Fans outraged as Australian Survivor ‘hero’ exposed as trophy hunter
Survivor fans are horrified as one of this year’s “hero” contestants has an Instagram filled with violent animal killings. WARNING: Graphic images.
WARNING: Graphic images.
Some Australian Survivor fans have expressed their outrage after one of the members of this season’s “Heroes” tribe has been exposed as a trophy hunter.
And Paige Donald has hit back at her critics in a blistering video statement overnight, telling those who’ve slammed her hunting to get back “in their f**king place.”
Donald works in country Queensland mustering cattle – but, as her controversial departing tribemate (and outspoken animal activist) Rogue Rubin pointed out on social media, she’s also a keen hunter.
Paige’s public Instagram account is filled with dozens of graphic photos and videos of her hunting various animals.
The most heavily featured are wild pigs, but she has also posted graphic imagery of dead kangaroos, dingoes, and even a large antelope and a warthog she killed while on a hunting trip to Africa.
She has shared numerous violent videos showing her controversial method for pig hunting, using a pack of dogs to corner and kill the animal. In several videos she can be seen and heard laughing and cheering as her dogs tear the distressed animal to pieces.
RSPCA Australia describes the use of dogs to hunt feral pigs as posing “significant welfare risks to both the pig being hunted and the dogs involved”.
“Hunting of pigs with dogs is inherently cruel and unnecessary,” states the RSPCA. “Chased pigs will experience fear, panic and distress, and for those that are killed by sticking, death will be painful and prolonged.”
In other posts, Paige shares gruesome photos of multiple dead dingoes, killed in one night:
And another with a dismembered red kangaroo:
As the posts came to light, some Australian Survivor fans took to social media to express their disgust at her placement on the “Heroes” tribe:
So I didn’t like Rogue at all but the Paige being a trophy hunter thing explains a lot about her “the tribe are not Heroes†speech and her obvious gripe with her. I now have no time for Paige either #SurvivorAU
— Peta 🙠(@PetaPan17) February 6, 2023
I knew that’s why Paige didn’t like Rogue! I mean yeah Rogues annoying and offensive, but I think Paige didn’t like Rogue and a lot of her agrresion towards her was mainly because of her animal activism and Paige is obviously all about hunting animals. It’s gross #SurvivorAUpic.twitter.com/yEO0oJ9WsO
— Mark (@MarkJCampbell) February 5, 2023
Rogue sucks
— Ahmad (@Reality_Ahmad) February 5, 2023
But Paige’s instagram is disgusting #SurvivorAU
Still not a fan of Rogue after what she said to Nina ep. 1, but I'm absolutely here for her exposing Paige for being a big game hunter on Instagram and it makes their feud make so much more sense #SurvivorAU
— Alex Harrell (@itsalexharrell) February 5, 2023
not too sure what to make of paige. is she actually a trophy hunter? if so, she's got to go. i don't want to see a murderer on my screen. #SurvivorAU
— taryn | wanda maximoff apologist ðŸ (@thereafter) February 6, 2023
Omg. I didn’t realise Paige is a Hunter. That’s so gross, how is she a hero for killing wild boar’s ???? #SurvivorAU
— ViVi B (@ViVi_RFObsessed) February 5, 2023
Not Farmer Paige being a proud hunter, posting pictures of her fresh bloody kills of boars on her socials. No wonder @Survivor_AU hasn’t tagged her account in any of their posts. Can someone explain why she’s on the heroes tribe? #SurvivorAU
— Matt Brady (@mattbbrady) January 28, 2023
Paige kills animals for fun. She's no hero and I can't wait for her to be voted off #SurvivorAU
— Bee ðŸ (@izziewithaY) February 6, 2023
Paige has today addressed the uproar, releasing a lengthy video statement via her Instagram stories in which she thanked Rogue “for all the new followers” and said she wanted to “put people in their f**king place.”
“Yes, I hunt. I live in a world with animals that are sick and need to be shot,” she said, saying she’s seen first hand the damage feral pigs and dingos have done to her livestock.
“I get rewarded with a bounty for each dingo that I get... You’re lucky I have a thick skin. The amount of death threats and disgusting messages I’ve gotten all over my social media is disgusting.”
She also clarified that her African hunting trip took place almost 10 years ago, when she was 17 - “and you can be damn sure I’ll be going back one day,” she said.
“The money you spend on the animal you’re shooting goes back into the animal and keeping them safe,” she insisted. “There’s so much to it that you don’t know.”
She also revealed that she previously worked as a veterinary nurse and loved saving animals’ lives.
Paige’s social media presence may go some way to explaining she and Rogue’s apparent dislike for each other before Rogue was voted out of the Heroes tribe during Sunday’s episode.
Railing against her tribe, Rogue complained that only a handful of her tribemates – those like a lifesaver and rescue pilot, whose job is to save lives – could truly be considered heroes.
She then asked the rest of the tribe to vote her out, saying she didn’t fit in with the group and wanted her Survivor experience to be over.
It came after Rogue courted controversy from the very first episode of this season, seen on camera telling African-American tribemate Nina Twine that she was “more African-American” than her because of her own ties to both the US and South Africa. Rogue later admitted she was “deeply humiliated” by her behaviour when she watched the footage back.
Australian Survivor continues 7.30pm tonight on Ten
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