We have all heard of horse races and dog races, but what about camel races? Some people have gotten quite inventive when thinking of a new hobby or sport. Whether these events started from boredom or the planning of a festival, the following list of ten most unusual animal races has provided much entertainment around the world.

1. Camels. Saudi Arabia is the home to professional camel racing where people place large wagers on the outcome of the race. Camels are also raced in Australia and India. Unlike their horse counter parts, camels are not so obliging when it comes to racing. They tend to sit down and not get back up and sometimes they even leave the track. They also tend to live up to their reputation of spitting and biting during the races as well.
2. Cockroach. Queensland, Australia is the home to cockroach racing. Held on Australia Day, the race takes place inside a ring, where they dump a bucket of cockroaches in the middle and the first one to reach the edge of the ring wins.
3. Cows. Not just for tipping anymore, cows are raced the second Sunday of February in Mount Compass, Australia.   It takes a team of two people to race each cow, one to ride and one to keep the rider from falling off.
4. Crabs. Quite popular in Sydney, Australia, crab racing generates a rowdy crowd. One pub runs the races every Wednesday to help people get over hump-day mid-week.  Competitors purchase a crab, give it a name and set it off amongst the others.
5. Dogs. Not the usual run around the track race, the Scotland Island 500 in an aquatic dog race held annually in Sydney, Australia. The first race took place in 1973 between two ferry captain’s dogs.
6. Hamsters. Much more popular than one might think, hamster races are even a betting event in the United Kingdom. Hamsters are placed in miniature vehicles specially fitted with a running ball attached to it.
7. Lizards. Another unusual race in Queensland, Australia, lizards are raced each year between August and September. Similar to the cockroach races held earlier in the year, lizards are placed in the middle of a ring and the first to reach the edge of the ring wins.
8. Pigeons. Homing pigeons set off to find their way home from a certain set distance away. This sport is taken very seriously, and pigeons are specifically bred and trained for the race which can be up to 1000 km in distance.
9. Rats. In January 2008 a zoo in Tokyo, Japan decided to kick off the coming New Year, which happened to be the year of the rat, with a true rat race. Hundreds of children gathered around to watch this interesting race that seemed to never end. Once the rats reached the finish line they turned around and headed back to the starting line.
10. Sheep. New South Wales, Australia is the home to the Booligal Sheep Races each year in October. These races originated in the 1990’s and the sheep once even wore costumes.

As you may have noticed the Australians have much pleasure in racing unusual animals, but other countries also enjoy their fair share of the spectacles too. So next time you are sitting around feeling bored and need some entertainment, gather your friends together and some of these critters and have a jolly good time. Who knows you could even start a new tradition with a different animal.