Dr Peter Baker*

15 July 2011 11:08

How to end rhino poaching

Veterinary surgeon Dr Peter Baker provides an interesting perspective.

Reading last night’s Star (July 14, 2011) front page on the rhino hunter, as a practising veterinarian I must applaud this man Dawie Groenewalt’s strength and ability to hunt one of the mightiest animals walking the planet. An animal with skin so thick that all but a rocket launched grenade will just make a glancing scratch on the mighty beast. An animal almost as blind as a bat but with a good sniffer and alert hearing he makes a good target on a big rifle’s long range telescopic sights with laser pointer. And they don’t even run too fast and certainly would never attack you.

No, to make this a fair contest I would suggest that the licence to kill one of our over populated and pain in the neck rhinos, and something which will certainly make the thrill of the hunters far more acute, would be to insist that every hunting party of “Great White Hunters” be themselves hunted by a single ex- Parabat / 32 Batallion / or Recce. This hunter of the hunter would only receive the exact number of bullets, live rounds, as there were gun carrying hunters, maybe 3 bullets. I imagine though that his knife would be the only implement required. The Ex- Recce would have the option to hack off the hunters’ noses as his modest trophy. Wouldn’t any trophy collector love to have one of these rare items?

This would be a wonderful spectacle and I know that I would pay a small fortune to witness this spectacle. Sort of a Ménage à Trois Cage Fight!

“Come to African and Feel the Thrill of the Real Hunt!!”

Faithfully,

Dr Peter Baker