Runaway Camel Survives Bumpy Ride

HAVANA, Ill. – So, how do you lose a camel? That was the question when Leroy Bollinger checked his trailer after stopping for gas Wednesday and found that the six-to-seven-foot-tall camel back there when he started his trip wasn’t there any more.

Bollinger called police in this small central Illinois town, along the Illinois River southwest of Peoria, and the camel hunt was on.

An hour after the two-county search began, Bollinger’s son, Robert spotted the four-month-old male camel named Bocephalus about 10 miles west of the Illinois River along U.S. 24.

Bocephalus was bruised and scratched, which isn’t too bad considering that the camel apparently hopped the trailer’s four-foot gate as it whizzed along the highway at 55 mph, said Bollinger.

“He’s in pretty good shape for having jumped out the back of a horse trailer,” said Bollinger, of Rushville, about 30 miles southwest of Havana.

Though sore and uncomfortable, Bollinger said Bocephalus is expected to fully recover.

Bollinger says he bought the camel to train him for children’s rides. He also has been used in live Nativity scenes.