Are Sable a Hard Hunt?

[FB1416]

I am heading back to Africa in two months, and I am planning on taking a sable. Are they a hard hunt? We have seen several
on previous safaris and they seem somewhat docile. When I have asked outfitters about it at hunting shows, they have just kind of
gave somewhat ambiguous answers. No doubt they are beautiful, symbolic of Africa, and were somewhat immortalized
by Hemingway, but are they worth the PRICE TAG? Any info is greatly appreciated.

 

[375Fox]

Depends where you hunt them. A sable on a game farm is a very different animal than a wild sable. Species like kudu are the same animal inside and outside the fence to me, but a sable isn’t.

 

[RR 314]

I had a PH tell me they were limited in numbers in their native range because they were easy to kill by man. He had been told by others that it was not uncommon for meat hunters to take out the majority of a herd relatively easily in one hunt (depending on the need for meat etc.). They are beautiful animals and decide after you see them on the concession.

 

[Flipper Dude]

Hunt a wild sable. You’ll be disappointed otherwise. My $.02. Hunt may or may not be any harder, but you’ll know it’s a wild sable, and that matters to me. Took mine in Mozambique in river reeds. I’ve only seen two shot on game farm in SA and they just spotted it from the truck, walked up and shot it.

Now, they were both bigger than mine

 

[mark-hunter]

Each commodity has a costumer. Each price tag, has a buyer.
Sable is premium animal.
Trophy fee alone for sable is worth alone as full inclusive basic plains game starter package.
For first time hunter, better to take a full package of 5 less expensive animals.

Then there is a question:
Are you for a hunt, or are you for a trophy?

So, there are number of variables to consider.

I will divide sable in two types of hunt, or two categories:
wild sable and fenced sable.

Sable in the fence
I have seen and approached sable in the fence, number of times. It was not hard approach.
I believe I could shoot it with the level of skill of beginner hunter / beginner rifleman.
But on a safari, I pursue "the hunt" not "the trophy".
The price did not justify me pressing the trigger.

So for me getting a sable in the fence is not worth it.
Nice to see, nice to take picture off. Beautiful animal.
Nothing more than that.

Having less challenging hunt in the fence doesn't mean it is guaranteed.
I saw a sable wounded by a hunter, and sable lost.
Shooting conditions good, but poor shot placement.
And next day I participated in search and recovery. But we did not find it. Despite we were with dogs, and trackers, and in the fence.
On the end, it was wounded, lost and paid for by the hunter.

Sable in the wild:
I got one, in Zimbabwe.
During couple of days, several times we tried to approach. The herd kept the distance at 100 meters in the woods. Rare miombo forest.
Always aware of us, they were. Usually they would get away, and they would not present an opportunity to shoot
Finally, after few days, I hade few seconds to take a shot, between the trees, a bull has shown a part of neck, and I took it.
So, it was overall moderately challenging for me. But not the most difficult hunt of all.

Another thing is the price tag I had.
With discounted packaged deal, that wild sable was about 60% of the price of the fenced sable in Namibia.
That was a chance, I did not want to miss.
Wild sable, and significantly cheaper than fenced sable.
In a same manner I would hunt roan, should similar deal get offered.

If you are after a "trophy" not after a "hunt", then just go to South Africa or Namibia. South Africa will have smaller trophy fees in average, exception is for the sable in record size of horn,

Pictures:
First picture: sable close up photo, in the fence, Namibia
Second picture: wild sable in Zimbabwe.

By body language they look different. At least to me.

 

[Justbryan]

Usually, the sable is one of the easiest animals to stalk. My sable was way too easy. And on my hunts, I have seen many sables just stand and look at you.

Roan can be a much tougher hunt. I had a guy in camp before me that spent 7 days trying to get a Roan and on day 7 finally got a shot. He was hunting on foot. I want to do a roan hunt soon.

I love the Sable mount but would rather hunt eland or roan any day.

 

[Hunter-Habib]

Great trophy. As mentioned above, not as challenging as eland.

