Loosely based on historical events. In the late 1850s, the U.S. Army experimented with the use of camels in the southwestern territories, the present states of Arizona and New Mexico. Hi Jolly (Hadji, or Haci Ali, 1828-1902) (portrayed by Gino Conforti) was a Syrian camel expert and driver hired by the Army to help with the experiment. Unfortunately, the project was deterred by the Civil War, and never resumed afterward. Hi Jolly became something of a local legend, eventually becoming a U.S. citizen, and living out his remaining days in Arizona.
First theatrical feature film that filmmaker Joe Camp made after the box-office success of Benji (1974). In 'Hawmps!', the dog actor Benjoe actually played a canine character called ''Benji''.
The film's opening prologue states: "In the days before the great Civil War, when Millard Fillmore was President and Jefferson Davis was Secretary of War and Abraham Lincoln was a young Congressman, an extraordinary experiment took place that could have changed the face of the Old West. If successful, the horse would be replaced in the United States Cavalry by the camel. This is the way it happened. Or at least, essentially the way it happened. Sort of."
The camels Sheba, Queenie, Tsetse, Tanya, Khartoum, Blanca, Wimpy, and Valentine ("a lovable scene-stealing baby camel") all received an 'introducing' credit.
The movie's closing credits declare that this production was: "Filmed on location at Old Tucson Studio in Southern Arizona and California."