Pam Weaver was crushed to death by the pet camel, which was a gift from her husband for her 60th birthday
The woman was killed by her pet camels(Image: Getty Images)
For her 60th birthday, Pam Weaver’s husband, Noel, gifted her an unusual present – a pet camel.
Sadly, less than a year later, Pam was killed by the pet, which was intended to be a thoughtful gift.
After her death in 2007, her husband and daughter found her body at their family sheep and cattle farm in the Mitchell area of Australia, according to Metro. It was while her daughter was preparing dinner and setting a fresh cup of tea on the table that she rushed to their garden in shock.
There stood the 150-kilogram camel, who had knocked her mother to the ground and, according to her, tried to ‘mate’ with her. During the incident, the enormous animal crushed Pam’s body under its weight, leaving her with “one definite footprint” on her face and another on her arm.
The Courier Mail reports that the camel was only 10 months old and had been showing signs of erratic behaviour in the time leading up to the attack. It’s reported it had already tried to ‘straddle’ other animals on the farm, including their pet goat, according to the Mirror.
The woman had been bought the camel for her 60th birthday(Image: Anadolu via Getty Images)
Detective Craig Gregory, who was at the scene, said: “I would say it had probably been playing, or it may even be a sexual sort of thing.”
Meanwhile, camel aficionado Chris Hill confirmed without a doubt that the camel’s antics were indeed sexual, according to Metro. Gregory said: “It had a bit of a habit with a goat, knocking it over and sort of straddling it and laying on top of it. It’s been chased off the goat a few times.”
It turns out Pam and Noel have a shared love for exotic animals. To mark the occasion, instead of buying the camel, her family even considered gifting her a llama or alpaca but found them to be significantly pricier.
They felt incredibly lucky to live in Australia, home to a sizeable population of wild camels, which has grown substantially since they were first introduced in the 1800s. This made a camel a much more wallet-friendly option as an unusual pet for the animal lover.
The camel expert also noted that while camels aren’t naturally aggressive, they’re not domestic pets either. He warned they can pose dangers if treated as household pets, and according to the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, many areas even require a permit just to keep one.
Detective Craig Gregory shed further light on the strange situation, stating: “It was only young, and it had been hand-reared. It drinks out of a bottle and eats out of your hand.”