 

[Tally-Ho HUNTING SAFARIS]

hay all

so we hunt a number of sable every year
i think i have mentioned this before somewhere
a lot of different species, when old, the bulls walk alone, this means one set of eyes and ears, so like any species when alone it make hunting them a lot easier, same as impala, kudu, buffalo etc
when in a herd you may have a lot more eyes and ears. or in a batchelor herd
but sable generally when fully mature they dont walk in batchelor herds, they will do this when younger but not when fully mature or very rarely

one of the reasons sable became very rare and almost endangered was because they have great meat and are of decent body size so were targeted for table fare.

i personally have had some very difficult sable hunts and some not so difficult. as with most species. beware the wounded sable and if not hit well are very tough

my closest run in so far as a PH of 20+ years was with a sable!!!

 

[375Fox]

I had a PH tell me they were limited in numbers in their native range because they were easy to kill by man. He had been told by others that it was not uncommon for meat hunters to take out the majority of a herd relatively easily in one hunt (depending on the need for meat etc.). They are beautiful animals and decide after you see them on the concession.

There are no problems with sable in their native range. Numbers are very good in Zimbabwe, Zambia, Mozambique, Tanzania. Wild dogs and predators can have a serious effect though.

 

[FB1416]

Thanks to everyone on advice. Am planning on taking Eland as well this trip!

 

[uplander01]

Where I got my sable in Mozambique they were under a lot of pressure from lions, so they were pretty illusive and didn't stand around. That said,...they do have a tendency to stop and look back or be a little complacent about not believing their nose or ears.....a little like a caribou.

 

[Charlie64]

.

Magnificent animal & can be pretty tough to put down whether behind a fence or not.

I have watched the price of RSA sable fall heavily over the last decade as more & more game farms started stocking & breeding sable. I can remember when sable were USD 15.000/-. Also make great mounts.

Enjoy your hunt & look forward to seeing pictures!

Cheers

.

 

[dchum]

Thanks to everyone on advice. Am planning on taking Eland as well this trip!

Nice where are you hunting?

Did you see any sable on your last safari?

 

[coreydb]

The sable I shot, pictured in my avatar, was free range. They are a docile animal, but once spotted you have to stalk it carefully or it'll take off in a flash.

 

[dchum]

The sable I shot, pictured in my avatar, was free range. They are a docile animal, but once spotted you have to stalk it carefully or it'll take off in a flash.

What country was your free range sable shoot in?

 

[Justbryan]

Thanks to everyone on advice. Am planning on taking Eland as well this trip!

Eland will most likely be a more difficult hunt. Eland when they are spooked can run for many miles. Be ready for a long walk!

 

[Kevin Dykstra]

I am heading back to Africa in two months, and I am planning on taking a sable. Are they a hard hunt? We have seen several
on previous safaris and they seem somewhat docile. When I have asked outfitters about it at hunting shows, they have just kind of
gave somewhat ambiguous answers. No doubt they are beautiful, symbolic of Africa, and were somewhat immortalized
by Hemingway, but are they worth the PRICE TAG? Any info is greatly appreciated.

I have been SA 9 times. I have found sables or any other non-native to immediate area ( off loaded) as easier to harvest.

 

[coreydb]

What country was your free range sable shoot in?

It was in the Limpopo region. I was driving on a road and spotted the Sable off in the bush....almost missed seeing it. I went past the site a bit then got out out and carefully walked way around (30 min) and came up to him from the rear. There was no wind, so the Sable didn't expect anything.

 

[dchum]

It was in the Limpopo region. I was driving on a road and spotted the Sable off in the bush....almost missed seeing it. I went past the site a bit then got out out and carefully walked way around (30 min) and came up to him from the rear. There was no wind, so the Sable didn't expect anything.

Sounds like a fun hunt.

However,
It sounds like you and I may have different definitions of “free range”

 

[Buckums]

This is top of mind for me as well. I have a sable on quota for my 2027 hunt in the Caprivi, which is my understanding, a hunt for a wild sable and at this point in my life that is my priority. I also have a eland and buff on quota. Sable make an outstanding trophy IMO and I would very much like to have one, but if its easy I will have a difficult time justifying the high trophy fee. I suppose that is something i will have to discuss with my outfitter beforehand to set my expectations appropriately. I have walked away from easy before, sometimes regretting it, but that is something I wrestle with personally.