Trophy hobby hunter poses with giraffe heart
She has an enormously big heart. But not in her chest. In her hands. And it's not hers. It belongs to a giraffe (†17).
South African Merelize van der Merwe has a pathological passion: hobby hunting.
£1,500 hunting trip as a Valentine's Day gift
For this reason, her husband treated her to a £1,500 hunting trip to a wildlife park in Sun City for Valentine's Day. The target: a giraffe. After the kill, the 32-year-old posted images on social media and proudly showed herself holding the 11-kilogram excised giraffe heart in her hands.
500 animals killed
Van Der Merwe, who began hobby hunting at the age of five and has killed up to 500 animals, including lions, leopards and elephants, said she published the snapshot to mock the animal rights lobby.
Dr. Mark Jones of the Born Free Foundation: “The claims by trophy hobby hunters that they are concerned about wildlife conservation are highly misleading. Trophy hunting is neither a conservation tool nor does it contribute significantly to local communities.»
Elisa Allen of PETA: “Someone who kills another living being, cuts out its heart and boasts about it fits the definition of a sociopath. One day, trophy hunting will be listed as a sign of a psychiatric disorder.»
