Hunter shoots leopard pinning him down

[johannvdg]

Tweety, penetrator slugs work well enough, I chose a shotgun, because I am very efficient with it and at the time I could not afford a double rifle, only had to use it once, point of impact was about an inch to the right of the the throat of the leopard, and the exit wound was just to the left side of the spine where the kidneys are. Distance was about 10 meters.

[Tweety]

Tweety, penetrator slugs work well enough, I chose a shotgun, because I am very efficient with it and at the time I could not afford a double rifle, only had to use it once, point of impact was about an inch to the right of the the throat of the leopard, and the exit wound was just to the left side of the spine where the kidneys are. Distance was about 10 meters.

Do you reckon you could have got a second aimed shot off?

[shakari]

Tweety,

Yes, it's a left handed Weatherby action. I bought it new about 20 years ago and had it rebuilt to my own specification to .500 Jeffery by Sabi Rifles in Nelspruit about 8 years ago....... as you can see, it's had a fair bit of hard work since then.

Everyone has their own opinions about cat hunting but certainly I've never had time to get a second shot in during a cat charge situation........ and I reckon I'm faster than most when it comes to subsequent shots....... maybe with a double if it didn't flip too much on the first shot but I certainly wouldn't bet on it.

One thing I do find immensely useful is one of those blue light Surefire Kroma torches in the hands of the tracker. They cost a bloody fortune but are worth every penny when the time arrives that you have to step out into the darkness.

I also believe in as bright a headlight as possible for me and I find that red fibre optic foresight a Godsend.

More than anything, the best thing to do in those situations is have the client shoot straight in the first place and the article will show you how I have the client repeatedly rehearse the shot exactly until I'm satisfied he stands the best chance as possible of gettin it right in the first place.

[johannvdg]

Do you reckon you could have got a second aimed shot off?

Who said the first one was aimed:), I am trying to say that most of my shotgun shooting is instinctive and yes I probably could have, but he was just getting ready to jump, and not at me either, but at the tracker that was on all fours on the ground to my left, so who knows. But if he did not go down from the first shot I would have had a second available to try.

If you are not very familiar with a shotgun I would recommend that you rather stick to the rifle that you are familiar with. I also agree that using any form of buckshot could lead to trouble, as even LG pellets probably weigh less than 70 gr each, so the penetration may not be too great. And when your well-being depends on it you want to be sure.

[Roy Sparks]

If you hunt leopard often enough and your choice of weapon is a shotgun for close quater work , use the most reliable slugs available which give the highest velocity a slug can achieve.If you use shot often enough you will find at some point you'll have to agree it was a bad choice !!

I like my custom built .375 H&H bolt action. It has a 21 inch barrell and will agree with Shakari that a rifle can be built to point like a shotgun , especially in respect of this rifle built for me by Kevin Healey of Bloem Custom Rifles. I use the Sierra Game King 250 grain bullet which gives me the desired velocity and more than adequate penetration.

For night follow up I use a small compact Nikko Stirling torch fitted to the underside of my barrell with no interference to handling. The rear and foresights are properly visible for a deliberately aimed shot if you have the chance for that. In most these situations I cant recall seeing any sights , my rifle fits and points like shotgun. All I can recall seeing is my target , everything else is natural alignment.

Use a rifle on these cats , even smaller calibres would be preferable to a shotgun with shot. Shotguns are good for birds and snakes.

Regards - Roy.

[hagar]

Met Capstick once, about 2 years before he died. He was an interesting coot, but too many sundowners made him shake like somebody with Parkinsons. I did enjoy his books, made up or not.

As for the mexicans, I have plenty of experience with them, having lived in Arizona for 14 years. I can tell you they get real uncomfortable being sweared at in Afrikaans and having an L1A1 (R1) pointed at them..

[shootem]

Read all Capsticks book and enjoyed them regardless... If im not mistaken when he did follow ups on wounded leopard he used to put two pairs on jeans on, leather jacket and gloves a thick strip of leather around his neck and a football helmet!! =) Just to give him a better chance and time if the leopard tried to scratch him...

[Roy Sparks]

Guys there's little point in following up a wounded leopard if you cannot function freely = body movement. You need to be able to react fast without interference of cumbersome clothing.You need to be able to use all your senses , especially your eyes and ears.

In most cases a helmet of sorts will interfere with you mounting the rifle or shotgun as it will not allow you to rest your cheek in the normal position making it virtually impossible to get off an effective shot - try it out before you put it into practice on the real deal. It will also interfere with your hearing. Kitted out like Mr. Capstick mentions is not sensible at all and it will in all probability result in the leopard getting to you anyway ..... without you even getting a shot off.


I had an occasion where we did the final approach on a big male leopard bayed up by my hounds with a German client.Before commiting ourselves into the danger zone I called the client closer for final instructions. At this point I noticed he had a huge beach towel wrapped around his neck. He'd stowed it away in his backpack. I took the time to ask him to mount his rifle quickly as if aligning it for a shot - he could not !! Off came the towel and shortly hereafter the leopard put in a full on determined charge which the client was able to stop on his own with his double .375 Mag. Goodness knows where his shots may have ended up if he managed to fire any at all with his protection around his neck. After the dust settled he turned his back on us and undid his trousers - I thought the worst had happened under the strain of the moment.Luckily not , he had an equally large towel shoved down the front of his pants !! He'd promissed his girl friend he'd take good care of himself for her.

[GameFarmer]

he had an equally large towel shoved down the front of his pants !!

That sort of make sense.

[Lian]

you can take my life.... but not my jewels!
hehe