Who doesn't bring trophies home?
International
So it occurs to me that a guy could save some serious change by NOT bringing any of your African trophies home. Has anyone done that and regretted it? Or just the opposite, brought them home and wish they hadn't? I think I would be good with good quality pictures and maybe a backskin or two.....just can't see dedicating a lot of room to an African collection. Weigh in Please! Thanks, Kip
Why go shoot it if you have no use for it?
I have brought it all home on both of my trips to Africa. Next time I will probably mount a couple of animals and the rest will be euro skull mounts. You can save a lot by going the skull mount route.
Plus, they look really cool.
go shoot all cull animals, trophy fees are alot less. Forrest
I have done both. Too bad there isn't a reasonable option if you just wanted to bring home one or two of the trophies, but not all of them, at a reasonable price. But that's not the case. It costs pretty close to the same to bring home 2 or 6, 7 etc.
There are ways to save money, but leaving my trophy's in Africa would not be one of them. I really get a lot of enjoyment from my mounts, pretty much on a daily basis - even visitors appreciate the man-cave. Enjoy my photos too, but those mounts are unique and impressive.
There are ways to cut money on the shipping. For one, don't dip/pack and ship backskins. That will save you money all the way around.
Also, I don't understand why people pay so much money to import brokers, like Flora and Fauna and Coopersmith. Three trips now and everytime I have had the crate shipped directly to a taxidermist who clears the crate at the airport. Then I just pick it up or have it trucked to my house.
You spend the bulk of your money between trophy fees and daily rates. Compared to that a guy doesn't spend much to get a crate home. Also...this bill is usually due a few months after you get home, which gives you some added time to save for this bill.
the question was posed...........Why go shoot it if you have no use for it?
Does putting a dead animal on the wall really constitute "using it"?
Agreed above... Mounting an animal is hardly using it. lol I hunt things because I want to, plain and simple. I don't have to pay a few grand to look at the deteriorating skin of it to justify killing it. A quality pic will represent it better anyway IMO. I hunt for the experiences. Any skulls, mounts, meat I get from it is purely a bonus to me.
I have about 2300 hunts on the list before Africa, but if/when I make it over across the pond the only way I'd bring em back is if I did euros. You could pull a return trip EASILY for what most guys pay to ship/mount their critters back home. I'd rather return to the field than have yet another animal head to have to find a place for.
I understand what you guys are saying...but the numbers just don't add up. How much money are you really saving by not shipping critters home? There is no way it is enough to make up for the cost of another trip.
For example...2011 DVS Safari...I shot 4 animals and had the horns and capes dipped/packed by Swift Dip...$100 each plus VET certificate/crated...$660. The shipping of the crate to Anchorage, AK..direct...was only $1136 AND that was split between two of us. Even if I paid the shipping myself and didn't split it...the total cost is LESS than $1800. You cannot make a return trip to Africa for $1800...you can't even buy the plane ticket for that.
I am not trying to argue with anyone...just my 2cents. I would only suggest that before you make the decision not to ship any critters home, just be aware of your options, what the dip and pack fees are...etc.
There is a difference in having a use for something and using it as a tool is used.
Think of a portrait. You purchase it, if you have a use for it, it is hung for display, like a mount or tusk. If you have no use for it, it goes in the attic. Then, you must ask, what was that purchased for, I have no use for it?
Not everything is used as a tool, like a hammer or saw.
I went on several extended safari's but only shot what I had an interest in displaying,(in other words, had a use for) or animals used for food. Never killed many of the animals that were on permit. (Had no use for them.) I could have killed dozens of animals I had no interest in. I returned from 30 day safaris with a few very nice specimens, all of which were fully utilized, meat, hide, horn, antler or tusk.
So, it is a valid question? Why shoot animals that you will not eat, utilize for clothing or display? Furthermore, the question was directed to the original poster.
My total taxidermy bill from 6 animals in Africa was $36. I just mount the skull cap on a cherry board cut into the shape of an arrow head. Getting the stuff back was expensive, but I do enjoy having the memories that they bring to me, so it was worth it to me.
TBB
In response to Peyton, I said taxidermy and shipping. How much does it then cost to get shoulder mounts of those 6 critters (especially at Alaska Taxidermy Prices)? I'd say a return trip is certainly doable for the taxidermy/shipping bill of an average safari...
In response to R Hale, open forums invite open answers from all members. I still contend that if an animal is eaten by the natives, why does it matter that you then bring it home to stuff it and put it on the wall? I don't have anything against taxidermy at all as I find it fascinating to look at, I just can't imagine only dropping the string on animals I intend to mount and find a place for from there on out.
