The South Plateau project proposes to clearcut more than 5,500 acres of pine forest in the Custer-Gallatin National Forest. The project also calls for logging on an additional 9,000 acres and bulldozing up to 56 miles of roads, many through mature, old-growth forests.
“This reckless project was approved without considering its threats to Grizzly Bears, Lynx, and other wildlife,” said Kristine Akland, Northern Rockies director and senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity. “The fragile Yellowstone ecosystem surrounding this iconic national park is vital for Montana’s rich biodiversity and climate. This project must be stopped before our beautiful backcountry forests are bulldozed.”
The Forest Service approved the logging project without identifying the locations, timing or scope of the logging units or roads. Instead, the agency said it will make those decisions when crews are on the ground, which inhibits analysis of potential harm to protected species and prevents public involvement.
“The Forest Service needs to drop the South Plateau project and quit clearcutting old-growth forests,” said Mike Garrity, executive director of the Alliance for the Wild Rockies. “Especially clearcutting and bulldozing new logging roads in grizzly habitat on the border of Yellowstone National Park.”
“Clearcutting high-elevation lodgepole forests across thousands of acres is not going to improve ecological conditions and will not help protect communities from wildfire as the Forest Service claims,” said Adam Rissien, a rewilding advocate at WildEarth Guardians. “Rather, this is another misguided, old-style timber sale that will undermine the forest’s ability to store carbon.”
The project allows for significantly more logging and road building than is authorized by the Custer-Gallatin Forest plan. The notice also says that the South Plateau project will destroy and remove thousands of acres of habitat for Grizzly Bears and Lynx, which are both listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.
You can support ‘Protect All Wildlife’ by donating as little as £1 – It only takes a minute but it can last a lifetime for an animal in need. Please donate below.
Everyone who donates will receive a Certificate of Appreciation as a thank you for helping animals in need.
The Mission of Protect All Wildlife is to prevent cruelty and promote the welfare of ALL animals.
We believe EVERY animal should be treated with respect, empathy, and understanding. We raise awareness to protect and conserve wild, captive, companion and farm animals.
It is vital that we protect animals against acts of cruelty, abuse, and neglect by enforcing established animal welfare laws and, when necessary, take action to ensure that those who abuse animals are brought to justice.
Protect All Wildlife are involved in many projects to protect animals’ rights, welfare, and habitats. Money contributed to Protect All Wildlife supports ALL of our worthy programmes and gives us the flexibility to respond to emerging needs. Your donations make our work possible.
In May 2019, Botswana’s President Masisi justified the decision to recommence trophy hunting by emphasising that local communities will be guaranteed more than just menial jobs and enjoy sustainable wildlife management’s economic benefits.
A Bull Elephant shot in Botswana – a so-called ‘100 pounder’.
As the passage of the Hunting Trophies (Import Prohibition) Bill moves to the Committee Stage of the House of Lords, a suite of amendments has been tabled for deliberation. These amendments include amending the Bill from a blanket ban to a case-by-case assessment of trophies imported into the United Kingdom based on whether they contribute to the conservation of wildlife and human economic upliftment.
For example: Amendment Clause 2(d) states that hunting imports may only be granted if:
“a hunting area where the hunting operator can demonstrate that financial or non-financial benefits of trophy hunting materially contributes to the conservation of the trophy hunted species, including habitat protection, anti-poaching measures, and support for community livelihoods.”
A Shopping List For Trophy Hunters
At face value, this appears to be equitable. Ignoring the obvious ethical dispute, if trophy hunting can be proven to benefit the conservation of wildlife and human livelihoods, then perhaps it may be a case to consider. However, the problem in the majority of trophy hunting cases, and in most countries where trophy hunting takes place, the activity not only is wholly unable to benefit wildlife and human communities, but precipitates the opposite.
Botswana, one of the major destinations for trophy hunters, is a particular case in point.
The southern African nation has been promoted by some in the House of Lords as an example of a trophy hunting ‘success.’ So much so that a high-level delegation of government officials from Botswana, including a minister, an ambassador and a wildlife department head of authority were invited to the House of Lords in June 2023 to make a case for the benefits of trophy hunting in their country. Yet, serious questions surround Botswana’s ability to adequately regulate trophy hunting and provide any meaningful benefits for communities living among and alongside wildlife.
Field investigations, in-person interviews and literature, financial audit, international policy document reviews have been undertaken over the course of a year to assess the validity that Botswana can provide meaningful and tangible benefits to its wildlife and people. This is a summary of the results:
On an international level, the country has been flagged for non-compliance under the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) due to its failure to submit annual reports, which provide crucial information for validating offtake of elephants for trophies for the international trophy trade. This indicates that the wildlife conservation in Botswana is not adequately managed.
Hunting quotas are not based on scientific data. A total quota of 356 Elephants and 74 Leopards are on the Wildlife Hunting Quota List for 2023. These figures are regarded as abnormally high. The list also includes Zebra, Buffalo, Ostrich, Wildebeest, Kudu, Eland, Gemsbok, Warthog, Baboon, and Lechwe.
There is evidence of widespread unethical hunting practices including over-use of already overly high quotas, fraudulent practices, corruption, baiting, and hunting near and within photographic tourism zones. As well as the deployment of aerial support to search for large tuskers and killing Elephant bulls near artificial waterholes.
