Is animal culling a job?

Game hunting and large prey. Deer stalking, hunting with hounds. Boar, pigs etc., large prey, culling, hunting large feral animals.

Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by marksman » 14 Oct 2018, 11:16 am

duncan61 wrote:Not sure what the insurance is all about.what are you insuring?I never had it.There is no public where you cull or shouldn't be.Some of the shooters in the Gascoyne did well if they had good country and at one point we set up our own cool room trailer to deliver to and some blokes were doing over 1000kg a night at 80c/kg.in April 2014 I dedicated the whole month to culling and was paid $2850 it cost $1600 to do it in may I did 10 days plumbing and was paid $2850 and it cost $96 to do it.Enjoyed culling the red Roos but it's hard to make weight as the factory wants 14kg plus animals the best I ever had it was when I worked at a remote place and the locals bought the meat from me directly


there is a big difference between a "pro shooter" and a "roo shooter" in Vic
as a "pro shooter" public liability insurance has been quoted at minimum $5000 to me but that did not include everything that was needed for me to go on public land to shoot vermin and pest animals, you also have to prove you make money from shooting before you can become a "pro shooter"

yet a mate who shoots roo's for a knackery in Vic doesn't need it, he still calls himself a "pro roo shooter" :unknown: but he does not have the ticket

to travel and be a pro shooter you would have to jump all the hoops every different state throws at you :thumbsdown:
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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by duncan61 » 14 Oct 2018, 11:20 am

Good to have learned that.here we do a meat handling course online and a accuracy test and you are good to go
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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by Gaznazdiak » 14 Oct 2018, 11:26 am

duncan61 wrote:Not sure what the insurance is all about.what are you insuring?I never had it.There is no public where you cull or shouldn't be.Some of the shooters in the Gascoyne did well if they had good country and at one point we set up our own cool room trailer to deliver to and some blokes were doing over 1000kg a night at 80c/kg.in April 2014 I dedicated the whole month to culling and was paid $2850 it cost $1600 to do it in may I did 10 days plumbing and was paid $2850 and it cost $96 to do it.Enjoyed culling the red Roos but it's hard to make weight as the factory wants 14kg plus animals the best I ever had it was when I worked at a remote place and the locals bought the meat from me directly


You need to have public liability to protect yourself and your customer from law suits over any unintended damage your activity on their behalf may cause.

Who would you employ, someone arrogant enough to claim they never missed or had an accident of any kind and don't need insurance to protect their customer and themselves, or someone who went the extra distance to act in a fiscally responsible manner?

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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by duncan61 » 14 Oct 2018, 11:40 am

Again all shooting in W.A. Is on private property but good to know the system in your parts.the way I did it was call the station and ask direct if you get permission to cull you set up your own cool room and start shooting.there is no employment contract and no public
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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by Gaznazdiak » 14 Oct 2018, 12:13 pm

duncan61 wrote:Again all shooting in W.A. Is on private property but good to know the system in your parts.the way I did it was call the station and ask direct if you get permission to cull you set up your own cool room and start shooting.there is no employment contract and no public


I wasn't disputing you Duncan, merely pointing out an unfortunate fact of life.

In my 7yrs running my own earthmoving business I had a few small mishaps here and there, I had a small machine working in Sydney and the operator didn't bother to ask any basic questions on a particular job and proceeded to tear a water line, meter and all, out of the mains feeder.
As the main itself ran down the middle of the street, that's where the valve for that property was located,. That meant the road had to be dug up to shut off the feeder from the main before repairs could even start.

$20,000,000 public liability back then(early 90's) for my earthworks cover was $7300/yr/machine but this one goat-rape of a job would have put me out of action if I hadn't had the cover to take the hit.
Didn't do my premiums any favours on the next year's policy either.

Just imagine Skip makes a sudden move and your round ends up dropping a stud animal out of range of the spotlight. Not like it's never happened.

