Gentlemen,

Craig Boddington is at a writers conference at the moment and asked me to post the following on this thread as it brings the most current, and correct information on Punki’s medical condition.

As medical situations often are, Punki’s is fluid in nature with changes a natural part of the healing and recovery process. Unfortunately Punki’s current condition is not as stable as some of our prior posts may have indicated. When the actual loss of life is a very real possibility, any news that supports hope of a full recovery is met with relief, in this case maybe false relief. The fact that my posts have been coming from Dallas, while the patient is in Namibia allows the chance of delayed up-date information , as well as the risk of incorrect info on the situation as it stands. THE FACT IS THIS : PUNKI IS A LONG WAY FROM BEING OUT OF THE WOODS AND IS STILL IN NEED OF A GREAT DEAL OF MEDICAL ATTENTION. The support that AR members have shown has meant a great deal to all involved , a fact that Craig, Brittany, Corne, Nic, and most importantly Punki himself wish to express. I thank you as well.

To most AR members, Punki is simply a faceless name playing the lead role in a serious situation that has caught this forum’s attention. But for those who know him, he is a man of great skill , courage , honor and passion for the hunting lifestyle that is simply trying to provide for his his family doing what he loves and excels at...hunting.
To give you a clear picture of the man , and the uphill battle he faces, let me introduce you to his long time friend and employer Trevor Filmer . The following is portions of a email to Craig from Trevor. I thought it would be meaningful to share it with our friends here .
We are lovers of Africa, that is what brings us together here to talk, exchange ideas, share hunting reports, and feed our passion. All who have hunted Africa know of the special people like Punki who cross our paths during the few golden days of safari, yet make so large an impact on our conscious that they are forever thought of as friends . I have mine, and you have yours. Punki Swelindawo is a fellow hunter, a brother in arms in the truest sense. He is in great need, and I hope those of you who have not yet contributed to his recovery fund will consider following the lead of so many of the good men of this forum who have. The old saying “There but for the grace of GOD go I “ really applies here .
Thanks To All
Dave Fulson

From Trevor Filmer –

“Despite Punki’s phenomenal improvement and some optimistic comments about his recovery, he is still in a very bad way. His wounds have become infected,and so he still has a very long road to recovery. Please don’t give up on him now.
Working hounds requires extreme physical fitness and it will be an absolute miracle if Punki is ever able to walk the mountains again - let us all hope and pray for that miracle - the fact remains that he still needs a lot of help , and
my personal fear is that once the initial furore is over and the dust has settled, we will be left with a man, who, through no fault of his own, is not able to properly provide for his family - on our small family ranch we have a
number of Xhosa families that have worked for my family for as long as three consecutive generations - so, no matter what condition Punki is in when he gets home, he and his family will always have a place to stay on our ranch, and we
will do our best for him - unfortunately our meagre budget would never extend to specialised medical care - while reading all the comments on the web site, I am overwhelmed by the goodwill and offers of assistance - I believe the Boddington’s Punki Recovery Fund to be an excellent idea and a wonderful gesture - I would therefore, on behalf of the
Swelindawo family and myself, like to thank those people that have offered assistance - I can assure them that every little bit will be appreciated - I also extend my personal thanks and gratitude to all those who have ‘gone the
extra mile’ and handled this tragic accident in what I consider to be a very professional manner.”

The address to send checks is:
Punki Recovery Fund
PO Box 33303
Granada Hills, CA 91394

Sorry to hear that Punki isn't doing as well as thought.

Best wishes to all involved.

Maybe a picture of the man (Punki) will help with contributions for the care that Punki needs

We will pray for Punky good recovering, Cheers Up !!! Boddington family and friends.

I don't mean to sound ghoulish or morbid, but what are the particulars of the injuries this man sustained?

I hope he recover. Infections is bad but antibiotic should cure him.

Heinz

akalinin,

Ms. Boddington was using a 300 Win Mag rifle probably loaded with soft points or premium expanding bullets. It would have caused very serious damage.

Given that Punki was being mauled by a leopard at the time, it seems likely that some of his injuries were provided by the cat. Infection from cat bites and scratches is a most common and very serious complication. While also not wanting to seem ghoulish, I am curious to the extent of the injuries the cat delivered.

Bill

I would prefer that Nic or Corne Kruger chime in on the nature of Punki's injuries (if they wish); he was in a hospital bed and well-bandaged when I saw him! However, he was either very lucky or very unlucky, depending on how you look at it. The bullet entered his right hip, chipped (badly) the bone at the top of the hip, and exited to the rear. An inch or so one way and the bullet would have missed him, and inch the other way, well, I'd rather not think about that.
The timeline we have suggests the leopard was on him for less than two seconds. Considerable damage to ankle and lower leg, his leather belt bitten through as the cat was starting to work its way up . . .