Pics from an exotic animal move a few years back
ridgleyart
Member Posts: 937 ✭✭✭✭
A few, probably 5+, years ago my buddy called and asked if I wanted to help him move some exotics from a ranch in Florida to a ranch in Texas. He said his boss would pay me well (knowing who his boss was I knew this was true), I'd get some hands on experience with some cool animals, and that I'd get to deer and hog hunt the Texas ranches. Sounded like an adventure and I said sure. What he didn't tell me was the trip would last 3 months and that he really meant hands on. The pygmy hippos were the worst because they were vicious and you couldn't see them coming through the palmettos.
A couple taper, they were easy to load, just slip a rope around their neck and lead them on the trailer.
Here's a 3 hour old rhino, look at those feet!
A different baby running with momma
A few more rhino pics, a couple of them liked their chins scratched like a dog.
Okapi, their fur was so soft, it felt just like velvet
The giraffe, it was my job every day we were there to get in with them and try to tame them. They were the last animals we moved, and by that time I had them tame enough that I just used palm fronds to walk them onto the trailer.
Loading up rhinos
Comments
Cool thread,great pictures. Thanks.
WOW!! Double WOW!! Cool beyond belief!! OMG, part of your job was to tame the giraffes?? Again just WOW!! I think you got a lifetime of memories in that three month period of time!!
It was definitely an experience of a lifetime, we hand caught Thompson gazelles, drop netted impala which was just craziness, darted Eland and Kudu, did battle with wildebeest using little metal shield and boy do they hit hard. Honestly it was like I was living the movie Hatari.
“...a couple of them liked their chins scratched like a dog.”
You go right ahead, ridge, I’ll watch from across the valley.😁
The only near death experience was with the giraffe. They decided to stampede, and with those long legs they cover ground fast, There was no way to get out of the way, just had to bob and weave as they stampeded by. You could feel the ground shake when they hit the 100 yard mark, What a rush!
Good gosh....
Thanks for sharing!
Me<‐---------jealous.
I have never been considered completely sane. Ignoring the potential downside, I would be there scratching rhinos chins, playing with the little rhinos and doing my best to tame the giraffes, petting the okapi (to see if the the fur really felt like velvet) and doing my best to dodge the hippos!! Such a wonderful experience!! I like critters so much more than I like people!! OMG yes!! People are so nasty!! Border Collies are so much better than people! Bella and Lola just looked at me and said "Your point??".
Deleted without moving the entire thread to Politics. NN
You must have gotten some looks driving down the road.
Love the pic of the front loader.
Wow! What a great experience of a lifetime! Back in the day I friended a new kid at my elementary school who spent the early years of his life living in the Belgian Congo. His folks were missionary's there. He shared many great animal tales with me and got me started on a lifelong interest in many exotic beasts!
Around that same time period the TV show Daktari hit the airwaves. I never missed an episode!
Thank you ridgleyart for sharing this wonderful adventure!
Thanks for sharing, that was a very unique experience, I much envy you.
Mule
Wow. Great pics and what an experience. Thanks for sharing.
We did get lots of looks with the giraffe because the way the trailer is designed, their heads stick out.
Pretty darn cool! Those okapi look like a cross between a zebra and an elk!
Awesome pics thanks for sharing
That's wild! Great photos!!
Yes, way cool indeed!
One question though...what happened when you found out a particular 1,000-3,000 pound Rhino didn’t really like being scratched?