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Anyone here who keeps exotic hoofstock?

Discussion in 'Private Collections & Pets' started by TinyDeer, 6 Apr 2022.

  1. TinyDeer

    TinyDeer Member

    Joined:
    20 Jun 2021
    Posts:
    16
    Location:
    Cleveland, Ohio
    What’s your experience been like? What species do you have? :)
     
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  2. Nix

    Nix Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    22 Nov 2020
    Posts:
    432
    Location:
    South Africa
    I do in fact, Currently I have 2 full herds of Impala, A bachelor herd, 1.2 Cape Eland, and formerly Nyala, I lost them all after a rather heavy winter.
     
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  3. Sarus Crane

    Sarus Crane Well-Known Member 5+ year member

    Joined:
    23 Apr 2017
    Posts:
    1,081
    Location:
    USA
    Awesome! Do they all need a 10 foot fence or is that only if they're really stressed that they'll jump it? Which African hoofstock species is most cold-weather hardy? I'd love to own some eland one day!
     
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  4. Nix

    Nix Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    22 Nov 2020
    Posts:
    432
    Location:
    South Africa
    Let me start here, the game industry is huge, about 14 000 different ranches keep native and exotic ungulate in South-Africa in a semi-captive environment, to the point were some species are dirt cheap (Springbok, Impala...) and other more expensive (Sable, Roan...).

    About the fence, 3 meters is usually necessary, Not only because of stress, but animals like kudu, or Eland, would jump fences (and in some cases even the tall ones) just because the grass is greener on the other side. Bushbuck on the other hand are crawlers, they won't stay where you put them, no matter how electrified or fortified it is, they'll find a way out, simply because they feel like it.

    Weather is not really in issue, anywhere, most species are quite hardy to the cold, some even preferring it, such as the black wildebeest living in the high Karoo Plateau. I think the death of my Nyalas where do to A, the unusually cold winter and B the severe drought taking place at the time, those two combined caused them to die out within in 2 months, I'm hoping to bring in another herd this year, but will be keeping them in a contained area to monitor them before release.

    The thing that restricts the keeping of animals in certain areas is ticks.
    Ticks are everywhere, yes, but they don't carry the same diseases everywhere.
    These have come to be known as the different "tick areas" with the two major players being the hartswater area and the redwater area.
    Some species can survive in both, some in just one, and some in none at all.

    Animals like Springbok, coming from a disease free area known as the Karoo and greater North Cape area, are not immune to both the Redwater and hartswater areas, thus are not often kept if at all, kept in these areas.
    There have been progress in normalizing the disease to springbok, with some success, but the auction prices speak for themselves...
    A ordinary springbok fetches R900 at most, whereas a hartwater immune springbok is a bit more towards the R10 000 mark.

    I hope that answers your questions!