A Texas-based boot maker is taking custom-made alligator boots to the next level by giving customers the full experience of hunting their own bootleather. Starting this fall, Republic Boot Co. is offering a package deal where customers can go on a guided alligator hunt, and then have the hide from their gator turned into a pair of handmade cowboy boots.
Many alligator hunters already make use of their hides for boots, bags, and other leather goods. But Republic’s owner Chris Conrad told the Houston Chronicle it’s the first time his company has offered anything like this.
The package will cost $5,000 per person for a group of four or more, and those groups will hunt together with a professional outfitter. In addition to the custom boots, that cost covers a head mount of the gator along with the guided hunt. The company will also provide the necessary tags, which are offered to private landowners by Texas Parks and Wildlife, along with firearms and ammunition.
Turnaround time for the custom boots is eight months or more, according to the boot maker, as it takes at least that long to tan the gator hides.
Republic is already booking guided hunts for groups this fall. The hunts will take place around Anahuac, the Alligator Capital of Texas, which lies on the coast along Trinity Bay within a “core county” for gators — meaning there is enough habitat and alligators to support hunting, and their populations are closely monitored by TPWD. The general gator hunting season for these core counties takes place from Sept. 11 through Sept. 30.
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Conrad added that while most people associate gator hunting with the “big, gnarly” beasts seen on TV, those larger alligators typically have bigger and rougher scales that aren’t ideal for leather working. He explained that the eight-footers commonly found in East Texas are perfect for making boots. Republic’s package deal includes an alligator up to 8.5 feet long, with bigger gators costing extra.
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