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Maybe it’s time human beings learn to treat animals well—especially when they’re bigger and stronger, and are more than capable of killing us.
Unfortunately, a man in Russia has recently learned this lesson the hard and fatal way. Even more unfortunate is the fact that the animal he appeared to abuse suffered an equal fate—albeit one that was likely far less painful.
A disturbing video is currently circling the interwebs that shows a camel trampling a man to death at a children’s camp in Russia after the man had punched it.
From the New York Post:
“The animal did not appreciate such treatment,” local media reported regarding the deadly incident, which occurred last month at the Beryozka recreation centre in Omsk, Siberia, per East2West news.
The fiasco occurred after a watchman named Yury, 51, struck the dromedary while attempting to move it, causing it to become enraged and attack him, local media reported.
In the disturbing footage, the guard can be seen walking up to the double-humped Bactrian camel — which can weigh over 1,100 pounds — and yanking on its reins. However, the animal, named Vasya, refuses to budge, after which Yuri punches him in the face. He then tries to get the camel to move a second time, whereupon Vasya wheels around and grabs his assailant with his teeth, then flings him around like a ragdoll.
After getting mauled and trampled for a protracted period, the guard can be seen lying motionless in the now-blood-stained snow while the camel continues to prod at him.
The man sustained severe injuries to his head and body and he died after being rushed to a hospital. The Post noted that “prior to the attack, the animal had reportedly been described as peaceful and was often around children sans incident,” which indicates that, like many animals, he wouldn’t attack anyone who didn’t attack him first. (If “don’t start nothin’, won’t be nothin’” was an animal, basically.) But, sadly, that didn’t change the decision to put the camel down rather than risk another human being killed, which is often the case when people put themselves in a position of danger with an animal that was minding its own business.
Meanwhile, the Post reported that law enforcement is currently investigating the camp to determine if the camel was being held legally and properly.
So, yeah—maybe just leave these animals alone.
