This July marks ten years on from Cecil the lion’s killing by Walter Palmer. The hunting industry still panders to the trophy hunters’ willingness to pay handsomely to enjoy ‘legally’ (though all those implicated are morally and ethically bankrupt) killing animals.
Trophy hunters enjoy killing animals, otherwise they wouldn’t do it.
Any other excuse that trophy hunting is ‘essential’ for conservation, or the victim was a ‘problem animal/pest’ are just a self-delusion to try and hide behind – trophy hunters enjoy their victim’s suffering, the blood and their victim’s (often agonising) death.
Animal suffering is guaranteed within trophy hunting (eg. the ‘clean’ shot is avoided to preserve the future trophy’s aesthetic (sic), or a crossbow is used to demonstrate the hunter’s prowess (sic)) – so any pretending by the hunting industry to care about the target animal’s suffering/well-being and what level is acceptable, seeking to mitigate public perception could at best be described as disingenuous. In reality, trophy hunting reflects a lack of empathy in pursuit of the ‘trophy’ for self-gratification, bordering upon a callous obsession (Beattie, G., 2020).
The United Kingdom government is still to implement a ban on hunting trophy imports to the United Kingdom – in the meantime, those that enjoy enjoy killing animals for fun can continue to indulge their perversion seemingly unhindered.
The United Kingdom consultation on the export and import of hunting trophies closed February 2020 – action is long overdue:
“A spokesperson for the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said: “The government was elected on a mandate to ban the import of hunting trophies – that is exactly what we will do.”” – The Independent, 22 June 2025
Further Reading
“British trophy-hunters shoot dozens of endangered animals including elephants, bears, baboons and cheetahs,” The Independent, 30 June 2025
“Giraffe genitalia among hundreds of body parts imported by trophy hunters Exclusive: More than 20 ‘trophies’ imported into UK in one year, as UK ban remains stalled,” The Independent, 22 June 2025
“United Kingdom – Hunting Trophies (Import Prohibition) Bill,” IWB, 29 January 2024
“Cecil – 7 Year Anniversary,” IWB, 22 July 2022
“UK Consultation on Hunting Trophies,” IWB, 10 December 2021
“Trophy Hunting – A Psychological Perspective,” Beattie, G., 2020, Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group
“Consultation on controls on the import and export of hunting trophies,” IWB 4 November 2019