Captive Lions For Sale At Safari Club International

https://apnews.com/4c575ec1a998cc1222ab44c560910747



Penned lions still on offer at US trophy hunting convention

By MICHAEL BIESECKER
22 minutes ago


WASHINGTON (AP) — An undercover video recorded by animal welfare activists shows vendors at a recent trophy-hunting convention promoting trips to shoot captive-bred lions in Africa, despite past public assurances by the event’s organizers that so-called canned hunts wouldn’t be sold.

Investigators for the Humane Society of the United States captured the footage last week at the annual convention of Safari Club International in Reno, Nevada. SCI is among the nation’s largest trophy-hunting groups and its yearly gatherings typically draw thousands of attendees and hundreds of vendors selling firearms, overseas safari trips and items made from the skins and bones of rare wildlife.


In the video captured by the Humane Society last week, tour operators said the lions for sale were bred in captivity. Typically, the lions are raised in cages and small pens before being released into a larger fenced enclosure. Once reaching young adulthood, customers pay to shoot them and keep the skins, skulls, claws and other body parts for trophies.

“They’re bred in captivity. They’re born in captivity, and then they’re released,” a salesman for Bush Africa Safaris, a South African tour operator, says on the video. “There’s guys who are going to tell you something different on the floor, they’re going to bulls—t you, that is what it is.”

Salesmen from two other safari operators also confirmed they had captive-bred lions for sale , including advertising a bargain-rate of $8,000 for a ranch in South Africa. Multi-day safaris for hunting wild lions can easily cost 10 times that — money that hunting advocates say helps support anti-poaching and conservation efforts in cash-strapped African nations.

“Canned lion hunts have no conservation value and are unethical,” said Kitty Block, president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States. “Lions bred for the sole purpose of being hunted for a trophy is an industry built on a conveyor belt of exploitation and animal cruelty.”

In 2018, SCI issued a policy opposing the hunting of African lions bred in captivity, which the group said is of doubtful value to the conservation of lions in the wild. After the Humane Society captured video of canned hunts being sold at the SCI convention last year, SCI issued a statement pledging not to accept advertising from any operator selling such hunts, nor allow their sale in the vendor booths rented out at its annual convention.

In a statement Wednesday , SCI said its policy against captive-bred hunts had not changed and that it would investigate the issue.

“Safari Club International (SCI) proudly supports the right to hunt; however, SCI does not condone the practice of canned hunting by our members, outfitters, or other partners,” said Robert Brooks, a spokesman for the group. “As sportsmen, we believe hunting is best enjoyed when certain fair chase criteria are met.”

Schalk and Terina van Heerden, the owners of Bush Africa Safaris in Ellisras, South Africa, did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

Despite tweets from President Donald Trump describing big-game hunting as a “horror show,” his administration has consistently moved to expand the list of nations from which the heads and hides of imperiled African elephants, lions and rhinos can be legally imported back into the United States as trophies.

An avid hunter, Donald Trump Jr. was among the featured speakers at the SCI convention last weekend. As part of the festivities, the group auctioned off a weeklong Alaskan “dream hunt” aboard a luxury yacht with the president’s eldest son. Two hunters paid a combined $340,000 to go on the trip.

In addition to the canned hunts on offer, vendors at the SCI convention were advertising a $350,000 hunt for a critically endangered black rhino in Namibia and $35,000 for a guided polar bear hunt in Canada. One safari outfitter from Africa was offering a $25,000 “Trump Special,” inviting hunters to ”make your own drone strike” by shooting a buffalo, sable, roan antelope and crocodile in a single trip.

“This convention does nothing other than celebrate senseless violence towards wildlife,” Block said. “Wild animals are not commodities to be sold, with their deaths something to celebrate. This needs to end.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?...h68&feature=youtu.be

Am I to take from Kitty Block’s comment that she does see conservation value in the hunting of wild lion?

More BS from US nobody's trying to make rules that will affect people 1000's of miles away. When will Kitty's craziness end??? Of course Block is spending how many $$$$ to support conservation?

