About Brian Van Blerk

Brian Van Blerk was born in Zimbabwe in 1971, the son of a game rancher. His childhood was spent in the bush, learning to track, read animal behaviour, and handle firearms before most boys his age had left the schoolyard. By the time he walked out of school in 1989, there was only one path that made sense: the bush.

His apprenticeship years were raw and formative. Brian cut his teeth on Problem Animal Control (PAC) operations in the Zimbabwe lowveld, tracking and dispatching cattle-killing leopards for farming communities. Those early years, walking thick jesse bush after wounded or stock-raiding cats, built reflexes and instincts that no classroom could teach. By 1995, Brian had earned his Zimbabwe Professional Hunter's licence. Six years later, he added a Tanzania licence to his credentials.

Over the decades since, Brian has conducted more than 150 big game safaris across Zimbabwe's Chirisa Safari Area, the Zambezi Valley, and Tanzania's finest hunting blocks. His record speaks for itself: 136+ leopards harvested (a tally that earned him the nickname "The Catman"), 56 trophy lions, 300+ Cape buffalo, and 50 elephant bulls. In 2010, the Zimbabwe Professional Hunters and Guides Association honoured him with their award for the biggest big game animal harvested outside the country.

Brian's favourite species remains the ranchland leopard, the animal that defined his career. His weapon of choice is a Heym 500 Nitro Express double rifle, a gun he describes as "an extension of my right hand." His philosophy is simple: "Treat your hunting day with your client as if it is your first."