Trophy hunting activities in Botswana are forcing communities, which are expected to rely on the proceeds of trophy hunting, into a perpetual cycle of impoverishment and economic disenfranchisement. Trophy hunting obstructs the development of more meaningful activities like photographic tourism while the proceeds from trophy hunting are so miniscule that individual community members are practically receiving nothing.
There is also widespread evidence of corruption and mismanagement of funds generated by the Community-Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) system in areas centred on trophy hunting as the main economic activity. The mismanagement and corruption are directly linked to trophy hunting.
The current government has revoked scientific research permits of organisations that have been committed to providing peer reviewed scientific data on the conservation status and ecology of Elephants and suppress those that have dared to voice concern over unsustainable and unethical hunting practices.
An aerial photograph of a butchered Elephant, shot by trophy hunters in Botswana.
The adult Elephant Bull (above) has been stripped of its body-parts. The trunk has been hacked off. There are large portions of the Elephant’s skin cut off. All four feet have been removed – presumably to make foot / table stools (the Botswana president, Mokgweetsi Masisi, (in)famously gave Elephant foot stools to the presidents of neighbouring countries at an Elephant Management meeting in Kasane in 2019). The tusks and skull have been taken to a taxidermy. These body parts represent the prize – the trophy – that the hunter was after, and which will be displayed on a wall in their home in Europe or America or Asia. There is also some flesh cut off on the flanks of one side, possibly to provide some meat for the trackers and skinners as a ‘tip’.
It has been claimed in Botswana that trophy hunting is only undertaken in ‘marginal’ wilderness areas that are not deemed viable for photographic tourism. It is also claimed that attempts to convert trophy hunting areas not viable for photographic tourism into photographic tourism areas is a challenge. Areas that are deemed not viable for photographic tourism are remoteness, lower densities of wildlife and monotonous natural landscapes. In these spaces, trophy hunting becomes a necessary evil as the sole provider of revenue for remote communities living within and alongside wildlife.
And yet, this Elephant was shot in a hunting concession (NG41) that is neatly wedged between two national parks – Moremi Game Reserve and Chobe National Park. These two parks are globally renowned for photographic tourism and are consequently brimming with tourists wanting to photograph what Botswana showcases best – wildlife. The fact that that this Elephant was shot right in the middle of these tourist hotspots makes a mockery of the claim that trophy hunting in Botswana only takes place in marginal areas.
The Wall Of Death: A Hunter’s ‘Trophy’ Room
The standard narrative from hunters and their proponents is that trophy hunting is an essential conservation tool that, if conducted ‘ethically’, preserves endangered wildlife and provides revenue for impoverished communities living in marginalised areas where photographic tourism is absent. Yet as this case shows, as they all do, that narrative is a false one. Stripped of its protective fairy-tale veil, the true face of trophy hunting lays bare, a narcissistic bloodlust of a few depraved individuals who care little for ethics, community upliftment or wildlife conservation. ~ Adam Cruise.
In The Trophy Hunter’s Sights: Botswana’s Elephants
WHAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP WILDLIFE:
You can support ‘Protect All Wildlife’ by donating as little as £1 – It only takes a minute but it can last a lifetime for an animal in need. Please donate below.
Everyone who donates will receive a Certificate of Appreciation as a thank you for helping animals in need.
The Mission of Protect All Wildlife is to prevent cruelty and promote the welfare of ALL animals.
We believe EVERY animal should be treated with respect, empathy, and understanding. We raise awareness to protect and conserve wild, captive, companion and farm animals.
It is vital that we protect animals against acts of cruelty, abuse, and neglect by enforcing established animal welfare laws and, when necessary, take action to ensure that those who abuse animals are brought to justice.
Protect All Wildlife are involved in many projects to protect animals’ rights, welfare, and habitats. Money contributed to Protect All Wildlife supports ALL of our worthy programmes and gives us the flexibility to respond to emerging needs. Your donations make our work possible.
The Environment Secretary offered assurances about the Hunting Trophies (Import Prohibition) Bill in a letter to campaigners.
The Government has pledged to do “all we can” to ensure a ban on trophy hunting imports becomes law amid fears pro-hunting peers could “wreck” the reforms.
Environment Secretary Therese Coffey said the Government will not support any further amendments to the Hunting Trophies (Import Prohibition) Bill.
The proposed legislation would prohibit bringing into the country body parts from species deemed of conservation concern.
The Bill, introduced by Conservative MP Henry Smith, has already cleared the House of Commons.
But a group of peers have raised concerns and tabled amendments that threaten to derail the proposals.
Time is running out to consider the Bill and it will fall if it does not receive royal assent before the current parliamentary session stops ahead of the King’s Speech on November 7.
Ms Coffey, in a letter to the Humane Society International/UK dated August 17, wrote: “It is a manifesto commitment to ban the import of hunting trophies from endangered animals and we are working hard to deliver.
“The Bill passed the Commons in March, with the Government’s support, and we will do all we can to support its progress through the House of Lords working with Baroness Fookes.
“I can confirm that we will not be supporting any further amendments to the Bill. I expect committee stage to progress next month.”
