Outrage as American hunter poses with wild goat shot dead on Islay

A so called “celebrity hunter” has sparked outrage after tweeting pictures of herself posing with a wild goat shot dead on Islay.

Larysa Switlyk, 33, who describes herself as a “professional huntress” and host of Larysa Unleashed on Destination America & World Fishing Network, travels the world finding wild animals to shoot.

She regularly posts pictures on her social feeds of dead animals she has shot across the globe, from crocodiles to buffalo.

Her most recent post on social media is a picture of herself smiling behind a dead Soay goat in an Islay moorland.

The image has been been widely criticised online with more than 2,800 people commenting on the picture including Judy Murray. She said on Twitter:  “Disgraceful. It’s a goat. And it’s in Scotland. On a beautiful island. Stop this pls @scotgov.”

In the tweet and Instagram post the American presenter wrote: “Beautiful wild goat here on the Island of Islay in Scotland. Such a fun hunt!! They live on the edge of the cliffs of the island and know how to hide well.

“Made a perfect 200 yard shot and dropped him with the @gunwerks and @nightforce_optics ! ( Good thing too because he could have ran off the cliff into the water). ”

The other image shows a man posing behind a white goat, with the caption: “Congrats on Jason on his gold medal goat here in Scotland on Islay. A unique hunt.”

Twitter users condemned the images as “sickening” and “truly abhorrent”.

Argyll and Bute MSP Mike Russell said today he would be raising the issue with environment secretary Roseanna Cunningham.

He tweeted: “As the local member of @ScotParl I am raising this as a matter of urgency with @strathearnrose – if this is actually happening on #Islay, and laid on by some sort of tour company I would want to see it stopped immediately.”

Local residents have also been outraged by the shooting including Ann Russell, from the village of Port Charlotte on Islay.

She said, “I don’t think someone from another country should be allowed to come over and shoot our wild animals like this.

“These animals are beautiful creatures that people love to see in their natural habitats when they’re out for a walk on the island. I can’t imagine why she’d want to kill them for fun.”

Ms Switlyk has also posted pictures of a dead ram and a number of dead stags on her hunting trip to Scotland.

Sarah Moyes, campaigner for OneKind which campaigns against animal cruelty, said: “It’s utterly shocking to see these images of Larysa Switlyk and other hunters posing for photos with the wild animals they killed on a recent trip to Scotland.

“Yet again, instead of celebrating Scotland’s magnificent wildlife, we are seeing these beautiful animals exploited in the name of sport.

“This is not the kind of tourism we should be encouraging in Scotland, let alone allowing to happen in the 21st century.”