It just pays to cover yourself.
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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by duncan61 » 14 Oct 2018, 12:32 pm

About to extend a sewer main so get what you are saying.We have 10 million public liability and all the services have been located.To rent Ella Bella for a week you need insurance through SSAA.Insurance is good and we buy what we need in case.I am being a fudd in only thinking about what applies to me
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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by Gaznazdiak » 14 Oct 2018, 12:47 pm

duncan61 wrote:About to extend a sewer main so get what you are saying.We have 10 million public liability and all the services have been located.To rent Ella Bella for a week you need insurance through SSAA.Insurance is good and we buy what we need in case.I am being a fudd in only thinking about what applies to me


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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by Roo farmer » 14 Oct 2018, 1:23 pm

Stix wrote:
I agree zobster...ive heard of a guy over here that shoots in nsw & apparently gets $2/kg...
He is away for one week a month working/shooting.

Id love a job like that as it would suit my lifestyle perfectly, but dont know where to get one. :unknown:


If you are in SA, the first thing you'll have to do is pay about $1800 to get bogged in the TAFE system for about five months until you eventually get your field processing qualification.

Then you pay $1080 to the National Parks department to be able to shoot roos on private property. Then you pay PIRSA $400 for certification of your vehicle and roo shooting tray, presuming you have one that is. These fees are every year, whether you shoot one roo or ten thousand.

Then you buy tags at $1.60 each.

Then you find a processor who will buy the roos from you, at about $0.55 for females and $0.75 for males. You'll occasionally find big ones that dress up to 50 kg or so, but in reality the average is probably more like 18 or 20 kg.

Then find some territory to shoot, run a vehicle, feed your rifle, and spend nights out getting covered in blood. You do the maths.

If you can get $2 per kg go for it.
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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by duncan61 » 14 Oct 2018, 1:55 pm

I was down Albany in February and where I stayed the farm in the valley shot for a couple of hours and dropped off to the meatwork just down the street.Thats getting it too easy I am sure they pay $1/kg as well
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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by duncan61 » 14 Oct 2018, 1:56 pm

Tags are $30/100 here
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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by bigpete » 14 Oct 2018, 2:19 pm

Gaznazdiak wrote:
zobster wrote:It honestly seem like a pretty ok job, based on what I see on FB. The typical load would be about 30-40 roos @ 30 - 40kg average, so its 900kg to 1600kg or $720 to $1280 per night, minus 50% for expenses you'll still left with $360-$640 per night. Assuming you take 7.5hrs to do it all, you're effectively paying yourself $48 to $85 per hour. My math may be very wrong so please correct me.

Looking at this from the $32/h I'm getting now, it looks to be a pretty ok job. But I'm sure the novelty wears off real quick when this is a job and you have to do it regardless rain/hail/snow/wet/cold.


Don't forget to factor into your expenses that you will also need a public liability insurance policy of around $20,000,000, they are an expensive item for operating an earthmoving business, I have no idea how much more it would be for a pro shooter.

Holy s**t,you get $32/hr !!!!????
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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by Member-Deleted » 14 Oct 2018, 2:26 pm

Yes I agree with Roo farmer there's too many coloured lights around making big money from roos
My cousin made big money back in the late 70's early 80's then later the arse fell out of it so he eventually went back grader driving for the shire council
I looked into it last year and the money wasn't there for what it's worth
If you don't have a box for the harvested roos then you have to get one in sometimes at your own cost or if it's supplied by the buyer then they would deduct so many cents /kilo to supply one
Then there's the cost of moving from station to station moving your private cold room and gear for every day use, days off ,wet days and the list goes on
it all cuts into your earnings
But hey if you think you would like to try then do so but brace yourself it isn't an easy ride and when it starts getting hard with kills down the novelty wears
off quick and you will start questioning yourself after spending all the money

In QLD I was required to do a tafe course for handling meats then do a shooting course then a course for the safe and ethical harvesting of animals
Had to have land owners permission already to go and a tray for the ute under spec from gov dept's that's all I can remember but there's more like tags
So it won't be an easy ride first up its a lot of $ out yet to be returned
Mind you if I had the money i'd go to-morrow even the wife said she'd go she likes the bush as well

Good luck to those that try
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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by HereSkip » 14 Oct 2018, 7:28 pm

Bloody hell guy's, to say i'm overwhelmed at the information you have all thrown at me would be an understatement.

It's actually made me sad to hear about all this, I was under the impression roo shootin was a thriving business due to so many of the bloody things bounding around everywhere but I was wrong.