Conservative peer Lady Fookes is the Bill’s sponsor in the House of Lords.
Claire Bass, senior director of campaigns and public affairs at Humane Society International/UK, said: “There is a small and vocal group of pro-hunting peers doing their best to wreck this Bill, but we need the Government to remain focused on the almost 90% of the public who want this ban on the import of hunting trophies.
“The timing for this Bill is indeed extremely tight but we were encouraged to receive a letter from Environment Secretary Therese Coffey yesterday.”
No Friday sittings to consider private members’ bills are expected in the House of Lords in September, according to the Government whips’ office in the Lords.
With the party conference recess running until October 16, there are expected to be just two possible Friday sittings before the parliamentary session ends.
Mr Smith, MP for Crawley, said he is speaking with the Government in a bid to secure more parliamentary time for his Bill.
Conservative peer Lord Mancroft, who opposes the proposals, said amendments have been tabled in a bid to “clean up” or clarify parts of the “badly drafted” Bill.
He acknowledged it is “very possible” the amendments could halt the Bill’s progress and rated its chances as “less than 10%”.
Mr Smith said the planned legislation is about UK import policy, adding opponents have pressed “spurious arguments” about how trophy hunting helps conservation.
A House of Lords briefing paper on the Bill stated: “According to figures from the Cites (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna) trade database, 190 hunting trophies from Cites-listed species were imported into the UK in 2020 (the most recent complete year for which figures are available).”
Through Philanthropy and Activism, Bob Barker Fought Animal Cruelty.
All about Bob Barker’s animal activism — from refusing fur prizes to launching a non-profit charity that funds Spay & Neuter clinics.
Bob Barker, an affable fixture on US television for half a century who hosted the popular game show The Price Is Right for 35 years and was a committed animal rights activist, has died at age 99, NBC News and Fox reported on Saturday.
Barker died on Saturday morning of natural causes at his Hollywood Hills, California, home, his publicist Roger Neal said.
Bob Barker with Nancy Burnet, president of United Activist for Animal Rights, in front of a Fifth Avenue furrier in New York in 1988. Credit…Don Hogan Charles/The New York Times
Barker was known for pro-animal causes and campaigned for them into his 90s. He would end episodes of The Price Is Right by urging viewers to get their pets spayed and neutered to control the animal population and began a foundation to subsidise the practices. He also spoke out against the treatment of animals in zoos, rodeos and circuses.
Over decades as the host of The Price Is Right, the longest-running game show in American television history, Mr. Barker, beginning in the 1980, used his pulpit to remind millions of viewers to “help control the pet population; have your pet spayed or neutered.”
He put $25 million into founding the DJ & T Foundation which finances clinics that specialize in spaying and neutering. The foundation was named after Mr. Barker’s wife, Dorothy Jo, and his mother, Matilda Valandra, who was known as Tilly.
In 2004, he donated $1 million to Columbia University School of Law to further the study of animal rights law.
“The Law School is extremely grateful for this generous gift,” said Dean David M. Schizer. “And we look forward to giving our students exposure to this growing area of legal scholarship.”
In 2010 he donated US$5 million for a 1,200-ton ship named the Bob Barker that was operated by the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society to stop Japanese whaling ships from killing whales off Antarctica.
The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society Anti-Whaling Ship ‘Bob Barker’
In 2012 Bob funded the travel costs for three Elephants to travel from the Toronto Zoo to a sanctuary in California aboard a private plane.
A spokesman for the TV icon says Barker offered to fund the $880,000 flight after learning that one of the Elephants wasn’t well enough to withstand the long trip by truck.
Henri Bollinger said that the Toronto Zoo agreed to move Thika, Iringa and Toka to the Performing Animals Welfare Society Elephant sanctuary in San Andreas, Calif., but that one of the animals suffers from “a serious foot problem.”
Barker described the Elephants’ new home as a “paradise” and said “to think that one of them might not survive the trip in a truck touched my heart and purse strings.”
Bob Barker with one of the Elephants that he helped travel to PAWS sanctuary
“It is money well-spent. I don’t know where you get more for your dollar, so far as protecting animals is concerned, than you get from PETA,” Barker said.
Bob Barker and Ingrid Newkirk at the opening of the PETA Bob Barker building in Los Angeles
In 2015, he stood behind a podium in an eleventh-floor conference room at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles. His mission: to publicly shame Foster Farms — among the biggest poultry producers on the West Coast — for cruelty toward animals.
Reporters at the event were shown a secretly taped video, narrated by Barker and shot in May and June at two Foster Farms slaughtering plants in Fresno, Calif. The video showed scenes of thousands of chickens being carelessly hung by their legs on conveyor belts. Factory workers execute the process with brutal efficiency, occasionally punching live birds and plucking out their feathers.
Bob Barker speaking for Mercy For Animals in Los Angeles in 2015. Barker criticised poultry producer Foster Farms after an animal-rights group released video showing chickens being shackled, punched and having their feathers pulled out while still alive. Photo: AP
Julie Woodyer, campaigns director at Zoocheck, knew Barker for years as they collaborated on both successful and failed efforts to free animals from captivity at Canada’s zoos.
