Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Africa Getting your animals back

How does it usually work? This was our first trip, and we don't have any idea. (We were in SA.) Before we left we were told we would get a list of Fish and Wildlife Ports and a list of agents. We were also told we would get a bill for the deposits. This was last August. Today I got my first email from the taxidermist. (He did a black wildebeest flat rug I didn't want.I wonder how it will go when I say I didn't ask for that? )This is a line from the email:

"Please advise which US Fish & Wildlife International Port your cargo should be shipped to? Also should you have an agent who will clear the cargo through Customs for delivery to your taxidermist, please forward us those details too?"

Umm, I thought they were just going to arrive in SLC as air cargo, and we'd check them through customs.
I obviously need to start writing the outfitter again and try to figure out how this works, I'm just wanting to know what kind of questions I should be asking. I don't want them to tell me I need to hire an agent (for big bucks?) if I don't need to.
We weren't planning on sending them to a taxidermist as we had the taxidermy done there.

I looked online and I didn't see any Fish and Wildlife in SE Idaho, or one in SLC. Is the closest one in Coos Bay, OR? Does that mean I have to get over there to pick it up, or pay some guy (the agent?) to pick it up and send it again? (Ouch$)

Any help would be appreciated!

This is a typical problem with so many people! Why didn't your outfitter or booking agent tell you or give you exact instructions, or cover the process for you?

How come they do not help you now? Did they just end the trip and all support when they dropped you off at the airport?

I'm simply stunned and speechless that people book hunts with outfitters that do not complete the process for them and provide a complete package for the hunters. How do they stay in business? I guess the price wins out up front and then you struggle later when they abandon you?

What happens when the paperwork is incomplete or permits missing? wrong items, missing items? Who helps then? Wow this is such a horrible and yet typical situation. You know how many people speak with me at shows and presentations about how poorly done the after hunt process was for their buddies and that makes them afraid to even consider Africa.

There is a lot to be said for the cost of the hunt. This is the best reason for Booking agents in the USA. They would have grabbed this issue by the horns and sorted it out for you. Dealing with the guy 12,000 miles away that already has his money makes this process very high risk!

JJHACK,
I'm sending you a PM.

JJ not all booking agents give a rat's butt either. I've used a few myself one in particular Jim McCarthy of Pennsylvania whom is well known booked my hunt an told me after I ran into the same problem, " just what do you want me to do about it". I have not used an agent since.

I see you are exchanging a PM with JJ. Just listen to him, he'll set you straight on the process. Basically here's how it works. Your trophies have to be shipped to a port where US Fish & Wildlife has an office that clears trophy shipments. Then they have to be cleared by F&W before the shipping company can release them to you. You can either hire an agent to do this for you or do it yourself. Of course, if you choose to do it yourself you will have to do it in person. A phone call to the F&W office should be made to see if your need an appointment and to go over the process if you plan to do it yourself. Once the trophies are cleared by F&W, and you have the necessary paperwork, you can pick them up from the receiving shipping company or have them shipped to your taxidermist.

Jim - if I left anything out, feel free to correct me.

Gnatcatcher,

sorry to hear that about your agent. Please don't paint all of us with the same brush. As with the PH, folks really need to get a reference list for the agent they are looking at.
My clients get everything they need, including a listing of my top three choices for the import/customs brokers, taxi studios i recommend (and, no, i do not get a kick back from these).

I feel like my job is not done until the trophies are delivered to either a taxi studio here in the states or canada, or to the client themself.

Like in all jobs, there are professionals, and there are, well, cretins.

Dan do a Google for McCarthy Adventures Harrisburg, Pa. you'll soon see that Jim is very well known. I made the mistake of believing in hype an today book my own trips after much research.
My intent was never to bad mouth all agents just relate my own dealings with one.

Gnatcathcer, sorry to hear about your experience.

JJHACK and Labman, thanks for the help.

My brother just talked to a guy (his old realtor) who gave him the name of a "broker."

I fill out a form and email it to a the broker, who works with the taxidermist in SA. When the animals shows up in the US (Seattle), they sigh for it and send it to a taxidermist here (Missoula)for us to pick up.

That's what we were told, and it's nice to know how it should go and what I need to do!

Thanks again.

Labman, you said we might be able to have it released to us. Does that mean I can have my sister in in Portland drive up to Seattle and pick up the big crate, then we just pick it up later, paying only gas instead of shipping for a big wooden crate and the $180 the local taxidermist gets ? (It will probable just be easier to have them do the shipping.)

You can have the trophies released to you after they have been cleared by Fish & Wildlife. I did this very thing myself. I had a broker clear my shipment with F&W and when that was done I picked them up at the shipping company and drove them home. Better check with the shipping company to see what you have to do to have your sister pick them up for you.