I will try and look into the Tasmanian side of the house and see where that takes me, if it doesnt pan out im happy shooting on ssaa farmer assist and helping mates out

thanks all for the input
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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by duncan61 » 14 Oct 2018, 9:45 pm

You opened a good topic.go do it anyway
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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by Member-Deleted » 14 Oct 2018, 10:06 pm

Yeah Here Skip it's not about the amount of roos hopping around it's about it being worth while to do it
Roo shooting and professional shooting I've been told are 2 of the most heavily regulated industries around
mainly because the powers don't want everybody popping out and doing their own thing
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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by Blr243 » 16 Oct 2018, 4:37 pm

I was once supplied rifle and ammunition to thin Roos when they were in plague numbers Fun at thirst but by the end of each night I could not wait to run out of ammo so I could just drive home and go to bed After shooting hundreds the noise of the rifle and all the blood and death was getting to me. I would absolutely hate to cull for a job. I think it would ruin the outback adventure that rec hunting is for us
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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by marksman » 16 Oct 2018, 6:41 pm

it really does become a job after a while :thumbsdown:
working with a pro shooter on public land is a hell of a lot more money than $2 a kg
but you dont work every night, its a side line
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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by Gaznazdiak » 20 Oct 2018, 7:37 am

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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by duncan61 » 20 Oct 2018, 3:30 pm

Beckham shut down half the industry when he found out that soccer boots were made from kangaroo leather and refused to wear them
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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by zobster » 20 Oct 2018, 3:45 pm

duncan61 wrote:Beckham shut down half the industry when he found out that soccer boots were made from kangaroo leather and refused to wear them

FOR REAL?!?!
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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by duncan61 » 20 Oct 2018, 4:38 pm

yes It was posh spice that got all weird about it.The other reason was South American Beef was cleared by AQIS for import and the market was flooded with skins.In its heyday the skin paid for the animal and the meat was free now the skin price is at an all time low its not viable to buy Kangaroos even for pet food.King river were a huge exporter off human consumption kangaroo to the Eastern block countries but now they can get beef for half the price.I was in king river office when the boss was trying to explain to a customer on the phone that he only had 3 seatainers of packeged meat and this Russian client wanted 10.VIP stopped using kangaroo in their pet food and use chicken as the meat coming from the bush was going off too soon.Unless I move 400 Km south to Albany or 358Km north to Geraldton I have no where to sell Kangaroos
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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by Bruiser64 » 27 Oct 2018, 10:37 am

duncan61 wrote:yes It was posh spice that got all weird about it.The other reason was South American Beef was cleared by AQIS for import and the market was flooded with skins.In its heyday the skin paid for the animal and the meat was free now the skin price is at an all time low its not viable to buy Kangaroos even for pet food.King river were a huge exporter off human consumption kangaroo to the Eastern block countries but now they can get beef for half the price.I was in king river office when the boss was trying to explain to a customer on the phone that he only had 3 seatainers of packeged meat and this Russian client wanted 10.VIP stopped using kangaroo in their pet food and use chicken as the meat coming from the bush was going off too soon.Unless I move 400 Km south to Albany or 358Km north to Geraldton I have no where to sell Kangaroos


As a person familiar with Albany, I can confirm that the number of pro shooters has declined significantly because there is insufficient money to be made. Anecdotally the roo numbers in the south coastal/ great southern areas are increasing as they are not being culled by the pros. You can have as much product as you like, but you have to be able to sell it at a reasonable profit. That is not the situation at the moment.

I think your point about South American beef is an interesting one. Clearly roo products have to compete with other meat and leather products from across the world. As Roos are harvested not farmed means you can’t really get economies of scale like you can with an industrial cattle farming enterprise. Then on top of that you have all your transportation costs from paddock to plate. Clearly it seems likely that roo products will remain a niche product. When you consider that Australian dairy farmers are being shafted by the retailers, I don’t hold out much hope for financial largesse being directed at a roo shooter.

I have done a superficial preliminary examination of the viability of becoming a licensed pro shooter. It was clear pretty quickly the numbers didn’t stack up. Even with a preponderance of Roos in my area.
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Re: Is animal culling a job?

Post by duncan61 » 27 Oct 2018, 11:42 am

We missed the heyday.20 years ago Albany was paying $1/kg
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