She says Barker brought a determination and generosity that was unmatched by other celebrities, often opening his chequebook to support the cause and willingly making public appearances to raise awareness.
“I just can’t imagine there will be somebody to replace that ever,” Woodyer said in a phone interview.
Woodyer first connected with the TV host and his partner Nancy Burnet over email in 2010 as Zoocheck — in co-operation with other animal rights organizations –attempted to free Lucy the elephant from the Edmonton Valley Zoo.
In 2011, Barker appeared on CTV’s “Canada AM” morning show where he explained that elephants were not adapted to brave Canada’s harsh winter climate and Lucy’s health was deteriorating.
While the campaign to relocate Lucy was unsuccessful, Woodyer said a bond was formed with Barker over their shared interest in animal rights.
Together, they were involved in a controversial and years-long effort to move three elephants — Toka, Thika and Iringa — from the Toronto Zoo to a sanctuary in California. The campaign included Barker making public appearances and mingling with local city councillors to explain his view in hopes they would lend their support.
Ultimately, Barker donated $800,000 to the Peoples Animal Welfare Society for the successful transport and care of the animals.
“It would have been years and years for us to try to fundraise that,” Woodyer said, “And it would’ve been too late for some of those elephants.”
Barker later donated $50,000 to help build Manitoba’s first black bear cub rehabilitation centre.
“Lending his celebrity voice … really boosted those campaigns significantly and allowed us to have a broader audience,” Woodyer said.
“He was the funniest man I’ve ever met, extremely sharp, even in his very late years, and he could always come up with something funny, and make us all laugh even in the midst of difficult times in our campaigns.”
Bob Barker was a passionate animal rights advocate throughout his life. PHOTO: PAUL ARCHULETA/FILMMAGIC
I’d like to see animals removed from the entertainment business. Chimpanzees and apes won’t perform unless you beat them. Circuses keep elephants in chains 90 percent of the time. Elephants need freedom of movement. In circuses, they live in cramped quarters, which is not the life intended for them by nature. Some are beaten daily, forced to do ridiculous tricks and robbed of every shred of dignity. ~ Bob Barker.
The cost of changing a rescue animal’s life forever – PRICELESS!
To feed a dog for one month typically costs somewhere from £16 to £50, depending on the breed. Microchipping costs about £10 to £15. The average cost of essential vaccinations is £64. A vet appointment costs between £40-£60. Physiotherapy/Hydrotherapy – the average cost is £50 for a 30-minute session.
You may wonder, why do you have to pay to adopt a dog?
Well, running an animal shelter is not cheap, with food, heating and other costs, so you money goes towards supporting them in the work. It also pays for vital care that your new pet has had, and covers essential expenses that you’d likely have to pay for anyway if you got your dog another way.
Why do dog shelters charge people to adopt pets?
First of all, animal shelters cost money to run. While they get donations and funding through events like charity runs, the costs are high. They need to pay for food, heating and other bills, as well as any staff costs and expenses like petrol for home visits.
Adoption fees also cover other expenses for the dogs, such as vet bills, which you’d likely have to pay yourself anyway if you acquired a new dog through other means.
Every dog rehomed is vaccinated, microchipped and neutered.
Please help is rescue, rehabilitate and rehome MANY more sick, injured and disabled animals by donating ANY amount, large or small, at HELP RESCUE ANIMALS IN NEED.
10 REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD #ADOPTDON’TSHOP!
Adopting a pet has many benefits, some of which you may have not considered. Here are some reasons why adopting a pet would benefit you and your family.
1. You are saving a life
By adopting from a shelter, you are providing an animal with the second chance they deserve. Many have been rescued from horrific circumstances such as cruelty, neglect and abandonment, or quite simply their owners were no longer able to look after them due to illness or a change in situation.
Before and after: these pictures were taken two months apart
Shelter staff work tirelessly to nurse animals back to health, rehabilitate disturbed animals and do everything they possibly can to ensure they are prepared to go to a new home. Sadly, not all of them are as fortunate. Some shelters have to euthanise due to lack of space, meaning many healthy animals lose their lives. By rehoming a pet you can give an animal that has been abandoned through no fault of their own a loving, stable home, and help to stop overpopulation.
2. You will save money
Shelters often microchip, spay, neuter and vaccinate the animals that come into their care. This saves you a lot of money because you don’t have to pay for the procedures yourself and it ensures the pet you are taking home is healthy. Also, the prices of adopting a pet from a shelter are often a lot lower than the rates charged by breeders.
3. Can help to eradicate puppy farms.
A puppy farm, or mill, is the illegal practice of breeding puppies for the sole purpose of maximising profit, without any regard to the dogs’ health or wellbeing. Dogs at puppy farms are forced to breed several times to their detriment and they are often kept in terrible conditions without basic necessities.
Bred Relentlessly For Profit
People who run such places are not concerned with producing healthy dogs, so they can be born with severe problems that emerge over time. The dogs usually don’t receive any veterinary care, and will often be destroyed once they can no longer reproduce. Additionally, dogs at pet shops are often products of puppy farms. Adopting from a shelter aids in stopping dogs from being subjected to such horrific circumstances, because rather than funding this illegal trade you will be rehoming a pet from somewhere reputable that supports animal welfare.
