Giraffe hunting
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Where to hunt Giraffe
Giraffe are not only the world’s tallest animal but they are also the world’s largest ruminant. The 9 subspecies of Giraffe are distributed in localised pockets in West, East and Southern Africa. Although widely distributed, Giraffe are classified as specially protected in many countries where they may not be hunted at all. Giraffe can only be legally hunted in three African countries, namely, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe. In Southern Zimbabwe and South Africa you will be hunting the South African subspecies of Giraffe and in Northern Namibia you can hunt the Angolan Giraffe. Both these species have very similar markings.
Price distribution
In Zimbabwe you will be required to book a minimum of a 5 day safari to hunt a Giraffe and the trophy fee will cost you $1,800-3,000. Giraffe are very common in many territories in South Africa and in many cases you will even be able to add a Giraffe to a package hunt. Otherwise you will be required to book a couple of days to hunt one of these animals with daily rates ranging from $350-450 per day along with a trophy fee of $2,000-3,500. The daily rates for a similar hunt in Namibia are about the same as South Africa, however in many instances the trophy fee may be cheaper and range from $1,600-3,000.
When to hunt Giraffe?
Giraffe can be hunted year round in Zimbabwe and South Africa. In Namibia, the hunting season opens on 1 February and closes on 30 November each year. In all 3 countries, clients need to ensure that they are booked with a registered Outfitter and the Professional Hunter is also a registered guide. The best time to shoot a Giraffe are the coldest months of the year, June to August. The reason being that these animal skins spoil very easily and being such a big cumbersome animal they take time to skin.
Hunting methods All hunting methods (17)
Giraffes have excellent eyesight and a huge height advantage which can sometimes make them very difficult to hunt if not used to vehicles and humans approaching them on foot. If habituated to vehicles and humans, Giraffe hunting may not be very challenging. Normally they are spotted from a vehicle and then followed on foot making use of as much cover as possible. Due to the size of their hooves and the animal’s weight, they can be easily be tracked especially in sandy soils. Shot selection is vitally important as these animals have tough hides and massive bone structures which can affect a bullets penetration. Also, try to anticipate where the animal is likely to fall to make the recovery of the shot animals as easy as possible.
Why hunt Giraffe?
Known as “Indlulamithi” in Zulu, meaning taller than the trees, the older bulls are usually darker in colour, have knobbly bumps and lumps on their skulls from fighting and have a bitter offensive smelling odour. Seldom are these animal full mounted unless for a museum piece, however if you have space in your trophy room they make a fantastic shoulder pedestal mount. If it’s the skin you are after you might want to shoot a younger bull than these very old stink bulls as the skin should be in better condition. The leg bones can be engraved and also make great knife handles. The skinned legs also make great lamp stands. Worldwide opinion and pressure is being placed on African governments to close Giraffe hunting. Many territories in South Africa have excess giraffe which are hunted for staff meat or sold to butcheries to be processed. So if interested, look out, you may find a bargain.
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