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Guys, it is NOT my video clip. I just happen to have a promotional DVD given to me by a South African Outfitter who is now out of business. He was also NOT involved in this clip. He just got this clip from a common editor who had it and put it into his promotional DVD as he also offered SA Captive Bred Lion "Hunts". I do not know who posted this clip on youtube.

I know when he gave me the DVD so I stand by my post, but my point is not about the timeframe. If you would like to argue about and focus on the timeframe, please go right ahead. That was not my point. The comment intended is that it is not new. Also not my point. My point is, IMO, I find the practice of shooting the lioness out of the back of the truck, from within the cage, (not a true cage but rather the shooting set up common to the South African rigs), to be less than sporting. So much so that I don't care about the rifle or ammo used. If you do, that's fine. Furthermore, it was not a do or die situation as portrayed in the "We had to shoot" comment. I've walked up on Lionesses with cubs or entire prides hunting the same herd as me several times while hunting buffalo in the Zambezie Valley. I've been mocked charged by them and warned off with a menacing growl. Simply backing away and changing course has sufficiently calmed the situation without ever having to fire a shot.

Look, I have nothing against the Captive Bred Lion Hunting in South Africa. I've participated in 2 of them. But I don't 1) State that it is a real lion "Hunt" as it is not. Anyone who has been on one of these and is honest will tell you the same; 2) Make up a story about how dangerous, exciting, etc. the "Hunt" was because, they are not; and 3) By law, these hunts are supposed to be conducted on foot, not from the back of the truck. Having a bit more knowledge now about hunting Africa (7 Safaris, 4 to SA and 3 to Zim, all of which included multiple species of dangerous game), I would not desire to participate in another SA Lion "Hunt". I do have plans to hunt Lion again, but either in Zim or Moz for a wild Lion.

There are many hunters who have been told a made up story of how their South African Lion is a problem animal that has been killing the other lions, ranch hands, antelope, etc. (insert your own victim) only to be taken advantage of as their lion was drugged and released a couple of days ahead of time at best. These cats have been hand fed for their entire life and do not know how to fend for themselves.

It's really a matter of telling the outfitter what kind of mane you require, they secure the TOPS permit, and release it for your "Hunt". See pictures below. Again, I don't have an issue with the SA lions as they take the pressure off of wild lion quotas but the made up stories about how "We had to shoot it" and such is insulting to the intelligence of anyone who knows how these operations are conducted. In my case, it was my first Safari in 06. I was told the Lion had killed another lion so they wanted me to shoot this one because he was a problem animal and offered at "A Discount". We drove around the ranch for 2 hours and when the PH figured we had "hunted" long enough, we headed to a completely different portion of the ranch where we immediately found his track. Turns out this was the area where it was released the previous day or two. It stayed put hoping for the truck to return with food. Shortly thereafter, the Lion appeared on the road, next to the fence, and began running toward the truck. The PH stated that it was attacking and to get into the truck. As we drove past it, it ran after the truck for 300 to 400 yards. I later figured out it was thinking we were there to feed it. Just like a Cow following a rancher. Once we were safely away from the cat, we got out and approached it on foot. This is where it can become dangerous as these cats are hungry and not afraid of humans because they have been raised around them all their lives.

Here is one you can choose for about $25,000.

This one we named Baylor. $40,000, the cost of 1 year tuition and board at Baylor University.

This one you would probably need to win the lottery for. But then it's not a lion and where can you import it to?

When I left SA that year, I thought I had hunted Lion. Even booked a later Lioness "hunt" for my son. It went down exactly the same way the first one did. Same story and everything. Had it been me hunting, I would have called it off as I had figured it out by this time. Being my son's graduation present, I didn't say anything and let him go forward with the "hunt". So I got taken a bit on this deal.

If anyone is interested in doing a Captive Bred South African Lion "hunt", here is what I would recommend in order to have a reasonable experience. First, insist your outfitter be upfront about the conditions of the hunt. There are some very limited opportunities to hunt wild Lion in SA, but they tend to be around the Kruger area and are usually escapees. Have the outfitter show the paperwork showing when the lion was drugged and released into the enclosure you are hunting. That way, you'll know you aren't hunting a groggy animal. Second, insist that the entire hunt be conducted on foot from the time you enter the enclosure. This will make you work for your trophy a bit as these places can be quite large. In addition, the cat will not hear the truck coming and assume it's feeding time. Encountering the cat by walking up to it (tracking) without the noise of the truck to alert him will result in the cat having a completely different disposition and attitude toward you. These things MIGHT make the experience a bit more sporting in my opinion. Considering that wild lion hunts usually require 18 to 21 days minimum, and often go unsuccessful, resulting in a true wild Lion trophy being one of, if not THE, hardest trophy to acquire in today's Africa, it's obvious that the couple of hours or so required to achieve 100% success on the SA Lion operations leaves something to be desired in the experience department!

But please don't simply drive up to a recently released and possibly still drugged lion while on the back of the Bakkie, and come up with come cockamamie BS story about how you had to shoot it, while it intermittently dozed and growled a bit, then expect folks to hold you in high regard as an accomplished and ethical hunter for posting your exploits on YouTube where the Anti's can compile it into their propaganda. Then again, if you disagree, that's fine. What kind of rifle was that again?

Edited by CptCurl (11/01/12 10:54 PM)

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