4. Can improve your health and make you happier
Various studies have shown that a having pet can elongate your life, whilst improving your overall happiness and health. It also helps people with depression, stress, anxiety and many other ailments. The affectionate and loyal nature of dogs as pack animals that form close relationships with their owners can help sufferers of depression, who may feel like they don’t have anybody else.
Stroking your pet can reduce your blood pressure and stress levels, and playing with them can increase the levels of serotonin and dopamine your body produces, making you feel calm and relaxed. Walking the pet is a way to exercise and provides sufferers of anxiety and depression with a reason to leave the house. It also creates opportunities for socialising with other dog walkers. The animal you have helped through rehoming can help you.
5. Can benefit children
Children can be taught valuable life skills through pet ownership, such as the importance of maintaining responsibilities. Rehoming a pet will also encourage empathy by making them think about how they have helped to give an unwanted animal a loving home. Pets can help children with separation anxiety and provide them with security, as they can be safe in the knowledge that someone will always be there. As well as this, they can be a loving companion and playmate.
6. Many of the animals are housetrained
Animals at shelters have often been housetrained in their previous home, particularly if they are older. This saves you a lot of time and extra effort when training your new pet where to go to the toilet.
7. Unconditional love
A pet is a companion that will never judge you, will love you regardless of whatever happens and will always be there. As well as making you feel great, their unconditional love raises your self-esteem because of the affection they show you. It is said that animals know when they have been rescued, so the bond between you and your rehomed pet will be especially strong.
8. You could get a pet you never expected
Although you may have an idea of what you are looking for, there are a wide variety of animals waiting to be adopted from shelters. This may mean an animal you would never have imagined could turn out to be the best match for you. Therefore, it is always important to have an open mind when visiting shelters.
9. Older animals can prove to be the best companions
Many people want to adopt puppies and kittens without considering the advantages of having an older pet. If trained in their previous home they will be less likely to destroy furniture than a younger pet, and as such, will probably require less supervision. Older pets are often calmer and quite happy to sit in your company rather than demanding constant attention. They also have more developed personalities than puppies or kittens, so it may be more apparent when visiting them at the shelter whether or not you are suited.
10. Adopting supports spaying and neutering
Spaying and neutering animals is important in controlling the animal population. Many pets that aren’t spayed or neutered often contribute to the problem of unwanted animals, which can lead to more being left at shelters. Adopting an animal from a shelter means that your new pet has been spayed or neutered where possible.
Please help us continue to support animal rescues by donating any amount, large or small. Your donations make our work possible.
And please remember…
…the cost of changing a rescue animal’s life forever is – PRICELESS!
Two Orcas were seen swimming close to the children in a bay in New Zealand. The footage, captured by a local resident at Enclosure Bay in Waiheke Island, shows the kids frantically trying to swim away as the Orcas head straight to them.
The massive beasts can be seen swimming within feet past the youngsters and out to sea. The filmer writes: ”While in Auckland’s Waiheke Island at Enclosure Bay two orca whales entered the bay. ”At first all I saw was a fin in the water and thought a shark had entered the bay. I realised it was a whale and not a shark. ”Everyone got out of the water, however, there were two children in the middle of the bay who must not have heard the call to get out. ”By the time they realised what was going on it was too late, it appeared the whales heard the children calling for help and headed directly for them”
In the clip below, you see a pair of dorsal fins rip through the ocean at pace as they head towards the kids.
The Orca Pass Within Feet Of The Children
The children panic and cling on to each other for dear life.
You also hear them scream as they believe they are about to be devoured by the predators, which can measure up to 8 metres in length and weigh up to 6 tons.
“That’s a lifetime experience for you,” one onlooker could be heard saying as the two orcas swam past the children and back out to sea.
”It was extremely frightening for both onlookers and the children in the water that came face to face with these massive Orcas.”
Killer whales rarely attack humans
Attacks on humans by wild killer whales are rare and are usually blamed on the animals mistaking people for prey. Attacks on wild killer whales by humans were, until recently, far more common and governments encouraged their shooting because of the competition for fish.
A large group of tourists have been caught on camera at Yellowstone National Park refusing to move away from a Bear, despite intervention from two Park Rangers.
In the video, which you can watch below, at least eight people with cameras and phones are gathered near a Black Bear while Rangers attempt to move them along, explaining that it’s for their own safety and that of the animals, and that the rules apply to everyone. Despite these warnings, a few people refuse to budge until they’re satisfied with their pictures, despite the Rangers standing right in front of them.
“Yellowstone National Park isn’t Disney Land. Everything here is beautiful but has the potential of serious harm or death. This bear was 35 yards off the Road don’t get out of your car. It’s a wild animal and can go from grazing to attack in a moment. A man had his kids out of the car 35 yards from a big Black Bear and accused the Rangers of taking the fun out of it. Yellowstone is not a zoo animals can be unpredictable. Be smart be safe and give the animals their space. Stay in your car when they are close to the road.”
“The lack of respect for the rangers and wildlife is beyond infuriating. These people need to understand Yellowstone is not a petting zoo” said one onlooker.
When I got wind of your courageous exploits, I felt I had to congratulate you. For a start, you are British. We adore the British – they are our second favourite colonialists. The first, obviously, are the Dutch. They gave us the Afrikaners who in turn gave us apartheid. What’s not to love about apartheid, right? Was that the reason your parents moved to South Africa in 1980?
