Mike B.
AH enthusiast
Here is a warning for everyone in hopes that you will avoid some severe frustration. In October 2024, I hunted in Zimbabwe. My main target at the time was for elephant, but ended up taking croc, hippo and a few others as well. After being successful, I decided that I wanted to get it all imported and so I reached out to Wyatt to get the process started. I had used SSI on every Africa trip before this all the way back to 2017. So even before the ownership change. Basically a trip every year worth of imports. The taxidermist and my outfitter had supplied him with everything they thought was needed. I had reached out in early 2025 and asked Wyatt about the permit process and if everything was good and if he needed my help with anything. He said no, everything is good and was submitted. Around June I followed up again to see if and response was received and if they needed anything additional. I sent an additional email from a different email address because I didn’t get a response. I got a call from him that same day. My emails were going to spam. During that call, he assured me everything was going good and nothing to worry about regarding the permit and that it just takes time to get the approval. I believe I reached out again late 2025 asking again, same response. The last time I asked was on April 1, 2026. He once again assured me all was well and he was hoping it’d be soon. This was his response to me on the 1st. To give some context I was also asking about my crate from Namibia that was supposedly in JFK at that time and if the DHS funding issues were causing any delays. More on that later.
Shortly after this, on April 15, I received several texts from the taxidermist and outfitter asking me questions about the permit process and something wasn’t sitting right with them. They were being asked for information that had already been provided. I reached out to Wyatt to find out what the deal was and asked for a no bullshit answer. I got a phone call from him almost immediately. He told me that he had never submitted the paperwork and that he had no excuse for it.
So for 18 months, I sat here thinking my application had been submitted yet not one thing had been done on it. All the while being lied to multiple times saying that my application was in. I can’t even begin to tell you how mad I was about this. I had to pivot and so I reached out to Adventure Permits and got Jerad on it right away. Any silver lining in this is that I got my permit approval today. Just under 2 months from the application date.
One of my biggest complaints with Wyatt is he is always very slow to get things cleared and it’s obvious why. He doesn’t actually do any of the clearing, he is using Cargo Tours as the clearing agent. Crates will sit in JFK for a month or more before any movement happens with them. I can only assume he follows up with Cargo Tours whenever he remembers to or if a client asks him about it.
Now onto my crate from Namibia. The shipper in Namibia emailed us letting us know that the crate would be shipped soon. This was March 20th. I reached out on the 27th to ask if they made it on the plane. On the 29th he responded that they were in JFK.
I followed up on this a few times, obviously the April 1 email, April 28th, and again on May 20. I got an email on May 21st saying the items cleared and got a shipping waybill number. With this, I was given the 3177 form. On it had the waybill for the shipment from Namibia. It turns out that the crate sat in Ethiopia for about 3 weeks and didn’t arrive in JFK until the 19th.
No mention of this was given to me as I was assured it had arrived in JFK. The paperwork for this crate was submitted electronically on April 27th, and fully cleared on May 1st. It then sat there for 20 more days before I followed up and for him to ship it.
I have been hesitant to post all of this before my crate finally arrived and I am still hesitant to do it because my bro in laws crate, which shipped the exact same shipment as mine, still supposedly has not been cleared from JFK or shipped.
Sadly, Wyatt can’t seem to tell anyone the truth to save his life. I know of others who have had the same issue with important CITES permits as well as they have posted on other forums about it. I guess he was also kicked out of SCI according to their February print. I can only imagine it’s for all of this poor behavior.
I know this was a long winded post but wanted to get this information out there so people can see who it is they are working with if they decide to still use him.
Shortly after this, on April 15, I received several texts from the taxidermist and outfitter asking me questions about the permit process and something wasn’t sitting right with them. They were being asked for information that had already been provided. I reached out to Wyatt to find out what the deal was and asked for a no bullshit answer. I got a phone call from him almost immediately. He told me that he had never submitted the paperwork and that he had no excuse for it.
So for 18 months, I sat here thinking my application had been submitted yet not one thing had been done on it. All the while being lied to multiple times saying that my application was in. I can’t even begin to tell you how mad I was about this. I had to pivot and so I reached out to Adventure Permits and got Jerad on it right away. Any silver lining in this is that I got my permit approval today. Just under 2 months from the application date.
One of my biggest complaints with Wyatt is he is always very slow to get things cleared and it’s obvious why. He doesn’t actually do any of the clearing, he is using Cargo Tours as the clearing agent. Crates will sit in JFK for a month or more before any movement happens with them. I can only assume he follows up with Cargo Tours whenever he remembers to or if a client asks him about it.
Now onto my crate from Namibia. The shipper in Namibia emailed us letting us know that the crate would be shipped soon. This was March 20th. I reached out on the 27th to ask if they made it on the plane. On the 29th he responded that they were in JFK.
I followed up on this a few times, obviously the April 1 email, April 28th, and again on May 20. I got an email on May 21st saying the items cleared and got a shipping waybill number. With this, I was given the 3177 form. On it had the waybill for the shipment from Namibia. It turns out that the crate sat in Ethiopia for about 3 weeks and didn’t arrive in JFK until the 19th.
No mention of this was given to me as I was assured it had arrived in JFK. The paperwork for this crate was submitted electronically on April 27th, and fully cleared on May 1st. It then sat there for 20 more days before I followed up and for him to ship it.
I have been hesitant to post all of this before my crate finally arrived and I am still hesitant to do it because my bro in laws crate, which shipped the exact same shipment as mine, still supposedly has not been cleared from JFK or shipped.
Sadly, Wyatt can’t seem to tell anyone the truth to save his life. I know of others who have had the same issue with important CITES permits as well as they have posted on other forums about it. I guess he was also kicked out of SCI according to their February print. I can only imagine it’s for all of this poor behavior.
I know this was a long winded post but wanted to get this information out there so people can see who it is they are working with if they decide to still use him.