MB

wesheltonj said:

Trump Special,” inviting hunters to ”make your own drone strike” by shooting a buffalo, sable, roan antelope and crocodile in a single trip.

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Love the marketing! As long as they're not actually hunting with a drone...

I certainly hope the sale of canned hunting at the convention is not true. I for one really dislike the idea. Bad publicity is not what we need, specifically at a hunting convention. Positive publicity would be nice for a change, educational seminars possibly for the non hunting public would be an idea. And yes of course I understand we won’t change everyone’s mind but social media does zero to promote both sides of the issue. It’s up to us to TRY.

johnnyblues said:

I certainly hope the sale of canned hunting at the convention is not true. I for one really dislike the idea.

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Ditto Blues Brother Hunting Lions in pens is an abomination and a black eye for hunting...

“They’re bred in captivity. They’re born in captivity, and then they’re released,” a salesman for Bush Africa Safaris, a South African tour operator, says in the video. “There’s guys who are going to tell you something different on the floor, they’re going to bulls--t you, that is what it is.”

Salesmen from two other safari operators also confirmed they had captive-bred lions for sale, including advertising a "bargain rate" of $8,000 for a ranch in South Africa.

Lol. I'm with you gents, but this is likely to be interesting.

Didn't SCI and DSC come out with policies against this type of lion hunting one or two years ago? And if this is correct, why would they allow outfitters that promote it to have booths/tables at their conventions? I realize that SCI can't stop it by having a policy against it, but they probably shouldn't have an outfitter openly advertising that type of hunt at there show either.

I wouldn’t take the word of the humane society as proof. Do we actually know that someone was selling canned hunts?

All you need to know is this is from HSUS. Vegan activists who want to not only end hunting but take away your steak and puppy dogs!

WAB said:

I wouldn’t take the word of the humane society as proof. Do we actually know that someone was selling canned hunts?

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I would not either, but the video says otherwise.

sierraone said:

Didn't SCI and DSC come out with policies against this type of lion hunting one or two years ago? And if this is correct, why would they allow outfitters that promote it to have booths/tables at their conventions? I realize that SCI can't stop it by having a policy against it, but they probably shouldn't have an outfitter openly advertising that type of hunt at there show either.

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SCI was to ban the selling of canned hunt at their show. Looks like someone dropped the ball on vetting the exhibitors.

They (Humane Society) will complain regardless of what type of Hunt is offered. SCI needs to combat the Humane Society by informing US hunters how anti-hunting the Humane Society is. Everyone needs to stop putting donations in their little wooden dog houses.

sierraone said:

Didn't SCI and DSC come out with policies against this type of lion hunting one or two years ago? And if this is correct, why would they allow outfitters that promote it to have booths/tables at their conventions? I realize that SCI can't stop it by having a policy against it, but they probably shouldn't have an outfitter openly advertising that type of hunt at there show either.

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While I understand the effect bad publicity has on the hunting community, I'm tired of so many people and organizations bowing down to the crazy, unreasonable animal rights activist. The ARA contribute basically nothing to conservation, so their opinion matters zero to me.

If SCI and DSC didn't allow outfitters that took part in so-called "canned" lion hunts, there would basically be no outfitters from South Africa at the shows...

There are still many idiots interested in canned lion hunting. An activity which hasn’t anything in common with going after a wild lion. Can’t even be called hunting.

I think an opportunity for some education may be in order, lions are an emotional issue. Last thing we need is hunters attacking hunters for something they may "feel" is wrong, adding to the BS and not having the real details. (That's what Kitty is doing). There are many posts on this site on subject, anyone wanting to learn the real info can look up the SAPA document below and gather a wealth of knowledge on subject. Most SA company's who offer this hunt ARE posting on this site.

