Paige Donald, 21, of Charleville, south-east Queensland, was drawn by her boyfriend into the professional kangaroo industry. Very few women do this, becoming a professional hunter, she has to get a permit to carry a gun, her gun has to be vetted. Now Paige also encourages more women to think about the career, "it's a rare experience that will change the way you look at the world in just a few months," Donald said.
So what is life like as a professional kangaroo hunter? It's a highly focused job, and it's going through the uninhabited wilderness. Donald and her boyfriend often drive 300 kilometers to hunting sites. Their entire process is to shoot the kangaroos first, take them to the assembly point and hang them up, cut off their claws, number them, and then move on to the next target.
All they have to do is put the kangaroos in frozen carts two hours before sunrise, or the meat stinks. Donald says the work has also made the relationship closer. Whoever is tired, the other half will take care of them. There will be one day a week when the two rest together and have a little wine to relax.
Their income depends on the weight of the kangaroos they hunt. If they shoot only 20 kangaroos a night, that would be enough to cost them. If 70 kangaroos were harvested a night, they would have earned more than $1,000 (6320 yuan) a night.
Although Donald loves the job, she doesn't think she's going to do it for a long time. She says, "in a few years, I'm a little more mature, and maybe I won't be doing it anymore. I'm young, I'm doing this. You can also keep yourself active and healthy. "
Although Donald is a hunter, she also loves animals. She has horses, dogs and goats in her family, and seems to have a natural affinity with animals. Sometimes when she sees a trapped kangaroo, she lets it go. "it may have something to do with my grandparents," Donald said. "my grandfather loves hunting, and my grandmother is very supportive of what I'm doing now, and my mother feels a little crazy. But I love everything I do now. "