Working Lives

Working Lives: The Hunter who Left Father’s Shop for the Thrills of Hunting

The Hausa Hunters of Kara

On a Sunday morning, one of our writers encountered a group of young men armed with clubs and cutlasses and accompanied by dogs while he was buying fruits at Ketu market. They were obviously hunters but they looked so out of place amidst the concrete, banks, yellow busses, petrol stations etc. of a Lagos suburb. Assuming a writer was crazy enough to situate a story about hunting in the urban jungle, no camera crew was in sight. After speaking to them, our writer discovered they were Hausa hunters headed for Kara, a large expanse of forest after Ojodu Berger at the Lagos end of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway. Thus, a WLs series was born about a profession none of us knew existed in Lagos. Most Nigerians associate “bushmeat”-meat from animals such as monkeys, snakes, antelopes, pangolins etc. hunted in the forests- with the rural Nigerian communities where we see them on sale on the roadside as we drive across Nigerian cities. But we discovered that the suppliers and buyers of bushmeat live amongst us in Lagos and that the trade involves considerable labour mobility. There are even markets where bushmeat is sold.

Working Lives: The Hunter who Left Father’s Shop for the Thrills of Hunting

“My best days are days when all these thugs do not disturb us. They just believe we are Hausa guys and we are in Lagos, “their father’s land”, like they always say. So they tend to bully us and always demand for money even after our boss has settled them”.

Where are you from?

I am from Kano state. I was born there and I also grew up there with my family.

When did you get to Lagos?

I got to Lagos in 2015. I was living with my dad in Agege when I arrived Lagos. He was in Lagos way before I came. He came to hustle like others from the North. He goes home during Muslim festivals.

What schools did you attend?

I attended Government Secondary School, Kano.

Tell me about your family?

My dad is a business man. He has a shop where he sells pepper in Agege. That is what he has been doing right from time. My mom just does odd jobs around town back home in Kano to get extra cash. I have 6 siblings. We are all boys. Three of us are here in Lagos. The others are with my mom in Kano.

Where do you live and how much is the rent?

I live in Mile 12 now and I don’t pay any rent. Our boss doesn’t charge us rent. About 17 of us live together; 4 of us to a room.

What were you doing before you started hunting in Kara?

I was working as a porter in Agege market. I help people carry groceries and other things they come to buy in the market. I did that for about a year.

How did you start working as an hunter?

I have actually known my boss since I was a kid in Kano. We lived in the same village. He was also a hunter back home in Kano. I just stumbled upon him one time when he came to Agege market. We started talking about old times in Kano. He mentioned his hunting business in Lagos and asked if I wanted to join him. I thought about it and said yes.

Did you go through some sort of training before you could start hunting?

Not really. I do not handle the gun. Only our boss and the more senior guys do. They just had a talk with me about the importance of being brave when you see animals. I was also taught how to hold the machete firmly. We use the machete mainly for killing snakes and for clearing the bush to create footpaths. We do not strike the animals. We try to catch them alive because people pay more for live ones. Monkeys are difficult to catch as they are always jumping about, so we shoot them. We encountered a dangerous animal only once, a leopard. Fortunately, we were all together. It was scared and just slipped away from us.

Do you have problems when you are seen with guns?

My boss has registered the gun at a police station. He always carries the receipt and other documents. There is a license for the gun. But my boss still has to settle these area boys. He gives them about N5,000. We go to other places like Ojere to hunt. The thugs tell us places we should not go to, for instance shrines deep in the forest where the locals go to worship.

For how long have you been hunting in Kara?

I got to Lagos in 2015 and I started working as an hunter the following year. So that is about 5 years now.

How much do you sell the animals?

It depends on the kind or animal in question, and how big the animal is. We sell antelope for N50,000, we sell rabbits for N10,000. We often find grasscutters and rabbits. Antelopes and monkeys are sometimes difficult to find.

Read: WLs: The Car Parts Dealer Who Worked as Bus Conductor to Save Capital

Who are your customers?

Big men in the city of Lagos. We also take the animals to Mile 12 market, Agege market or Lagos Island to sell. My boss knows people who make orders for certain animals. Antelopes are the most sought after; we are always under pressure to find them for customers. I am not sure if they eat them or use them for other things.

What time of the day do you go hunting?

We hunt only on Sundays and we mostly go very early in the morning when it is quiet. We sometimes stay in the bush for a week. We carry noodles, rice and beans with us. We get about three antelopes and three monkeys after a week. This is good money for us.

What is your best day like hunting?

When all these thugs do not disturb us. They just believe we are Hausa guys and we are in Lagos, “their father’s land”, like they always say. So, they tend to bully us and always demand for money even after our boss has settled them. Another group of thugs may turn up just after we have settled one group. They ask us to pay them based on their calculations of how much we sell the animals.

How much do you spend in a day?

I do not spend a lot.  We all contribute money to buy food in bulk and cook. I contribute N3,000 monthly. And after this, I spend very little.

How much do you spend on medication when you fall sick?

I hardly fall sick. The only time I spend money on my health is maybe when I have an injury, because we go so deep in the bush and it is always dangerous out there. We get bitten by snakes once in a while. We have different herbal concoctions for treating snake bites. One evening, we were done with the hunting and we were relaxing under a tree.  A big green snake emerged from nowhere and bit me on the leg. I was able to kill the snake. I sold it for N5,000.

Do you have savings and much do you save in a month?

I save my money weekly. After we sell the animals at the market and I get my share of the money, I save N3,000 or N2,000 weekly.

Are you married?

No, I am not married yet.

Any other job or business you would like to venture into?

Not at all. This is the only thing I am interested in at the moment. I enjoy hunting a lot. I am also very happy to be working amongst fellow northerners. This makes me very happy.

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