PC/WI: Could Bactrian camels have thrived in the Kievan Rus?

So I will admit that this post is largely motivated by my newfound love of Bactrian Camels, however, I genuinelly think it is a very interesting possibility. These animal can stand temperatures between -40 and 40 degrees Celsius, and are one of the only animals known to eat snow as part of their water intake, which they are forced to do duringg the winter due to the fact that temperatures rise so abruptly during the day that the snow sublimates (goes from ice to gas without becoming water first). They also grow a very thick fur while in cold weather, which also serves the purpose of making them look super adorable.


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What if through the eastern trade routes or the arrival of some eastern military force into the area bactrian camels become a common enough sight for a Kievan ruler to decide to undertake the intentional breeding of some herds of camels? Would they have been adopted as part of the local domestic fauna? How far north into the Rus' territory would coud they have spread? Could they have become endemic to what is today northwestern Russia and the Baltics? What about Scandinavia? Finnally, do you think they could have been given a proper military use, and how would it have evolved throught the centuries?

I don't know about you, but the image of a scale or mail-clad camels ridden by Cossaks is both ridiculously cool, and extreamly hilarious.
 
I'm going to say unlikely, the region was already heavily "entrenched" in horseback riding at the time.

In addition, even if Bactrian camels end up in the Kievan Rus and are adopted by the people, I can't see them being used in the militaries for the simple reason of the different tactics used in Eastern Europe at the time. Slavs and Balts used light and fast cavalry for hit-and-run and raiding tactics (see: Lithuanian light cavalry, the Vytis), where the horse heavily outperforms the camel, and, in addition, having a horse was mandatory in many medieval militaries of the time (once again, Lithuania and Poland as examples) - I'd imagine that maintaining a horse would be cheaper than a camel.

They could find a use in caravans and potentially as draft animals due to their strength, though.
 
Aren't they somewhat slower (probably because of their bulk) than their less fluffy Arabian relative?

Could be useful for long Siberian expeditions to go shout at some locals for their furs.
 
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