Your efforts to encourage tourism to South Africa in these fraught times are laudable, indeed. It’s not easy these days to find a Brit who is interested in anything other than Brexit and that tawdry harlot, Meghan Markle.
Even though you’re only 46 and hail from Epsom, Surrey, you have your very own company operating out of Johannesburg. It’s called Take Aim Safaris. At first I thought it might be another of those bunny-fondling outfits that think the best way to shoot animals is with a camera. Ha! Poor fools. Unlike you, sir, they have clearly never cradled a 300 Winchester Magnum in one arm and a high-class prostitute in the other.
And you named your eldest son Hunter! You wouldn’t expect a man who enjoys shooting animals in the face to have a sense of humour. Well done.
You spotted a gap in the market. As the plague is still very much with us, people are understandably reluctant to travel. That’s until you reminded them that with fewer hunters around, wild animals have been breeding like, well, wild animals. You can barely walk anywhere in South Africa right now without bumping into an elephant.
So you fired off a newsletter to 3,000 of your clients around the world encouraging them to come here and kill a bunch of stuff for sport. And what a sport it is! Okay, maybe not so much for the animals, but they don’t pay taxes and won’t be missed.
You wrote, “Big elephant and trophy buffalo + hippo, croc are plentiful. The areas are well rested, the animal movement is fantastic.” Let’s see how fantastically they move with a 5.56-caliber bullet lodged in their brain haha.
“I have quota available on the big cats: leopard and lion plus elephant bulls at unbeatable prices.” This is great news. I have never trusted an animal that can’t change its spots. Leopards are duplicitous, violent brutes and I am delighted to hear that they are now on special. Lions, too, will pretend to befriend you, then have your throat out just for the sport of it. They are cats, after all. Did you know this? Or do you simply judge everything with four legs according to the price tag on its hairy ass? Fair enough.
Some of your prices do seem a bit steep. $8 for a guinea fowl? Leave a trail of breadcrumbs into your oven and they’ll cook themselves. $150 for a mongoose? Can’t be much left, especially if you’re using hollow-point ammo. And $75 for a vervet monkey? Daylight robbery, that is. Porcupines are priced right at $300. Even though it’s more of an execution than a hunt, you could still get a quill in the eye if you were very drunk and had to fall on him.
In a recent interview with African Hunting Gazette, you said you shot your first leopard at 16. Impressive! I hadn’t even had my first blowjob by that age and there you were on a wild killing spree. Have you had your first blowjob yet? No matter. It’s the killing that’s important.
I love that you hunted for a Christian drug rehab in the Northern Cape when you were younger. You gave them more meat than they knew what to do with. That’s a David Lynch movie, that is. Produced by Oliver Stone. Featuring a young Sylvester Stallone as you.
You’ve hunted all over – Mozambique, Botswana, Zimbabwe … you even shot a bear in Russia. I suppose he didn’t understand when you shouted, “Hands up! Don’t move or I’ll shoot!” You also said Namibia is a great place to hunt.
“Namibia reminds me of South Africa 30 years ago with its low human population and massive open spaces.” Yep, there was hardly anyone living in South Africa in 1991. An easy mistake to make, what with 40 million people being tucked away out of sight. As for the massive open spaces, well, you had the Group Areas Act to thank for that.
The magazine asked what’s your favourite animals to hunt and you said, “Dagga Boys!” What? That was the name of my gang when I was growing up. But you were talking about something else. “Such an exciting hunt … it’s kill or be killed when you’re hunting buffalo.” So you engage in hand-to-hoof combat with these brutes? Respect, bro.
Our president is also into buffalo in a big way. Mainly for breeding purposes, though. No, I don’t mean … never mind.
Your greatest trophy was the buffalo you hunted with your dad in Mozambique. “It was, and remains, the fulfillment of a father and son dream hunt in a perfect environment.”
My greatest trophy was for tennis in Standard 8. It was tiny but I was very proud. My father never taught me how to hunt. Instead, he taught me how to play pool. The thrill just wasn’t the same, although people did die in some of the pubs he took me to.
You talk fondly of the “38-inch bull in Mozambique that put me firmly on a path I’m still on”. That’s, like, just over a metre? What kind of small-ass bull is that? You might as well have kicked him to death. Anyway, what do I know. I’m sure you believe your wife when she tells you that size isn’t everything.
So the hippo-humpers are saying that many of the animals on your list are endangered. This is nonsense. There are around 400 000 African elephants left in the wild. If you shot a hundred a day, they would last for ten years. That’s not exactly endangered in my book.
There are also 20 000 lions roaming about off their leashes. That’s more than enough lions for everyone. You can get through five a day at least, maybe more if they stop hiding up trees and in cardboard boxes. Sure, their numbers have plummeted by over 40% in the last three generations as a result of hunting, but our national IQ has dropped 40 points in three years as a result of bad education and too much CNN and you don’t see us shooting our stupid people, do you? Damn, this stuff is strong.