BTW - due the high cost of shipping and taxidermy I now only bring home pictures from my hunting trips to africa. What you save will go a long way towards paying for your next hunt.

ID, you are on the righ track, best thing is to have the experts do this for you. JJ and Labman gave you some great advice. I used Coppersmith as a customs broker and they were great. I had my taxidermy done in Africa so all I had to do was drive up to Coppersmith's in Atlanta and pick up my crates. I also understand Flora and Fauna are great folks as well. There is great advice on this site, you just have to weed through the BS from any "Joe" with a drive-by posting...jorge

+1 on Coppersmith..


Ingwe

Thanks guy. We talked to Coppersmith and they emailed us the form to get started.

I've personally carried back dried capes and horns from four different international hunts as checked luggage. I once had a problem with my shipment being conficated by US Customs (Denver dumba$$) for less than 12 hours and it did cost me several hundred dollars to fix their mistake. My hunting partners on two of the hunts also carried their trophies back without a hitch.

On all these hunts we scheduled a couple of days at the end of the hunt to allow the hides to completely sun dry after sitting on salt.

Plus, once I was asked by the lead at the US Customs point of entry (Dulles) if he could use my trophies for training his people. He called them all together and spend about 15 minutes going over my trophies and explaining why they were acceptable to be imported. On my return from Kyrgyrstan (Dulles) with forms filled out in what I believe was Russian, the US Fish & Wildlife office reviewed my forms and said everything was in complete order. I asked if there was anything I could have done better given I was detoured to their office, was told everything was perfectly in order.

I understand some countries require dipping of trophies and I for one will never hunt there for I believe the cost of dipping and handling trophies is a complete ripoff.

I've only been on six international hunts and didn't carry back the capes from New Zealand, once because I was on my honeymoon and was sensitive to my wife's request, and the second time because I was made a offer too good to refuse. I was rewarded with a rotten Tahr cape. Never again, my trophies will come home with me or I'm not going there.

Interesting post by Boise, but that won't work in most of Africa I don't think, but you can check and they could probably be dipped for you and then you bring them back..I don't know.

Mostly however I recommend that a client take laminated business cards with his name etc. on the business card and the taxidermist name etc. typed in on the back of the cards..Figure three cards per animal shot, one for the cape, one for the head, and one for the back skin, better too many cards than not enough...The trophies will come to an importer in the USA such as Coppersmith and they deal with Fish and Wildlife and then notify the owner and then ship to your taxidermist taxidermist or to you if desired, whichever..I don't get involved in the do it your selfers, that can be good I suppose, but I have seen a lot problems crop up in the past, and today its even worse with the international threats and Home Security so I don't recommend it, but to each his own, I suppose it is an option.

Ray, I've posted numerous times about bring back trophies from international hunts - failed to mention coming back from Canada also. One does need to do their homework and get a properly filled out form by a government offical certifying the species being returned. The US F&G officer said this was required but eluded to some wiggle room but that was about 5 years ago. BTW, all of my imports have occurred between 2000 and 2009. In addition, my return from RSA was a year or two prior to the dipping requirement.

My Namibian PH, and I've hunted with him three times, has been doing this for his clients for something like twenty years. He had mostly dealt with German clients and I was his first client to come from the US. He did have US military personal coming in from Germany - a couple of them have posted here.

I was lucky enough to use premium class air travel and did get in a slight hassle, more of a shake down, in Kyrgyrstan but it only cost me $100 additional and they upgraded me to first class. Lufthansas wasn't happy with the arrangement when I arrived in Moscow but I wasn't charged any more and US Customs and US Fish and Wildlife let me through with minimal intervention.

Considering how many poster here go to Africa and some go very frequently, it surprises me that someone else hasn't atleast attempted to hand carry a trophy home.

Thomas Goldberg at Astra gamefarm in Namibia is who I have been hunting with. I am listed on his reference list and know other Americans have visited although I don't know if he sent them home with their trophies. Thomas and his wife Sabine now come to the US yearly and attend shows in Houston and along the west coast.

I'm a "do it yourselfer" and have never used a booking agent for a hunt, I enjoy the many hours, phone calls, and effort to set up my own hunts - I'm sort of sick that way. I do take the advice and suggestions from those I truest and respect - I consider you one I would trust.

You blokes have it easy with regards to importation of trophies, compared to Australia.

A few examples:

I shot a Hartmann's zebra in Namibia in 2006; applied for the export permit and shipped it with my other mounted trophies............it was seized by our Quarantine service as I hadn't applied for the IMPORT permit PRIOR to shipping to Australia. It took two months of argy bargy with them to get my skin.

