Poutier lips, taller necks, and perfectly curved humps: attributes that a camel need to possess to be hailed as the “most beautiful camel” in Saudi Arabia.
Around 30,000 camels were joined by their masters in the King Abdulaziz Camel Festival which is an annual event in the country, reported The Star Online.
With the award reaching up to $57-million (P2.9 billion), many breeders tried their luck and brought their camels to join the contest.
However, in this year’s festival, more than a dozen of camels were disqualified after officials detected botox and other cosmetic fillers in their body.
Authorities believe that in desperation to take home the hefty prize, breeders tend to put their camels under cosmetic enhancements to beautify them.
”They buy cheap, not so good-looking camels and try to beautify them artificially. We’re cracking down on such fraud,” said Abdullah bin Naser al-Dagheri, one of the pageant’s judges.
The event’s organizers reminded the public that camels with cosmetic enhancements will be banned from the competition for three to five years.
Officials are now forming stricter rules and are working their way in tracking down camels that underwent cosmetic enhancements.
