ladbible logo

To make sure you never miss out on your favourite NEW stories, we're happy to send you some reminders

Click 'OK' then 'Allow' to enable notifications

​People Are Paying Up To £25,000 To Kill Exotic Animals On USA Ranch Holidays

​People Are Paying Up To £25,000 To Kill Exotic Animals On USA Ranch Holidays

The Ox Ranch in Texas bills itself as ‘the most exciting hunting ranch in Texas’

Jess Hardiman

Jess Hardiman

WARNING: CONTAINS DISTRESSING IMAGES

People are paying up to £25,000 to kill exotic animals on ranch holidays in the United States, with one spot in Texas offering customers up to 60 species to hunt.

According to a new report from the Daily Star, hunters are willing to spend tens of thousands to kill animals including zebras, antelope and even kangaroos at the 18,000-acre Ox Ranch in Uvalde, southern Texas.

They added that dozens of Brits come to the ranch, often bringing their families.

One ranch worker called Sonia told the outlet: "Many come along and bring their children - we offer activities for the whole family."

The ranch bills itself as 'the most exciting hunting ranch in Texas', with everything from animals to machine gun shooting and tank driving.

Ox Ranch

Its website states: "Ox Ranch is legendary for its Native & Exotic hunting which includes whitetail deer hunting, turkey hunting, and 60+ additional species available for hunt!

"You will see thousands of wildlife free ranging on over 18,000 acres of Texas Hill Country.

"A few of the species you will encounter on your visit include giraffes, zebras, kangaroos, axis, bongo, kudu blackbucks, elk, hogs, red stags, and of course record-breaking whitetail deer.

"Ox Ranch is home to Drivetanks.com which is the only place in the world you can drive and shoot real WWII tanks!"

Hunting packages vary in price depending on the animal in question, but one of the most expensive targets is the African bongo antelope - an animal with spiral horns, which has been priced by the ranch at $35,000 (£25,000).

Ox Ranch

Other animals include wildebeest (£4,300), sitatunga antelope (£8,700), Arabian oryx (£6,900) and a goat with a bushy mane known as a Himalayan tahr (£5,500).

The Ox Ranch website features a gallery of photos showing hunters posing with their kills, along with testimonies from happy customers.

One wrote: "I like to be free and that's the feeling I get when I hunt at the Ox Ranch. It's just a wonderful place for the hunter and the photographer. It's the closest thing to Africa I have seen. It's freedom."

Ox Ranch

Brett Oxley, the owner of Ox Ranch, bought the business after selling an online hosting company.

He has previously defended the ranch by saying it all about animal conservation, writing in a blog post: "It's easy for people to call hunting evil, especially when they are ill-informed and don't have to provide a viable alternative.

"We have hundreds of anti-hunters out a year, and very few if any leave with the notion that what we are doing is evil."

But sites like the Ox Ranch have been a huge source of contention for animal rights activists.

Ashley Byrne, from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, previously argued: "Hunting has absolutely nothing to do with conservation.

"What they're doing is trying to put a better spin on a business that they know the average person finds despicable."

Featured Image Credit: Ox Ranch

Topics: News, US News, Hunting, Animals