All, Just curious at the moment. What are typical "post safari" costs for "dipping, packing, shipping, taxidermy" for say a 10 day plains game hunt ? Any other ancillary costs to consider ?

I understand that taxidermy will very based on rug vs shoulder mount vs full mount. But looking for average/rule of thumb without going extravagant ? Trying to get a handle on "fully loaded" cost for a PG safari...

Always seems to be more than I planned, but at least those charges come in small doses while you are enjoying great memories!

Best regards, D. Nelson

Talk to your outfitter and get a quote on dip and pack costs. This may vary depending on how many and how large your animals. This way you have no surprises and can budget the needed funds. Jerry Hoover

This question is similar to asking, for example, how much does a car cost? It cannot be answered.

So many things come into play that it make it impossible to answer. For example, which animals? An eland is larger and heavier than say an impala. An eland will cost more, MUCH more.

Another is how many animals will you be taking? Some others would include:

1- Are back skins being shipped?
2- How far do you live from the port of entry?
3- Are skulls being shipped?
4- Full mount, shoulder mount, rug or European mount?

And on and on and on.......

You will have :

1- Packing, dipping and shipment preparation.
2- Shipping costs.
3- Clearing costs.
4- Costs to ship to taxidermist.
5- Taxidermy costs.

You MAY have:

1- Hotels, meals after the safari.
2- departure tax depending on where one goes.

Orion,

Larry is right in that there are lots of variables but as a rough estimate you'll have the following based on the 8 animals I took in RSA last November. They were prepared for euro mounts, shoulder mounts and 2 life size.

Dip/pack documentation RSA $95-$125 per animal.

Shipping, broker fees etc RSA-Seattle-Butte, MT(MY TAXIDERMIST) $1,800

I think with a budget of $3,000 you'd be in good shape. The mounts you can do as you have the cash available.

Mark

The back side of safai is a topic that is probably the least discussed. Many members will give you answers without an answer

No doubt this would run 10 pages if you asked what rifle or cartridge to use....funny...no

The D/P/S very well may be the most profitable part for some of the South African outfitters but I'm sure some work hard to keep the cost to the client as low as possible

I am not very deep with knowledge but I do have my one PG trip that my wife and I took to the Eastern Cape in 2014

Those numbers I will share

I hope you are sitting down.

My 1st party was for dip and pack.....a local SA taxidermy company

1 .......... Kudu skull/horns, cape and back skin
1 .......... Blue Wildebeest skull/horns, cape and back skin
1 .......... Black Wildebeest skull/horns, cape and tail
1 .......... Waterbuck skull/horns, cape
1 .......... Gemsbok skull/horns, cape and back skin
2 .......... Impala skulls/horns, capes
1 .......... Bushbuck skull/horns, cape and back skin
1 .......... Blessbok skull/horns, cape
1 .......... Warthog skull
Administration fees and wooden crate

$2400 US$

My second party was a local shipping company that was partners with the taxidermist

Shipping from East London SA to Chicago USA

$1375 US$

From there D&L took care of my import papers and then shipped my crate to the care of Dennis Harris "The Artistry of Wildlife" for less than $500 total

I have been told by many here that mine was an extreme case in terms of cost for the African side....dip pack and ship

Here's to hoping you have better luck

quote:

Originally posted by Orion2000:
All, Just curious at the moment. What are typical "post safari" costs for "dipping, packing, shipping, taxidermy" for say a 10 day plains game hunt ? Any other ancillary costs to consider ?

I understand that taxidermy will very based on rug vs shoulder mount vs full mount. But looking for average/rule of thumb without going extravagant ? Trying to get a handle on "fully loaded" cost for a PG safari...

Rule-of-thumb from my perspective -

Q: How much is a safari?
A: About the cost of a nice car (to you)

Q: How much is the taxidermy part?
A: About another third of what your safari cost.

Lots of safari operators have gotten into doing dip & pack themselves (so to speak), investing in buildings, etc. to keep up with demand. This drives those costs up in the near term. Also, be aware that what we call "kickbacks" is standard operations for many -- how they take care of one another.

Enjoy hunting and taxidermy separately! Photos count for many months before you find out how your stuff was treated.