Where was I? Oh, yes. You charge £10,000 to shoot an elephant? That, my friend, is a small fortune in my pathetic currency. And £14,500 to put a bullet into the back of a lion’s head? That’s way too much. Are you on drugs? Tell you what. I’ll give you R10 000 for two baby elephants, three monkeys and a crocodile. You do mix-and-match packages, right? And you do pay your taxes, right?
I see you have lived in Joburg for almost your entire life. It’s completely understandable, then, that you would want to kill everything in sight. And you’ve been organising assassinations ever since 2008? Nice work if you can get it.
I see those gerbil-suckers over at MailOnline have been questioning your ethics. How very dare they. You told them, “We eat what we hunt … we love and conserve animals.” I’ve often wondered what elephant tastes like. Tough, I imagine. Do you make carpaccio out of the leopards? That would be a winner among the Italians.
You also told the running dogs of the media that “I have broken no laws”. Good one, mate. You and me and Jacob Zuma know it’s impossible to break laws in this country. Well, you can break them alright, but there ain’t jackshit gonna happen to you.
That bastion of truth, The Mirror, asked how you felt about the dwindling number of wild animals in SA. You said they were lying, which they obviously were, and said, “In South Africa we have over 20,000,000 wild animals bred and conserved here. The birth rate per annum is around 3,000,000.” You might want to check your science, son. I think you’re talking about our people, here.
By the way, my friend Ted said you look like a bit of a cunt. You’ll be pleased to know that I had one of the servants horsewhip him soundly. Your name is Knight, for heaven’s sake. You’re a member of the realm. And I do mean member.
I liked the way you wrapped up your interview with that hunting magazine: “For my family and I, there is no life without God.” There’s a rich vein of irony in there somewhere.
Did you know that if your Boris Johnson had kept his word and implemented the ban on trophy imports pledged in his election manifesto and repeated in the Commons last year, you’d be back in Surrey organising weasel hunts by now?
Our president also has trouble keeping his promises. Politicians, eh? Long may they lie.
Ben Trovato is the author of thirteen books, although you wouldn’t think so if you had to see his living conditions. His notorious trilogy of letters illuminated the darkest recesses of the human psyche, while his self-help guide went a long way towards boosting divorce and suicide rates. He also wrote a book that almost turned golf into a blood sport and brought out a survival manual that caused more harm than good. With a background in print and television journalism, Trovato’s popular newspaper columns have earned him a wicked reputation and a fatty liver.He can often be found surfing instead of meeting his deadlines. Trovato lives alone with two regrets and a hangover.
Thandi is a walking miracle who truly should not be here. In 2012, she and two male Rhinos were viciously attacked and poached, leaving them in a pool of blood. When found, one male had already died and rescuers were not sure they would be able to save the remaining male Themba or Thandi.
Dr Will Fowlds Treats Thandi After The Poacher’s Attack
Unfortunately, after three weeks of care, Themba fell victim to his brutal attack and took one last drink from the pool of water. The sheer sadness the rescuer felt after this death would break down the coldest of hearts!
Fortunately, Thandi was a survivor and was able to overcome her mortal wound and go on living. As rescuers continued to help her, she slowly recovered, touching lives all over the world.
Nearly three years after surviving the brutal poaching Thandi gave birth to a calf on 13 January 2015 at Kariega Game Reserve in the Eastern Cape, South Africa.
A Rhino as symbolically special as this one deserved a name to match, and the little calf has just been given a very fitting moniker: ‘Thembi’, which means ‘hope’ in the Xhosa language, one of the official languages of South Africa.
“The name Thembi seemed to fit best given that this little calf has brought fresh hope and energy to those who struggle to secure the future of our Rhino. She is a new generation of life, one I hope will never experience a poaching incident like her mother did” says Dr William Fowlds, one of the vets involved in Thandi’s incredible recovery.
He adds: “Thandi has changed my life. I can’t say it is for the better, as I could never wish to fight a war such as this one but she has inspired action in myself, and many around me. She now celebrates life, and with it the hope that against all odds, we can and we will overcome the massive challenges that threaten the Rhino.”
And then…………
In January 2017 Thembi stepped out without her mother, everyone at Kariega Game Reserve became a little anxious and worried – they thought Thandi had been hit a second time by poachers.
“Kariega started to get worried as Thandi had disappeared for a number of days (which can happen), so they asked me to come and fly my drone to help find her and make sure no harm had come to her. This was the main thing on our minds – to make sure she was alive and not in any trouble.
I met a team at Kariega and we set out flying the area where she goes when she feels threatened or needs to hide away for a while. The wind was gusting badly, which made the search very tricky and by the time flying was reasonably safe, we only had an hour of good light left.
An hour later and there was still no sign of Thandi, but we had seen the rest of her crash, including Thembi. To cover large areas with an aerial camera, you need to fly quite high (80 metres) which also means that even a rhino becomes a spec on a screen and very tricky to spot, even in good light. It’s therefore essential to have a very good camera to record footage but even more important to have a quality screen with excellent resolution to maximise the chance of finding her in real-time.
Fortunately, thanks to Medivet – who sponsored the iPad that I use with the drone – and having the camera set to maximum light sensitivity, we were able to fly for an extra ten minutes after all useful light seems to have gone.
