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Out Of Africa: The Story Of The Walnut Hill Zebra And His Missing Giraffe Friend

A zebra and black bear in the back of a pickup truck created a stir in Walnut Hill on Friday afternoon, with some people nearly running off the road and others snapping pictures on their cell phones.

The zebra and the black bear were simply moving from one home to their new one in the Walnut Hill community. A far cry from their first move…about 9,000 miles from South Africa to Walnut Hill.

The attention-getting duo were being moved on the Fourth of July (pictured left on South Highway 99) to the new home of Richard and Vickie Beck on Tungoil Road in Walnut Hill. The Becks recently built their new home after selling their farm in South Africa.

The home features a wide variety of mounted animals from South Africa…from the zebra, to wild hogs, to monkeys, to big cats, even to a map of Africa painted on a preserved elephant ear.

But the largest mounted trophy is yet to come…it is a 19 foot tall full body mount giraffe that Vickie shot. There have been some paperwork delays in getting the giraffe out of Africa.

“This entire house was built to hold the giraffe,” Richard told NorthEscambia.com.

Six years ago, the Becks bought a 3,500 acre farm near of Alexandria, South Africa, near the Indian Ocean coast. They lived there April to August for each of the past six years, offering hunting and photo safaris during the South African winter. (Remember, the seasons are opposite south of the equator, so April to August is their winter.)

They have owned a sod business in Walnut Hill for the past 19 years. They had originally purchased the property in South Africa with the intent of opening an orphanage, but they ran into problems with local officials that just “wanted to pad their pockets instead of helping the children”. So they quickly turned their interest to hunting.

“I was fortunate enough to have a wife that would follow me 9,000 miles around the world to hunt,” Richard said.

Their hunting safaris did end up helping children in South Africa after all, he said. The meat from the animals often went to feed needy children in the area. The meat of most of the 27 different species hunted on the farm was customarily consumed by the South Africans, including the zebra meet. “It tastes like prime rib,” Richard added.

After owning the farm for six years, the Becks decided to sell. And the time could not have been better.

With the sluggish U.S. economy, the sod business has reached a historic low because of less new construction. If the Becks had not sold the farm in South Africa, Richard said they would have been in danger of losing the entire sod farm.

“The Lord has blessed us. We’ve been very blessed,” he said. “I definitely want to give Him the glory for all of this.”

The profits from selling the farm in South Africa allowed the Becks to build their new Tungoil Road home, and has provided money to make the payments on the sod farm. They have also been able to furnish the home with a complete African theme. The home features African hand carved cabinet doors, and an elaborate hand carved dining room set (pictured left).

The only thing missing from their new home is the giraffe, and Richard said he hopes it will soon be in a 40 foot shipping container on its way to the United States. Once in the states, the giraffe will join the zebra at home in Walnut Hill.

And Richard promised that he will invite NorthEscambia.com back once the giraffe arrives, so our readers can see the rare site of a full body mount giraffe.

For a complete photo gallery from the Beck home, click here.

Pictured top: The Walnut Hill giraffe was moved into his new home on the Fourth of July. Pictured below: An African scene painted on an elephant’s ear cut in the shape of the continent. NorthEscambia.com exclusive photos, click to enlarge.