Fast forward to last year........I shipped all my trophies from another hunt in Namibia with import paperwork lodged prior to shipment. I get a phone call from my taxidermist's freight expediter...........Australian Customs is now charging GST(10%) on the trophy fees of all sport hunted trophies imported into Australia and wait for it.........as I had another zebra skin, I was charged duty on top of that as it is deemed a commercial item!!!

I might mention also that some Taxidermy shops are set up already to accept and clear shipments through US Customs and Fish & Wildlife directly. They just clear them through customs, bring them to their shop, Fish & Wildlife inspects everything there, and you don't pay anything if you have the work done by them. This is what I did when I used Jonas Bros. in CO. They did all the work for me, except for me dealing with the shipper from Africa and paying them. I gave the shipping info to Jonas and they took it from there. I think Jonas will also do this for you even if you don't use their taxidermy services, but they will charge you for it, just like the rest of the customs agents. Just one other option for people to consider.
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For every story of a guy packing his skins back there are HUNDREDS of them that never see them again.

The additional issue is that one problem animal that arrives in the USA from a country that does not have the P&D requirement will shut down 100% of the trophies coming back. Several countries have followed the lead by RSA to require the P&D process. This is in an effort to save the entire country form being shut down when something slips through with a problem.

Imagine this, I shot a bull elk in Canada. Took it to a certified processor had all the paperwork and US customs refused entry with it because of mad cow. Could not bring it into the USA. This is Canada, not a third world country with countless possible issues coming from Africa!

Feel Lucky?

Yep, I feel lucky and so has everyone that I actually know that have actually carried back skins, skulls, and horns. Plus, I haven't heard, first hand, of anyone being denied entry with a legal trophy. Furthermore, I came across the US/Canadian border, Nov 08, with a mountain goat cape and horns and had what I would describe as a genuinely pleasant experience along with a nice hunting discussion with the US Customs officer. Super nice guy from Montana that the time to swap hunting stories.

Imagine this, actually attempt to bring back a properly prepared and documented trophy from one of your many trips and then see how it goes - and of course it can't be from RSA because that would be illegal.

I did do this, read my above post. 100% legal documented and I spoke with US customs and the AG department about the import 8 days prior to coming across the border. Still lost it all! This was Canada....... imagine a whole safari of trophies from Africa.

As a tourist hunter you know a minimal amount of people doing this. Being involved with this in Africa and the USA I hear the horror stories every single year from Africa. I'm not gonna debate this, as it's so overwhelming that it's a bad idea I just cannot imagine the risk being worth the cost. However you have made this successful on your attempts. Count your blessings, it's not the typical situation.

Imagine having the trophies held, you fly the rest of the way home. Wondering when they show back up at your house. Maybe months go by while trying to track the progress of trophies. What about the questions the agents have, and not knowing where your "luggage" is in the process queue. It's nerve wracking to say the least. Then you get a letter stating that your paperwork was incomplete, and the permits not included, so until you provide proper documents from the country of origin they will be destroyed. You now write the landowner/outfitter/PH and hope to get the permits or the things that the Ag dept, or US F&W require. This drags out for a year or more.

I've had these horror stories every year from guys that have returned and are now stuck. If you think the TSA and airline regulations are changed or mis understood, imagine the game laws, permits, and forms needed to import raw skins and animal products. You not only risk the loss, but you risk having an agent question the legal import and take you into custody until they can verify your import is actually legal. These people don't know the names of every species, Federal F&W requires you to declare and identify every species. This requires an appointment. Taking these animals through US Customs without federal F&W permits for every piece of the animals you bring into the USA is a felony.

Just because US Customs lets you in does not mean what you did was legal. These two agencies are not tied at the hip. Customs is the easy part! The forms needed from the feds have to be done complete. If they don't have a skilled person that can clearly identify every part of every animal they will take it until they can identify it. I have imported trophies and had Federal F&W show up several months later to question the import, and look over my paperwork. What if I had not kept the paperwork? Customs let me though with freight I picked up from RSA. But the feds (F&W) waved me through. Later these 2 guys show up to look over everything I have. Then they wanna know where all the other African parts came from that were not on the permits. I explain they are from Previous years. He asks for the permits for them now. I don't have them, but I show them the photo's of animals in an album with dates to "prove" the age and where they came from.

This can be an unnerving process to say the least. Just cause you walked through US Customs and federal F&W does not mean your home free. They can show up later and ask for the papers. Makes the whole process of bringing back your stuff a nightmare.

Your call if this procsess seems worth the risk. I would not ever take animal parts through US customs from Africa. It's so likely that you will have them seized and lost, it's simply not worth the risk.