Getting the Hump

There has been consternation from PETA and others (http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/nov/26/australia-thirsty-camels-animal-welfare) about the possibility that the Australian Northern Territories government approving the shooting of some of the 6000 thirsty feral camels that are besieging the town of Docker River. These 'ships of the desert' are the progeny of animals that were initially imported to help with the exploration of the Australian Outback. They became redundant with the introduction of motorised transport and were released in the hope that they would just 'fade away'. The camels actually thrived and bred in enormous numbers and have been linked (like the rabbit) to habitat destruction (with possible losses of unique indigenous species). More tellingly, unlike sheep, they don't have any economic importance. The beasts are thirsty because of the continuing drought (so shooing them away might well result in a more painful death). It seems to me that there is little else that the authorities can do unless the camels are taken to the equivalent of a donkey sanctuary and neutered.