South Africas largest privat Rhino-breeder

1600 rhinos !!!..... :

SA's largest private rhino breeder, John Hume, says seized rhino horns are his property | Saturday Star

 

Not starting a debate but is it a bad thing if he's taking there horns off to sell least the animals are not killed

 

I can see this working in a similar way to the gator industry

 

...How?

 

He was looking for a partner/investor a few years back. Its a shame that he can't be bought out by someone looking towards conservation

 

Basically, if one can create a regulated, legal rhino horn market, you can flood out the demand for poached goods. However, I do admit that this is theoretical. I used crocodilians because farming is what helped many populations, especially the American alligator, recover.

 

Rhino farming (like farming of crocodiles, ostriches etc.) is an idea which I heard several times over decades. Several factors make it infeasible as a strategy for saving rhinos.
- Rhino horn grows very slowly,
- In every African country outside South Africa, a farm of rhinos would be invaded by poachers who would kill rhinos, so conveniently brought in one place, and probably murder the staff. Basically, crime/law enforcement issue.
- The problem of certification of legal horn and legal horn creating interest and increasing poaching for illegal horn, rather than reducing it. This might be theoretically solvable with very good enforcement in Arabian countries and South Asia, but most people belive it is not realistic now.

 

What if you have a specific trade union where rhino horn can only be spread through there?

 

There would be illegal trade, just as is now, only possibly more.

 

Well that's a given. That's why I think we need to set up a well enforced system of enforecemnt and trade regulations before we're able to do anything

This should explain my point better
The sustainable use approach could save South Africa's rhinos