Vet Safari To Zimbabwe and Zambia

Just one room = two beds left and a week to go at the early bird cost. Message me if you are interested please.

Just one room left and less than 2 weeks to go before the early bird rate expires. Message me for more information

Early bird discount of $800 applies to 31 March, so 20 days to go.

Very excited to be going here - heard such great things about the range of animals and birds to be seen in South Luangwa National Park

http://www.luangwa.com/our-camps/kafunta-river-lodge/

This year we are heading to Zambia and Zimbabwe 20-31 August, message me for more details
https://www.facebook.com/events/586678768208829/

Working on an itinerary for Vet Safari 2017, should have something finalised very soon

At a rhino refuge near Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe

You may be interested in this spectacular video on you tube.

Fyi you might like to enjoy these scenes


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=euRZf4cpk9s

NAT PARKS PROMO 5 MIN YouTube 1080p A breathtaking 5 minute promo from Don Percival (Goddunnit Promotions) highlighting Zimbabwe's stunning National Parks. What a beautiful rich country. Lets f...

Going on safari? Research shows ecotourism can help save threatened species Next time you plan a holiday you can rest assured that wildlife sightseeing can help some threatened species.

I am even sadder about Cecil the lion that we know from Hwange being killed. The following is an article in the Pioneer Press from Minnesota.

Bloomington dentist regrets killing of Zimbabwe lion, investigation ongoing
By Tad Vezner and Josh Verges
Pioneer Press
POSTED: 07/28/2015 12:01:00 AM CDT | UPDATED: ABOUT 15 HOURS AGO

Also see: Tens of thousands of people railed against Palmer on social media, but others called for perspective.

A Minnesota dentist and avid big-game hunter said he regrets killing a beloved lion in Zimbabwe and will cooperate with any criminal investigation.

Walter J. Palmer, an Eden Prairie man with a Bloomington dental practice, came under fire from animal lovers after being identified as the man who shot Cecil, a well-known lion who roamed a Zimbabwe national park. He has become the target of threats and social media backlash against both himself and his business.

Dr. Walter Palmer& #8217;s River Bluff Dental office in Bloomington was closed Tuesday, July 28, 2015, after news circulating of Palmer& #8217;s alleged
Dr. Walter Palmer's River Bluff Dental office in Bloomington was closed Tuesday, July 28, 2015, after news circulating of Palmer's alleged poaching of a well-known lion in Zimbabwe caused an uproar of criticism of the dentist. (Pioneer Press: Scott Takushi)
During a nighttime hunt in early July, the hunting team tied a dead animal to a car, luring the lion out of Hwange National Park, said Johnny Rodrigues, chairman of the Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force.

Palmer, 55, used a bow and arrow to shoot the lion on private land. Tracking data from the lion's GPS collar show it survived for about 40 hours before it was shot and killed with a rifle, according to according to The Independent, a London newspaper.

Two members of the hunting party are due in court in Zimbabwe on Wednesday. Palmer said he has not been contacted by U.S. or Zimbabwe authorities but is willing to answer their questions about the hunt.

"I hired several professional guides and they secured all proper permits. To my knowledge, everything about this trip was legal and properly handled and conducted," Palmer said through Jon Austin, a crisis management consultant.

A guide and the landowner where the lion was shot were charged with poaching, and a second guide was being sought for questioning, according to the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority and the Safari Operators Association of Zimbabwe. The hunt was illegal, the authorities said, only because the landowner's 2015 hunting quota did not include a lion.

"Therefore, all persons implicated in this case are due to appear in court facing poaching charges," they said in a joint statement.

The statement didn't mention the American hunter, but Zimbabwe national police spokeswoman Charity Charamba told the Associated Press that they "are looking for Palmer in connection with the same case."

The lion was skinned and beheaded, and the hunters tried but failed to destroy the GPS collar, Rodrigues said. Zimbabwe authorities said the trophy since has been confiscated.

LionAid, a nonprofit based in the United Kingdom that is dedicated to saving lions, speculated that Palmer would not be prosecuted because he was following his guides' instruction.

Dr. Walter Palmer& #8217;s River Bluff Dental office in Bloomington was closed Tuesday, July 28, 2015, after news circulated of Palmer& #8217;s alleged
Dr. Walter Palmer's River Bluff Dental office in Bloomington was closed Tuesday, July 28, 2015, after news circulated of Palmer's alleged poaching of a well-known lion in Zimbabwe caused an uproar of criticism of the dentist. A number of stuffed animals were placed in front of the front door. (Pioneer Press: Scott Takushi)
"A client does what his professional hunter tells him. A client usually has no idea about the laws and regulations of the country he is hunting in -- he just buys a safari and then places himself in the hands of his professional hunter guide," LionAid stated.

LionAid noted that hunting lions with a bow and arrow, even those with radio collars, is legal in Zimbabwe. It's also legal to bait lions out of national parks; the group called it "standard practice" -- and called for a halt to it.

Even if Palmer were charged in Zimbabwe, he would have to be extradited to face a trial, and the possibility of extradition would depend on what charges were brought.

