Does Your PH Shoot Your Game Animals?

On another thread a poster alluded to the fact that some PH's are shooting clients game.

Speaking for my self i do my own shooting on all my plains game.

How about the others on this Forum?

However with wounded Dangerous game if the PH feels he needs to assist me after we have a wounded DGA on the loose and being tracked i do not have a problem with that.

How about the others on this forum?

The post you are referring to was mine. I shoot my own game.

I also do not have a problem with a PH who feels he needs to assist me/protect himself on dangerous game.

Good post guys. I have heard so many people bragging on how they had to shoot their clients animals. To me a PH that talks like that is not in the business to provide his client with an excellent service and hunt but to fullfil his own need of shooting animals. Yes we all do like to hunt ourselves as well but that is why we hunt and pay our own animals.

DG is a different stoty but I also believe that there is a fine line on wounded plains game to where a PH should help out a client if there is a possibillity that the client may loose a wounded animal if there is not another shot put into it quickly.

We however always try to give the client's the oppertunity to kill his own trophy. With my little dog Bullet it is much easier these days as he will corner and fight the wounded animal which gives me and the client more than enough time to stalk up quitely and have the client shoot and kill his own animal.

It will be intresting to see what other people think about this post...

Best regards,

Jacques

Originally Posted by Hartzview Hunting Safaris

Good post guys. I have heard so many people bragging on how they had to shoot their clients animals. To me a PH that talks like that is not in the business to provide his client with an excellent service and hunt but to fullfil his own need of shooting animals. Yes we all do like to hunt ourselves as well but that is why we hunt and pay our own animals.

DG is a different stoty but I also believe that there is a fine line on wounded plains game to where a PH should help out a client if there is a possibillity that the client may loose a wounded animal if there is not another shot put into it quickly.

We however always try to give the client's the oppertunity to kill his own trophy. With my little dog Bullet it is much easier these days as he will corner and fight the wounded animal which gives me and the client more than enough time to stalk up quitely and have the client shoot and kill his own animal.

It will be intresting to see what other people think about this post...

Best regards,

Jacques

I could not agree more with you Jacques!

My latest PH didn't even carry a gun in the field. He said, "It is bad luck!"

My PH on my first trip only carried a 45 pistol.

When dealing with DG, you have a whole different set of circumstances!

The PH s I have hunted with (4), will not shoot a client s animal, unless life is in danger.

I like it this way.

On the other hand, other hunters I know, want the PH to back them up, so as not to risk losing the trophy.

Just got back from East cape of RSA 8 days ago. 4 hunters. All plains game. None of the Ph's carried a weapon. Entirely up to us.
As far as backing up on DG I'm fine with that. Just don't shoot unless its necessary. Bruce

On plains game the PHs I've hunted with only carried a gun when we were in DG territory for a just in case scenario, or we were after DG itself. I wouldn't want a PH to shoot any of my game unless extremely necessary.

On my recent hunt my PH carried his gun twice. But it was only on wounded animals. My Gemsbuck the shot was high but there was no need for a second shot. He went down after about 300 yards. My dads bushbuck was the other time. My dad can't get around quickly so our PH took my 30-06 instead of his .375 And went after the bushbuck with his dog and finished him off for my dad after about 100 yards. The other 9 animals he didn't even carry his gun. I feel this was all appropriate and I would not want my PH to shoot my animal. But I understand DG situations. I wouldn't go without a gun so why should he! I am one to carry a gun with me whenever I go in the woods. One never knows what can happen in the woods. Bear, wolf, lion, leopard, a squirrel with rabies, all good reasons to carry a gun. As long as he uses it to protect himself, I don't care it he carries one on every stalk.

In all my trips to date, when hunting plains, game my PH was armed with shooting sticks. Dangerous game a different issue, and I have no problem leaving a follow-up shot to his discretion. That said, on Buff and Leopard follow-up was not an issue.

