Frederick Maryland Online

Check out this awesome story about a strange chase some Frederick County police officers were involved in on Christmas Eve.

Responding to a 911 call about a camel on the loose around 6:30 p.m., Thurmont Police Officer Daniel Fitzgerald called on another officer and two sheriff’s deputies for reinforcement.

The four split up to look for the camel, driving with spotlights for about 45 minutes until a deputy spotted the beast standing in the middle of Kelly Store Road, eating from a tree. It was huge, Fitzgerald said.

“I couldn’t have jumped up and hit his head, and I’m six foot,” Fitzgerald said.

Thurmont officer Seth Ambrose said the animal didn’t seem frightened.

“It was just looking at us like ‘Hey, what’s going on?’” he said.

Then the camel took off, with officers in tow.

“It started running or galloping — whatever camels do — down the road, then went into a farmer’s field,” Fitzgerald said.

With the camel cornered, Fitzgerald called his uncle, Ron Walter, who lives nearby and does rodeo.

“I called him and asked if he could handle a camel, and he asked if I was playing around,” Fitzgerald said.

Walter arrived on the scene with rope in hand, having called a local trainer who works with camels. Walter had the camel lassoed within five minutes. The officers grabbed the rope and held on for dear life, Ambrose said.

“We played tug of war for about half an hour and tired him out, and then tied him up to a light pole,” Fitzgerald said.

Before Walter lassoed the camel, however, the trainer fed the animal chocolate chip cookies to calm him down.

The man’s move proved wise, indeed.

At least the camel didn’t make it into Downtown Frederick.

~Guy~