RHale, Here I am and are you serious??? So your opinion is if someone chooses to do something different than you would do it they should be questioned as to the justification of participation?? Really...OK, Let me ask you a couple questions. How much of your African animals meat did you ship back home for your personal consumption (never heard of anyone doing that)? How many sets of underwear have you had made from your "SELECT" species hides? And for your information, a nicely taken photograph "DISPLAYS" just as well as a full mount or Euro....I have both of many species. So, much of the value of a hunt like this comes from the experience and the thrill of the hunt. Even if I choose to not bring anything home does that mean it will be utilized less than any of your animals? Only in your mind. The meat will still be given to the locals (like yours) as well as any other useable part of the animal and I have the same memories as you do if not better because mine will not be cluttered with senseless terms like yours.
TE....point taken, and yes you could certainly spend a fortune on taxidermy, at AK prices more than a fortune! You could always ship the capes and horns back and save the capes for a rainy day if you ever decided to use them. But I understand your point. Just shipping horns back wouldn't cost much at all in the scheme of things.
I have done both. Lately, I have simply been taking great photos and putting them on canvas and hanging them in my trophy area.
It. Is simply up to you. I didn't feel the need to have 10 impala on the wall, 3 zebra, etc.
Hmmm.... You asked people here to weigh in on your statement then you castigate those that have the opposite view about why they hunt selectively and are excited about bringing all their bringing trophies home. Your question was aimed at getting approval of the obvious notion that not bringing anything home will save you some "serious change". No kidding.
This kind of trip is usually expensive for most of us and warrants serious consideration about what you want to get out of it. In your case it is obviously not measured in returning with physical objects (trophy parts) and that's fine; but I don't think it is reasonable for you to then question other people's motives for hunting there when you were the one who asked for their opinions in the first place. Go and enjoy the hunt. I think every one who has been knows how much fun it is regardless of what's done with your trophies.
Oh, and for the uninitiated, in most of the hunting operations (RSA) when you purchase a game animal you shoot, you have purchased only the trophy parts not any of the meat. It is usually sold to the local meat market who send refrigerated trucks out routinely to pick it up from the operation's meat lockers. Sure they save plenty back to feed everyone a variety of the game shot, but most is sold and I not necessarily given to feed the local natives. However, in the case of elephant it is different and usually in more remote areas where villages are allowed to take the meat.
FYI, the USDA will not allow any form of meat from Africa to enter through customs. So, no US hunter can bring it home to begin with.
I have been twice. When I go again, I think I will only take good pictures because it did cost a lot to ship them back. I enjoy my pictures as much as the skulls.
mac
I've killed a lot of deer, elk and antelope, yet I don't feel the need to mount every one I take, only the rare very large specimens. Similarly, I don't feel the need to mount everything I take in Africa. I am hopelessly addicted to hunting there, and have been several times and will go several more times I'm sure. I brought back some of the species I think make the nicest looking mounts, and I don't bring back those that I don't.
The trophy that I bring back that means the most to me, is the video that I shoot.
AZ, Wait just one minute, who is castigating who? Yes I asked for opinions but RHales first response was anything but constructive, rather quite accusatory and demeaning because he has his own idea of how it should be done. All things being equal the only difference between his hunt and maybe mine is he brought his capes and horns back to display...why is that a better utilization of the resource than if I bring back top quality photos to display? Wouldn't the cape/skin and/or horns be better utilized if they were left for the locals for use in traditional garments and/or ornaments or for that matter if they earned some additional money for the family or tribe from them? FYI, This really isn't about the money Have a Good day.
AZ, he's talking to a guy who feels all NR big game hunter should be required to use a guide. The "common" DIY bowhunter just to inept and/or unethical to do things on their own.
Arrogant condensation is the order of the day..... i. e. if you can't afford to do it "right" don't bother.... the experience will be lost on you....
If offered a polar bear hunt; what percentage of hunters would refuse it, based on having to leave 100% of it behind?
Are we paying for the hunt? lol I couldn't justify the cost of a full priced polar bear hunt in the first place, much less if I couldn't bring it home. Steeply discounted so I could afford it? I'd go in a heartbeat!
TEmbry,
Perfect answer.
Some go mostly for the value of the hunting experience. Some go mostly for the trophies they will bring home. For some...no trophies = worthless trip. Others are content with their memories, their photos and video, and the private things they bring back. Most guys want some of both things. I've learned not to judge the guy who is less interested in the horns and hair...as he just might be more dedicated to hunting than he is to killing. I really could worry less about someone who goes there (Africa) and kills animals but chooses to come home with none of them. Some guys catch big fish and give them away, too.
Kevin,
The catch and release example is a good one. Why do we hunt? I love dead critters on the wall but I hunt for the experience and some of my most memorable hunts ended without a dead critter.
For the record, I would want to bring home some mounts if I killed something.
Scott.