Originally Posted by Hartzview Hunting Safaris

We however always try to give the client's the oppertunity to kill his own trophy. With my little dog Bullet it is much easier these days as he will corner and fight the wounded animal which gives me and the client more than enough time to stalk up quitely and have the client shoot and kill his own animal.

Jacques I want to see some video of Bullet fighting with and cornering something from a GOPRO in his back.

On the topic:
The PH is there to get you in on game as Jacques says.
You should be able to do your own shooting and hopefully not need help. However, if you wound it, you waste your hunting time tracking the wounded game.
Precious hunting time wasted on bad shooting.

On DG I hope the PH will show the good sense and capacity to save his butt and mine if required, until then it's my trophy.

Originally Posted by BRICKBURN

Jacques I want to see some video of Bullet fighting with and cornering something from a GOPRO in his back.

Hey Bricburn,

I will post some videos as soon as I get the camera... I am still waiting for it as it is still in the mail. I will post a video of him fighting a female blesbuck wounded by a local guy not long ago. Thank you for the interest!

Best regards,

Jacques

Fresh out of PH -course! Nobody wants someone else doing the shooting for them! When going on a safari you prepare your self for month and even years. You handload your bullets, you learn your ballistics , you train on difficult shots, practise distance and even trophy judgement. You prepare your self and build up the pressure... When you are finally there , having stalked for hours , find the position ,correct shot placement you want to squeese your own trigger... that is the climax!
That said there are situations were the PH should and must shoot.. in danger of human life, with a wounded animal or if the animal is moving beyond the borders you can follow!
The PH should allways carry a weapon, either it is plainsgame or big game. He need to be able to use it in the situations above. The weapon is his tool. What if the clints gun braks down, what if a black mamba suddenly want to say hi, what if a rabies infected dog comes along.. I can go on for a while with "what ifs "
Thats my oppinion!
Good thread
-Jostein

Jvalha

First i would like to welcome you to AH. I see you are a new member...

Second...congratulations on becoming a Professional hunter...not every one who takes the course will pass the SA course material...

You have brought up some great points that we have all overlooked...

Originally Posted by jvalha

Fresh out of PH -course! Nobody wants someone else doing the shooting for them!

When going on a safari you prepare your self for month and even years. You hand-load your bullets, you learn your ballistics , you train on difficult shots, practice distance and even trophy judgement.

You prepare your self and build up the pressure... When you are finally there , having stalked for hours , find the position ,correct shot placement you want to squeese your own trigger... that is the climax!

That said there are situations were the PH should and must shoot.. in danger of human life, with a wounded animal or if the animal is moving beyond the borders you can follow!

The PH should always carry a weapon, either it is plains-game or big game.

He need to be able to use it in the situations above. The weapon is his tool.

What if the clients gun beaks down, what if a black mamba suddenly want to say hi, what if a rabies infected dog comes along..

I can go on for a while with "what ifs "

That's my opinion!

Good thread
-Jostein

I spread out your reply and added spelling and high-lite.

Good points jvalha. The one that I keyed in on was 'if the animal is moving beyond the borders you can follow'. I am sure that the only thing worse than losing an amimal would be having to look at it from a few hundred yards away laying on some game reserve where it could not be retreived.

As Jostein says:

The PH should allways carry a weapon, either it is plainsgame or big game. He need to be able to use it in the situations above. The weapon is his tool. What if the clints gun braks down, what if a black mamba suddenly want to say hi, what if a rabies infected dog comes along.. I can go on for a while with "what ifs "

I agree. PH carrying his weapon does not mean using it. Just in case

Thanks for the welcome, though I have been lurking this forum for many years.
beeing from Norway my reading english is waaaaayyy better then my written..
so please parden my english
-Jostein

Not unless the animal is about to eat, stomp or maul one of us....

If it is a plains game hunt I would think the best gun a PH could carry would be an anti-snake shotgun LOL

This is quite simple, each one is free to ask his PH to carry his weapon or not