Your question really is too vague to provide a clear response.

Taxidermy costs depends upon how many critters you are getting mounted, the type of mount (rug, shoulder, full body, etc), and the price of the individual taxidermist.) The easiest way to get an idea of the taxidermy cost is to go to the website of the taxidermist you will be using. Most have their rates for the different animals and types of mounts.

As for shipping and dipping cost, check with your outfitter and to costs vary by location and country.


Bottom line, hunting in Africa and bringing back trophies is an expensive hobby. No getting around it.

Good luck.

BH63

In my opinion the only way to go with African trophies is European mounts. On my July 2015 hunt with Sebra Hunting Safaris the dip and pack charge was ZERO. The PH and his skinners prepared the skulls and brought them to their local taxidermist whom I've used twice before. Total taxidermy charges were $550 and shipping charges for five animals were $700+. Coppersmith cleared them at ORD for $75. So total was $1300- door to door.

Gentlemen,

Yes, I understand a somewhat nebulous question. However, I appreciate all of the input. The thumbnail budget that I am starting to build is conservatively looking like approx $10K USD for a 10 day PG safari with 8 to 10 heads of game, and another $10K USD to cover airfare, tips, dip, pack, ship, brokerage, permits. etc.

Does this look to be a reasonable "rough order of magnitude", all in, budget for a 10 day PG hunt ?

quote:

Originally posted by Orion2000:
Gentlemen,

Yes, I understand a somewhat nebulous question. However, I appreciate all of the input. The thumbnail budget that I am starting to build is conservatively looking like approx $10K USD for a 10 day PG safari with 8 to 10 heads of game, and another $10K USD to cover airfare, tips, dip, pack, ship, brokerage, permits. etc.

Does this look to be a reasonable "rough order of magnitude", all in, budget for a 10 day PG hunt ?

My 2014 trip with my wife was 10 days with 10 head of game

We flew coach comfort

The hunt and the airfare for us eat up $15k before any gratuity toward the PH and staff

Of course this is two airline tickets and fares were higher in 2014

Then, depending on your martial status or aspirations, there could be other, seemingly unrelated, costs you need to anticipate. These could cover such things as a fine jewelry surprise, a cruise you might have never considered, extravagant vacation together, etc. These costs might easily exceed your plains game hunt... Suggest you don't acknowledge a linkage, but this practice could make follow on hunts easier ;-)

Good hunting,

Emory, Understood. 40th anniversary cruise is already on the radar as well...

Orion2000

If you are going to Zimbabwe, please send me an email and I will help you

quote:

Originally posted by Orion2000:
Gentlemen,

Yes, I understand a somewhat nebulous question. However, I appreciate all of the input. The thumbnail budget that I am starting to build is conservatively looking like approx $10K USD for a 10 day PG safari with 8 to 10 heads of game, and another $10K USD to cover airfare, tips, dip, pack, ship, brokerage, permits. etc.

Does this look to be a reasonable "rough order of magnitude", all in, budget for a 10 day PG hunt ?

I agree it's good to plan for all the costs. Unless you are flying business class you could likely knock your $10k for airfare, tips, dip, pack, ship, brokerage, permits. etc. back a bit. Our last flights to Jo'berg were around $1600, tips were $1500, Dip/pack and shipping around $3000, brokerage was $250 and meet and greet service around $200. $10k for shoulder mounts is likely reasonable.

With $20K USD you should be able to fall within budget. The taxidermy costs are the most flexible, as you can decide to go with either cheaper or more expensive mounts, depending upon the animal. I think a buffalo shoulder mount runs about $1800.00 at Jonas Bros in Denver (which is a fairly, top-notch taxidermy house), but smaller animals cost less.

As for European mounts, I think that is a matter of taste. I don't particularly care for them, I think they look a little ghoulish, but "Degustibus Non Disputandem" (a matter of taste, not judgement).

As for the 10 animals, I would probably try and cut costs by being more selective about what I shot. I have never been a fan of shooting porcupines, vervet monkeys, baboons, etc just to rack up a lot of animals. But again, that is just me.

Good luck and good hunting.

BH63