Those who confuse these hunts with old labelled "canned" hunts loudly profess their ignorance. Do those who condemn this newly regulated practice feel the same for the NA elk ranches, fenced Texas ranches, most SA and Namibia PG hunts, fenced NZ ranches or even the small rural property owner who hunts his back yard feeder deer????

Below is SCI link to their statement on subject.
https://www.safariclub.org/blog/sci-reinforces-statement-captive-bred-lions

I will be up front, I am booked with an AH outfitter for a captive breed lion hunt for this summer, as many are. I have no qualms for what this is, no false details to make it anything it is not. All I ask is that all SAPA regs are followed. My finances will never allow me to hunt a wild lion, captive breed are my only option. Lions must be hunted following all SAPA regs, its the experience I strive for, this hunt will feed that.

I say its time hunters put their feeling/attitudes/beliefs aside and unite. If the hunt you are participating in is a LEGAL hunt with paperwork, permits and rules followed I will not judge others. If we attack each other over ignorant feelings/beliefs then we are the same as Kitty Block.

MB

It would not surprise me at all that outfitters were selling captive bred lion hunts at SCI or DSC or anywhere else for that matter. Regardless of what some may think about these hunts, they are legal in South Africa, and there is a demand for them. They may not be advertised at the shows anymore, but if you ask, and are interested, and seem like a hunter, I have no doubt that many outfitters will accommodate. That's the business they're in.

We should make it clear, though, that there is a difference between a canned lion hunt and a captive bred lion hunt. I realize some don't want to make that distinction, but if you refuse to make it, then there are a great many places in Texas and elsewhere which would be engaged in "canned" hunting of many types of animals. Full disclosure - I have hunted captive bred lion on a 9,000 acre property and it was a more challenging hunt than many I have been on. The lion had every opportunity to elude us if he had chosen too. But given the nature of lions, they will eventually tire of eluding you and decide to confront you.

The challenge we face as hunters is that when things such as these semi-clandestine sales happen, we tend to lose the PR war. The antis are free to spout lies and half truths, which they regularly do. Note the use of "larger fenced enclosure" as distinct from "small pens" in the HSUS release - almost no non-hunter would expect that the "larger fenced enclosure" could be thousands of hectares with wild game for the lions to feed on. The antis know that the media is no place for nuance, so the Big Lie stands.

I wish there was an easy answer to all of this, but other than stating and restating the facts, and getting facts out there in various ways (such as Phillip Glass in the film "Trophy") I'm not sure what else we can do. At least until hunters' organizations, and those which cater to them - outfitters, manufactures, retailers, etc. band together to fight as one, cohesive, well-financed group, we are left with what we have. And the current trend is not positive.

I may also add that captive breed lions ARE CITES exportable and importable. To all Countries who signed an international agreement and then follow that agreement.

MB

They are just trying to mud the water. No problem with a captive bred lion hunt. Do no let them divide the hunting community.

I see Hank and MarkB unerstands the concept of captive bred lion.

There is a reason why one is called Canned the other called captive bred lion they are not the same at all.
If you hunt behind a fence in South Africa you are hunting captive bred animals doesnt matter if it's a impala or a lion.

Canned hunting is not legal and goes something like this Lion gets drugged moved to a small area 100 for example hectares overnight. Its still getting over its bad hangover and bang hunters are shooting the lion already still sleepy under the tree.
Sales pitch went like this there is a problem lion that just caught a cow last week do you want to grab the opportunity to hunt a problem lion?

Captive bred lion is legal and no stories and lies yes the lion was bred and then released long before the hunt in a large area free to do whatever it wants (Catch game and eat it) some properties have more than just the one released lion in the area making it more realistic. Hunting is done by tracking and finding the lion this could be 1 day or even 4-5 days depending on area and how smart the lion is. Normally the hunt is done over 3 days to be successful. It can get very exiting and hairy when lion stands its ground behind bushes and thick stuff and you cannot see it.

This way Lion hunts are affordable and save the numbers in the wild its not everybodies cup of tea but when those yellow eyes peer at you over the long grass at 20 paces it becomes real.