Don Hammond - Chairman of the New Zealand Game Animal Council (GAC)
Don Hammond has been the chairman of the New Zealand Game Animal Council (GAC) for nearly six years. Matt Gibson sat down with Don to learn about what the GAC is, how it works, the challenges it faces, and most importantly why hunters from New Zealand should care deeply about the Game animal council. Past challenges, recent wins, and future plans. If you’re a hunter and you care about NZ hunting, the game animals we have, the public land we hunt on, and the natural environment we hunt in you need to listen to this podcast.
Game animal council website - https://nzgameanimalcouncil.org.nz/
Game animal council 5-year plan - HERE
Tahr Returns App - download instructions HERE
The future of New Zealand Tahr depend on the actions we take now.
There is an urgent need for hunters to use the Tahr Returns App. The Game Animal Council needs to quantify the Tahr recreational hunters kill as part of their contribution to managing the herd.
The issue is simple. Recreational hunters must demonstrate that they take a large number of Tahr and are a critical part of population management or the justification will be to have less Tahr and therefore more culling.
We all need to work together and use our collective influence within the hunting sector to get hunters to use the Tahr Returns App to prove the value of recreational hunting .
Without the evidence collected via the Tahr Returns App we will end up with more and more Tahr being culled. Here’s the link to instructions on using the App - https://nzgameanimalcouncil.org.nz/tahr-returns-app/
Follow @theeducatedhunter on Instagram for photos the promote our values as hunters. We post images the show “why we hunt” and images that celebrate what it really means to be a hunter. Tag us in your own photos that show why you hunt and use the hashtags #whywehunt and #theeducatedhunter to get out attention – we would love to share your hunting moments with the whole community.
Join the conversation on The Educated Hunter FaceBook group, here is a place where our audience can bring their knowledge, passion and practical skills to discuss real-world issues that hunters and hunting are facing today. It provides a platform where like-minded individuals can come together and solve real issues in a constructive manner, working together and focusing their collective passion for fixing something rather than just talking about it.
If you’re interested in Ultimate OE - flick us an email ultimateoemail@gmail.com
Catch you on the clearing,
The Educated Hunter