Yeah I looked into mounting 4 animals (euro mounts). To mount and ship is about 2K. I'm seriously considering taking a lot of pictures.
I love every single mount, and look at them all and remember the experiences. On the other hand, the pile of backskins goes back 18 years. It is all whatever turns you on and you can afford to pay for. It is all a luxury from beginning to end so don't forget that. If there was a place to skimp I would leave the backskins or any skin that you did not have a designated plan for and either mount the antlers/skulls/tusks on a plague or or do taxidermy. Photos are perfectly reasonable, but for me they don't have the same punch. I am planning for my fourth trip over in 18 years for this coming July. I really don't have much wall space and my wife is not warm to these mounts, so it will be very interesting to see what I do end up deciding. I am sure that most will be Euro mounts, but I am equally sure that I will do a wall mount or even (crazy me) my first pedestal. You can always get around to things after years in the closet, but once left behind it is forever. Just as an example, I had a blesbok shoulder mount that I always hated, and after ten years I had a taxidermist pull the horns off and mount them on a plague and dump the rest. I actually like seeing it that way better as it doesn't annoy me when I look at it, like it did before.
Steve
I went to RSA in June of this year. Never thought I would get the chance until my stepson approached me with the idea. YES dip and pack, shipping, broker, and taxidermy will double the cost, but I knew that going in. Since it was a one time trip for me, I'm retired now, for me it was all about quality animals I could hang on the wall. When all is said and done I will enjoy looking at them daily along with my pics. My choice of course, but leaving them back there was never a consideration. I understand for some it might seem ridiculous to spend the money on mounting the heads for the wall. For me it's money well spent, right along with the cost of going. Decide what you want to do before you go, then stick with your decision. Happy Hunting.
I still don't understand the broker thing. Why pay a broker company to do anything? How much does that cost?
Peyton, some folks like me had their taxidermy finished in Africa and don't live near an approved port of entry. The broker I used several years ago charged a couple hundred bucks to do the paper work and make arrangements with a trucking company to forward the crate(s).
As to the OP's original question, I would say do what you want. It's your hunt and your money. I left parts and pieces of my trophies behind with zero regrets. Edited to add: You should also be made aware that in some countries in Africa (Namibia for example) if you choose not to export your trophies you will be charged an extra Value Added Tax (I believe 15% last time I checked) on the trophy fee for each trophy. Depending on what you shoot there, that VAT may be a substantial sum. Just food for thought...
I paid for my Cape Buff Skull and cape to be sent back and never saw it again....my freind had TWO Cape Buff skulls and capes and never saw them either....
But..... I wanted some memento along with the picture and it inspired me to do my first bronze...and now sculpting is a big part of my life .....
Last time I was in Namibia I took springbok horns with me as checked baggage. Whenever possible I rather take the trophies with me. I have no need for shoulder mounts or skins. It saves a lot of money and effort + often long wait.
"If offered a polar bear hunt; what percentage of hunters would refuse it, based on having to leave 100% of it behind?"
There's still a chance that with a change in administration/congress that the hide could be brought back in the future.
"Last time I was in Namibia I took springbok horns with me as checked baggage."
What did you do with it when you arrived in the United States? Did you declare it somehow with US Customs or some other agency?
Lucky the US.Customs did not find them in your checked bag. It would have not only cost you the horns being confiscated, but possibly a fine as well. Any antelope parts coming back have to be dipped for Anthrax and verified with government permits before clearing our customs.
I think after the first trip (and mounting everything you take) you decide that it might be better to save all of the fees and take pictures, etc. I have been on 10 safaris now and I only take pictures home. On top of that, I mostly hunt for cull animals as I enjoy the experience more than the "trophy" on my wall. That being said, some of the bigger price range items (cape buff) are on my wall. I guess it all depends on what the hunter wants. I am at a point personally where I would rather hunt a lot than have more taxidermy.
"If offered a polar bear hunt; what percentage of hunters would refuse it, based on having to leave 100% of it behind?"
"There's still a chance that with a change in administration/congress that the hide could be brought back in the future."
Absolutely. My only point is that people do go on hunts with the certain knowledge they'll be bringing home no animal parts, trophies, etc. It all stays behind. They are after the hunt (and kill) more than what they get to bring home.
btw: I hope you're right about an admin/congress change!
Sorry, yes forgot to mention that I am from Europe. It has not been a problem to horns etc. in a checked baggage. Of course it illegal to bring any cites stuff or raw meat.
im going and i am considering not bringing the horns home....just going to take alot of some great photos.
Lately, I just make a photo collage of trips on one 12x20 poster type, framed picture.
I hope I dont regret it....but when i do the math....for me, the mounts (nice as they are) dont add up.
Having said that....if money was no issue at all.....I'd have 'em all done lol
