I'm out on on a local contract shoot today chasing Feral Goats.

The biggest challenge chasing feral goats on this property is the steep terrain and dense bush.
The goats pass through here occasionally and crossing paths with them is really a game of chance.
Generally, my plan of attack is to send up the drone and see if they are about.

With a large mob of goats spotted on the far side of the property it was time to close the distance.
I set off with my rifle, tripod and camera.The hunt was on.

Running my Sako .223 topped with the HikMicro Panther PQ50L V2.0 thermal scope.
First obstacle was to avoid the farmers friends, (sticky beaks/ Cobler's Pegs). These things stick to you like glue and can be quite uncomfortable.

I had only walked roughly 80m and I could smell the goats already.
If you've crossed paths with an adult Billy, (male) they absolutely stink. Unfortunately they had made their way into the dense scrub on the hillside. Not surprising as it is fairly late afternoon and they generally bed down in the thick stuff before nightfall for safety.

I decided it was now or never.
Ditching the tripod as I pushed through the near impenetrable bush to get close.

Shooting off the shoulder I managed to drop 4 goats in quick succession, the 4th goat running almost up to the end of the barrel, big mistake. It was mayhem, with goats taking off in all directions.

With quite a few of the goats heading up higher I decided to give chase.

Well, definitely not as fit as it thought I was. Puffing and panting, I managed to catch up with a breakaway group near the ridge-line.
Only had the opportunity to take one more before they were out of sight.

5 goats culled in total, not quite as many as I'd hoped for but thats just how it goes sometimes.

In Australia, feral goats have been estimated to cause losses to livestock farming of $25 million per year, not including their impact on the environment or pasture degradation. Feral goats also negatively affect conservation values and biological diversity by damaging the vegetation and competing with native animals.

свернуть