And what a momentous ten minutes it turned out to be! The final sweep back across very dense thicket vegetation on the way back to our home point, the faintest outline of a rhino rolled onto our iPad screen. I could hardly believe my eyes! We found Thandi. At that height. In that light. We could even see if she was dead or alive!
I dropped the drone to 50 metres above her and to our relief, she shifted her body position confirming that she was alive. That in itself was an amazing feeling, knowing that this very special rhino was at least moving around. But we still didn’t know why she had disappeared into the dense thicket.
The drone hovered over her and we stared into that screen, anxious for an explanation. And then suddenly, there he was! From under Thandi’s neck area, out popped the tiniest rhino miniature and we were elated.
What an amazing and wonderful surprise! The gift of a rhino baby delivered by one of the world’s most endearing rhino icons, Thandi. The very fact that this rhino who was severely hacked and left to die five years ago, and who survived against all odds was found, a needle in a haystack, alive and with a toddler at foot.
But there was more good news to come. What happened next wiped away our remaining fears that this baby may be weak or in some sort of trouble. As we watched from above, taking snaps from the iPad, this little bundle began to bump and nuzzle up against Thandi’s pendulous tummy. So small that he couldn’t even reach her udder to feed. His amazing mum responded by sitting down and then lying slightly turned to one side and moved her back leg out to the side, creating a little cove into which this little babe could move and start to feed.
We circled around this scene, absolutely thrilled by what we saw and elated at this incredibly good news. Later that week, when Daniel from Kariega was able to video the two of them in a road-way, we confirmed that he was a baby rhino boy and he was immediately named Colin. This event is so special in so many ways. The founder of this reserve, Colin Rushmere, passed away only days before we found this baby boy and it is very fitting that this special baby boy be named after someone who was such a visionary and a much-loved member of the community”.
May he live a long, safe and happy life, just as his name sake Colin Rushmere had done, and become the father of many.”
Why the name Colin?
The birth of the then unnamed calf came at a time when family and friends were mourning the death of Kariega Game Reserve founder Colin Rushmere 10 days earlier.
Rushmere’s son, Mark, said they had not known Thandi was pregnant when she disappeared and feared she might have been hit a second time by poachers.
“For all we know, the calf was born on the same day dad [Colin] died,” he said.
“We could not find her for a while and were worried. It is all very symbolic.”
Mark said they found out that Thandi had a second calf the day before his father’s funeral, after renowned wildlife vet Dr Will Fowlds sent up a drone to try and locate her.
“The news lifted the mood of the family and we all smiled. It was fantastic and the timing was unbelievable,” he said.
Rushmere, 79, was an Eastern Province cricketer and Mark followed in his footsteps in the provincial team and also turned out for South Africa.
He originally bought 660ha of land on the Kariega River in 1989 and turned it into a 10 000ha mega-park.
Although the sex of the baby rhino has still not been established, Mark said staff and friends were insisting that it be called Colin if it is a male.
Family friend Bronwen d’Oliveira said yesterday everybody was beaming with delight after hearing that Thandi had a second calf.
“Everybody is blown away by the timing. The birth was just so unexpected,” she said.
“Colin’s passing and Thandi’s calf ties everything together very nicely – his vision saved her and then this happens.”
Thandi has given birth to a further three healthy calves.
Mthetho: Born 03 April 2019. Credit: Daniel Haesslich
The Meaning Of Mthetho
The meaning of the name Mthetho is significant. Many Kariega staff members attended court proceedings at the Grahamstown High Court and were waiting for the day of justice. The Ndlovu Gang were suspected to have committed the triple poaching at Kariega on 2 March 2012, when Thandi, Themba and bull 84, where brutally attacked. Bull 84, died on the night of the attack; Themba died 24 days later from injuries sustained during the attack and Thandi survived. The sentencing of this gang was a sensitive topic for us all.
There was a huge sense of relief when the Ndlovu Gang were found guilty of 55 wildlife crimes including the poaching of over 100 rhinos. The Kariega team aptly named Thandi’s third calf, Mthetho, meaning justice in the local language IsiXhosa. Justice was served and Mthetho would remind us always of this moment!
Siya: Born 04 January 2021. Credit: Kariega Game Reserve
In the midst of the Covid-19 crisis, Thandi gifted us with a much needed beacon of hope and birthed her fourth calf. We named this calf Siya, after Springbok rugby captain Siya Kolisi. Siya is an abbreviation of Siyamthanda, which means ‘we love him’ in isiXhosa.
Zolani: Born April 2023 Credit: Kariega Game Reserve
The name Zolani means calm, loving, and free-spirited, and was chosen to honour a @kariega.game.reserve guide who tragically passed away.
The birth of Thandi’s fifth calf is another chapter in the incredible legacy of this magnificent rhino. A legacy that still inspires and motivates us to work harder and do better not only for our rhinos, but the entire natural world.
This is your chance to bid on a pair of signed David De Gea goal keeper gloves in our ‘Charity Auction To Help Disabled Animals’.
This is a sealed bid auction, so all you need to do is decide which item you would like to bid for – noting the reserve price for each – and send us your bid with your name by email to protectallwildlife@btinternet.com by 21:00 on the 31st of May. We will email you to let you know if your bid is the highest. Postage costs will be calculated when the auction ends. Good luck!
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