Becoming a PH (professional hunter) is a dream held my many aspiring sportsman, who think they have what it takes to hunt for a living. The international trophy hunting industry is booming. Many of our 12 000 plus game ranches in South Africa use Hunting Outfitters to harvest trophy animals off their land. Hunting outfitters bring in international "clients" who are willing to pay big bucks to hunt these animals.
If you are an aspiring professional hunter it is critical to understand who the key players are. Additionally how a legal hunt is structured. The parties involved here are the international client, the hunting outfitter, the professional hunter and the land owner. Sometimes the PH, outfitter and landowner are the same person, however this is not important. In order for a hunt to be legal, hunting rights are given to the hunting outfitter from the land owner.
The hunting outfitter organises the hunt. He is the person who finds the client and offers the services of the safari company. The client pays for these services as a daily rate, he will also pay for each animal hunted (trophy fee). The hunting outfitter employs a professional hunter to escort the client during the hunt. The PH is there to make sure the hunt remains legal i.e.: only permitted animals are hunted.By law a foreign hunter must be escorted by a professional hunter. Additional major responsibilities include, trophy quality estimation, trophy preparation (or the supervision thereof) etc.
In order to practice as a PH you will need a license. To qualify for this license (at the moment) you can attend a professional hunting course. However this is changing, as the new national qualifications framework is in the process of implementation for professional hunting. For the moment you can enroll in PH course which will take about 10 -12 days. Here you are taught how to pass the exam.
The exam consists of a theoretical part, which involves a legal exam (on the provincial hunting ordinance and law) and a general exam (which tests general professional hunting knowledge). The practical part of the course varies from school to school. Generally consists of a horn estimation exam, practical shooting test, skinning test and practical hunting test.
Once you have passed all these test you will receive a restricted professional hunting licence. Basically this will allow you to escort a hunting client for a "plains game hunt". This means you are not licensed to hunt dangerous game ie: lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo, rhino and hippo.
Finally finding employment is the last and most serious hurdle. I would suggest becoming a member of the Professional Hunter Association of South Africa. This will give you some credibility and allow you access to some of the major players in the industry.
In the event that an interested party wishes to seek employment in the wildlife industry in South Africa a great place to look for lodge staff and wildlife jobs is Employment Wild. /
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