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The trick with these situations is to avoid them in the first place. Every PH has his own way of conducting a hunt and my comments aren't meant to imply any criticism, but my own way of doing it works for me and l always have the client rehearse the initial shot, time and time again until I'm completely satisfied the client is gonna get that first shot right.

I use my rangefinders at the blind to measure the exact range AND height from blind to tree and make a note of approximate angle the cat is expected to be at. Then we go to a suitable spot, usually somewhere near the range and always well away from the cat set up.

Then I replicate the shot exactly, put the client in the same sort of chair with the same sort of rifle rests etc. Then I take a suitably sized cardboard box and draw a fullsize Leopard outline on it and fix a small bottled water bottle INSIDE the box where the heart of the cat would be. Then I have the box fixed up in a tree at the same range, height and angle as we can expect on the real thing........ then I sit down beside the client and tell him, he's got all the time in the world and there's absolutely no rush whatsoever, but he needs to decide where the heart of the Leopard is in relation to the outside of the box and then put at least 3 consecutive shots through the 'heart' of the animal. Since I've started using this method, I haven't had to do a single follow up on a wounded Leopard. - Note, I've still had to follow spoor, but every time it's happened, we've found the cat dead within a hundred yards or so. I'm not suggesting every PH should use my method, but it sure as hell works for me.

Let me also say that a follow up at night, is a bloody sight worse experience than a daytime follow up, because you only see the animal at the very last moment.

The right tools for the job make a big difference though. Good spot and headlights are a big help and one of those blue light Surefire Kroma is an absolute Godsend. When you buy that torch (flashlight to you Americans!), you'll think, 'eish, that's a helluva price' but when you have to use it, you'll suddenly realise it's worth it's weight in gold!

I think it was Alan mentioned using a shotgun for the follow up. FWIW, from my (albeit limited) experience, shotgun pellets, no matter what the size etc, don't penetrate the skull or musculature of the chest and are usually found just under the skin.

Also FWIW, I wrote an article on the subject for one of the mags a while ago and if anyone wants to see a copy of it, feel free to e-mail me at shakari3@mweb.co.za and I'll be happy to send you a copy.

Hope that helps

--------------------
Steve "Shakari" Robinson
Kuduland Safaris (Africa) Ltd
info@kuduland.com
www.kuduland.com

Edited by shakari (22/03/09 06:53 PM)