017 | Credit: Justin Breen}