Fred Morrison, a University of Minnesota law professor who specializes in constitutional and international law, said the United States has a modern extradition treaty with Zimbabwe covering all crimes punishable by more than a year in jail. The crime must be punishable at that level in both countries in order for extradition to occur.

In a written statement, Congresswoman Betty McCollum called on the U.S. Attorneys' Office and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to investigate "whether U.S. laws were violated related to conspiracy, bribery of foreign officials, and the illegal hunting of a protected species or animal."

REGRETS THE KILL

Amid a wave of negative attention Tuesday, Palmer expressed regret that his trophy had been a prized feature of Hwange National Park.

"I had no idea that the lion I took was a known, local favorite, was collared and part of a study until the end of the hunt," he said.

Cecil wore a collar as part of an Oxford University a research program. Since the program began in 1999, 74% of the male lions on the border of the National Park have been shot by hunters, according to LionAid.

"I deeply regret that my pursuit of an activity I love and practice responsibly and legally resulted in the taking of this lion," Palmer said.

PAST CHARGES

If Palmer is charged criminally for the hunt, it will not have been the first time.

In 2008, Palmer Palmer admitted he lied to Wisconsin authorities after shooting a black bear 40 miles outside the zone where he was authorized to hunt two years prior. He served one year of probation for the felony conviction, paid a $2,938 fine and forfeited the bear's remains.

Defendants sometimes have their hunting privileges revoked in such cases, but the federal court judge expressly allowed Palmer to "possess archery equipment for lawful sporting purposes."

He also had been cited for fishing without a license in Otter Tail County, in 2003.

DENTISTRY RECORD

The Minnesota Board of Dentistry referenced Palmer's conviction for the Wisconsin bear hunt, as well as sexual harassment claims, in 2009 while punishing him for unprofessional conduct.

According to a corrective action agreement he reached with the board, Palmer's insurer paid $127,500 to a former receptionist and patient who accused him of ongoing sexual harassment. The woman claimed he made unwelcome comments about and physical contact with her breasts, buttocks and ge****ls.

Palmer denied the harassment allegations and said he agreed to the settlement to "conclude the matter quickly and efficiently," according to the agreement. He was required to pass a jurisprudence exam and complete an ethics course.

Palmer graduated from the University of Minnesota's dental program in 1987 after earning a bachelor's degree in psychology there in 1983.

PUBLIC BACKLASH

Palmer has an extensive history of big-game hunting. In a New York Times story on elk hunting in 2009, Palmer said he learned to shoot at age 5 and had slain all but one of the animals recognized by the Pope and Young Club, an arbiter of bow hunting records.

Palmer had hunted in Zimbabwe at least once before, killing a leopard in 2010, in addition to other big game hunting trips, according to a blog post by hunting guide Brent Sinclair, who identified Palmer as a friend and client.

Palmer's business website described the dentist as a North Dakotan who enjoys all outdoor activities.

"Anything allowing him to stay active and observe and photograph wildlife is where you will find Dr. Palmer when he not in the office," it read.

The website was disabled Tuesday as news of Palmer's role in the hunt spread. River Bluff Dental's page was inundated with outraged comments and violent threats Tuesday morning before it too was taken down.

The business' Yelp page was flooded with well over a thousand negative comments Tuesday, as Yelp scrambled to delete those not relevant to the dental practice.

"Palmer = Murderer. Do not support this business - your money goes directly to supporting ecological terrorism," one reviewer wrote.

HUNTERS REACT

Paul Korn, a Baldwin, Wis., archer and big-game hunter who has taken five trips to Africa, said hunters who travel the world for their sport rely on local hunting guides to know the rules and regulations.

"You really are blindly putting your faith into whoever you're hunting with," he said.

Korn said international hunting trips are appealing for the sense of adventure. While hunters can return home with antlers and skins, they do not fly back with the meat -- that, Korn said, is given to the locals, who use nearly every part of the animal.

Craig Engwall, executive director of the Minnesota Deer Hunters Association, said it was "pretty upsetting" to learn about this case.

"It flies in the face of what we as an organization stand for," Engwall said.

The association, which was at the state Legislature this year advocating for increased penalties for poaching, wants hunters to be ethical in how they pursue and take game, he said.

Engwall added that hunting big game in Minnesota -- like deer, bear or elk -- and trophy hunting in Africa are like "apples and oranges."

Pioneer Press reporter Andy Rathbun contributed to this report.

Why farmed rhino horn in Vietnam won't work.

Dr Lynn Johnson of Breaking the Brand has written the following:
http://breakingthebrand.org/if-the-users-really-wanted-farmed-rhino-horn-why-isnt-viet-nam-farming-their-own/

Hope you find it interesting.

If the users REALLY wanted farmed rhino horn why isn’t Viet Nam farming their own? June 13, 2015 by lynn If the users REALLY wanted farmed rhino horn why isn’t Viet Nam farming their own? A recent trip to South Africa clearly showed the Breaking The Brand team that very few people understood the nature of the demand or the users of genuine rhino horn. This is obviously very concer…