Instagram: @blood_dogs_and_knives_nz
Facebook: @levi.maaka
Youtube: @Blood Dogs and Knives NZ
Tell us who you are and what you do:
Kia Ora, I’m Levi Maaka. I’m from a place called Te Hapua in the North Isand. I’m a keen pig hunter and I’m doing a building apprenticeship
How did you get into hunting:
I’ve been hunting since the age of 6 with my dad and I’ve been hooked ever since
What do you enjoy most about hunting outdoors:
Getting young dogs going and getting amongst the bush with my mates
Tell us your best piece of gear and why you love it:
My best piece of gear would have to be my tracking gear without that I wouldn’t have a clue were or what my dogs were doing
Any advice for people wanting to get into hunting:
If your gonna start fresh with young dogs try and find a dog that can catch pigs. Either buy one or see if anyone is giving it up and willing to give you their dogs, or tag along with someone that has dogs that catch pigs, to help you speed up on the pup training
Tell us a story about your best hunt:
Hunting during Summer can be hard pigs move on and are real hard to find.So last summer I did my homework and figured out a few spots that should hold pigs so I tried them out and caught a few good boars. But there was still one spot I hadn’t tried so one arvo, when it had cooled off my mates and I decided to try it out. It was real, real thick bush but if you pushed through far enough you’d come out to a massive swamp. We made our way through the bush, making us a track. It was so dry in the bush I had lost faith in the place but the dogs thought other wise. They made their way out to the swamp and just on dark my main dog and holder let out a real good bail. In my head I was thinking we were gonna be in that thick bush all night trying to get a pig out. We ran to the barking dogs and found ourselves at a deep creek. By then we had heard the dogs grab the pig so we swam across and rushed to the dogs to deal to a good boar which weighed in at 140lb. Now we had to re-trace the track we made but by then it had gotten dark. We got our pig out just on midnight but was well worth it. Now we still re use the same track to that swamp and is one of our main hunting spots in the summer.
