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Camels and Camel wool

Mongolian camels in winter

 Mongolian camels and camel wool 

We are proud to offer in our shop a wide selection of garments and blankets made of 100% pure camel wool, obtained from the two-humped Bactrian camels bred only in the Gobi Desert. You will find on this page informations about the camels in Mongolia, and the productsmade from their wool.

 

About Mongolian camels 

 

 

Mongolian camels are one of the most precious species of the Gobi desert. Camels are used for transportation, milk, wool and meat by nomadic people. Camels can travel a long distance without food and drink, which gives good support for nomads to survive in an extremely harsh climate.

Usually a camel drinks 50 – 100 liters (13 – 26 gallon)* of water once in every 2 days. It can survive easily 6-7 days without water. 

People provide water to camel from water wells. During summer, camels also drink water from pools established after rains. 

In winter, camels eat snow instead of drinking. It can also stay without food 7-8 days.

Theoretically, camel can survive up to 60 days without food.

 

 

In a long distance caravan, each camel carries about 200 kg (440 lb) of luggage. In short distance moves, one camel can carry 300 – 400kg (660 – 880 lb) of luggage. For the camelback riding, camel can go about 100 km (60 miles) per day without stops and rests.  

Camels are very calm animal. It rarely attacks people or other animals. However, male camels get extremely aggressive during the mating season. Camels start mating when the temperature gets at its peak cold. Mating continues about 2 months from the beginning of January to the beginning of April. 

The colder is the temperature, the more extensive is the mating. Female camels usually give birth to a single baby after 360 days of pregnancy around the end of February or the beginning of April. It feeds its baby during the next 360 days. 

 

 

So, camels give birth once in 2 years. On the huge spaces of the Gobi desert, camels freely graze on hundreds of square miles. It survives temperature variations from + 45°C (+113°F) hot during summer and – 45°C (-49°F) cold during winter.

In such an extreme climate, camels often face situations when no food and drink is available for days. Camels like to eat leaves of Gobi trees and shrubs.  

Nomads milk camel twice a day and in each milking a camel gives about 0.5 to 1.5 liters (2 – 6 cup) of milk. This way a camel herd provides nutritious milk all year round. Nomadic people make from camel milk a milk tea, milk drink, fermented milk drink, milk vodka, yoghurt and dried hard curds. One camel gives about 5 to 10 kg (11 - 22 lb) of wool each year. A mature male camel weighs up to 450 kg (990 lb). 

 

 

Camels live, on average, 18-20 years. There was a case when a camel lived 25 years.  In 1954, Mongolia had 895.300 camels. The number of the camel population dropped to 254.200 in 2004.

Most of the decrease in the number of camels was due to killing for meat during the economic hardships in the country. Camel meat is sold in the urban areas for meat supply. 

Although the government put a ban against such actions, an illegal sale of camel meat is still going on in capital city markets. Because of poverty, nomads continue to sell their camels to meat resellers for petty cash.  

Therefore, promoting camel wool is important for protection of camels.  

 

*The numbers above are obtained by e-Mongol from the rural residents

 

 

About Camel products and producers

 


Camel wool is obtained from the extremely warm fur from the basecoat of the camel. The finest and best quality wool is obtained from the Bactrian yearlings with a fiber diameter of 16-18 microns. Because of the beauty of the color, products made of camel wool are usually left in the natural camel color or dyed a darker brown. 

Camel wool is lightweight and smooth. Its unique properties allow shaping and tailoring, making the camel wool the most popular fabric for tailoring fine garments. Camel wool has recently experienced a renaissance in the world market and textile industry. 

Camel herds provide a source of living for Gobi’s nomadic households who depend on camels for most part of their incomes. Due to the limited number of camels and scarcity of camel wool supplies, it is regarded, along with cashmere, as an exclusive natural fiber and is used in the textile industry as a luxury material.

Finished camel wool products provide the warmest insulating qualities while also being the softest among other natural wool. 

 

 

Transforming camel wool into final products is a sophisticated process requiring time and skill. Camel wool is collected by camel herders by combing the animal by hand during the spring molting season. Camel wool then goes through other stages of processing such as sorting, scouring, dehairing, spinning, weaving or knitting before it becomes a cozy warm sweater or blanket that you will enjoy for many years. 

Therefore, we are proud to offer you an electronic marketplace for these incredibly warm and deluxe products so that you can indulge in the pleasures of camel wool at a click of your mouse. 

 

 

We welcome you to browse through our selection of camel wool garments and blankets that will appeal to the most discerning buyer and provide warmth and comfort during cool days be it a walk in the park or a cozy evening in the front of the fireplace.  

The items displayed on these pages are produced by the most important Mongolian camel wool companies, which  offer fully integrated production from raw camel wool processing to finished product and possess modern weaving and sewing technology as well as strict quality control.

 

We can also supply items not currently displayed on the e-shop, or wholesale camel wool products based on desired design. 

 

Please contact us for any specific requests at shop@e-mongol.com  

 

Most of camel wool products require dry cleaning or hand washing with use of soft detergent and flat drying.
Camel wool blankets are for dry clean only.