The Two Certainties in Life: Death and Taxes - The Impact on Small Business Owners

In my two prior blog posts in this series on death and taxes, I discussed with you the general income tax rules as they relate to the death of an individual. Today, I am going to discuss the income tax issues that arise on death, where you own shares in a private Canadian corporation (“CCPC”).

Note:You may own shares in a private corporation (typically a Canadian company controlled by non-residents) as opposed to a CCPC  or shares in a private foreign corporation. Although the general deemed disposition rule will apply upon death, for purposes of this blog post, I am not considering any issues related to these type entities. Please seek specific advice if you own such shares.

It has been my experience that some owner-managers of CCPC’s are surprised to find out that their shares are subject to the general deemed disposition rules upon death. The rule being: that upon your death, the shares of your CCPC (assuming the shares are not transferred to your spouse) are deemed to have been disposed of for proceeds equal to the fair market value (“FMV”) of those shares and a capital gain results to the extent that FMV (which is often difficult to determine for a CCPC) exceeds the adjusted cost base (“ACB”) of those shares.

There are two reasons I typically hear as to why the private company owner-manager does not think their shares are subject to the deemed disposition rules:

(1) They thought the corporate taxes they paid each year took care of that issue.

(2) They thought if they left the company to their children, their kids would be the ones who pay the tax (as per my blog on estate freezes, this tax can be mitigated, but not eliminated by undertaking an estate freeze).

The owner-manager may also be surprised to hear that their shares are potentially subject to double taxation if proper steps are not undertaken to alleviate this liability. Double taxation can occur where the estate pays tax on the deemed disposition reported on the owner-manager’s terminal tax return, and then the estate pays further tax when it removes the assets from the corporation in the form of dividends to the estate.

There are two tax planning strategies that can generally eliminate any double tax; however, both techniques have some potential restrictions:

(1) The first is known as a subsection 164(6) loss carryback. In simple terms a loss is created on a share redemption by the estate that reduces or eliminates the capital gain that arose as result of the deemed disposition on death. It should be noted that new legislation related to the changes to “graduated rate estates” could impact this planning in the future, as the loss carryback may be restricted.

(2) The second, known as the pipeline strategy allows the estate to remove the corporate funds tax-free by in very simple terms, transferring the deceased owner-manager’s shares to a new corporation and using redemptions and a netting of promissory notes to remove those funds tax-free.

However, a pipeline strategy can be problematic in certain circumstances.

Capital Gains Exemption

In many cases the owner-manager can avail themselves to the $800,000 capital gains exemption ("CGE") to utilize against any deemed capital gain. However, as discussed in this post, it can be problematic to access the exemption where the corporation has excess cash or the owner-manager dies suddenly without implementing the proper planning.

In summary, as morose as this sounds, if you own shares of a private corporation, you and your tax advisor should be proactively planning for your death, which includes monitoring on an ongoing basis, whether your shares will qualify for the CGE.

The planning process would in general start with a determination of your potential income tax liability on death, including an estimate of the liability related to your private company shares. This will lead to a discussion of whether or not your estate will have enough liquidity to cover that anticipated liability or if you need to consider purchasing life insurance to cover any taxes potentially owing upon your death. The discussion should then morph into a succession planning discussion, and whether or not an estate freeze/sale to family member would make sense in your situation, or what plans you have in regard to an exit strategy.

This site provides general information on various tax issues and other matters. The information is not intended to constitute professional advice and may not be appropriate for a specific individual or fact situation. It is written by the author solely in their personal capacity and cannot be attributed to the accounting firm with which they are affiliated. It is not intended to constitute professional advice, and neither the author nor the firm with which the author is associated shall accept any liability in respect of any reliance on the information contained herein. Readers should always consult with their professional advisors in respect of their particular situation. Please note the blog post is time sensitive and subject to changes in legislation or law.

The Two Certainties in Life: Death and Taxes - Video Interviews

As I am talking death and taxes this week and next, I thought it apropos to post three interviews I recently had with Rob Carrick of The Globe & Mail on the topic. The links to my three video interviews are here:

Why both spouses must know their finances

What to put in an "in case I die” file

The tax implications of a spouse’s death

I would also like to thank Rob for selecting our video interview on “The costly TFSA blunder that people keep making” as the most popular personal finance video of 2014. The link for all ten nominees is here, starting at number ten and counting down to number one.

This site provides general information on various tax issues and other matters. The information is not intended to constitute professional advice and may not be appropriate for a specific individual or fact situation. It is written by the author solely in their personal capacity and cannot be attributed to the accounting firm with which they are affiliated. It is not intended to constitute professional advice, and neither the author nor the firm with which the author is associated shall accept any liability in respect of any reliance on the information contained herein. Readers should always consult with their professional advisors in respect of their particular situation.

The Two Certainties in Life: Death and Taxes - Impact on Your Personal Income Tax Return

Last week you read that upon your death, you are deemed to have disposed of your assets for income tax purposes (unless you leave them to your spouse). Today, you'll get a closer look at these rules.

For purposes of this post, I am assuming your spouse has predeceased you, or you leave your property to someone other than your spouse; so that there is not a tax-free transfer available upon your demise.

General Rule

Upon death, you are deemed to have disposed of your property for proceeds equal to its fair market value (“FMV”). This is known as a deemed disposition. The deemed disposition being equal to the excess of the FMV over the adjusted cost base of the property (“ACB”). For example, say you purchased 1000 shares in Blunt Bean Inc. for $150,000 and the shares are worth $275,000 upon your death. Your executors would have a $125,000 capital gain to report on your terminal tax return (final return from Jan 1st of the year you die to the date of your death).

For most people, there are two basic categories or property upon death, those being non-depreciable capital property and capital property.

Non-Depreciable Capital Property

Non-depreciable capital property would typically include shares, bonds, land (note: depending on the circumstances, land may not be capital property) and partnership interests. As noted above, upon death you are deemed to have disposed of your non-depreciable property for proceeds equal to its FMV. To be clear, that means the $125,000 capital gain in the example above is reported on your terminal return, notwithstanding you never sold the shares of Blunt Bean Inc. Thus, upon your death, for tax purposes you have in essence been “deemed” to have sold all your non-depreciable capital property even though there is no actual sale.

If you left the shares of Blunt Bean Inc. to your daughter, the ACB of the shares to her will become $275,000, which accounts for the fact your estate already paid tax on the increase in value from $150,000 to $275,000.

If the deemed disposition results in a capital loss, the losses offset any capital gains on the terminal return. If your capital losses exceed your capital gains in your final return, you can then deduct those excess losses against other income in the year of death, or in the previous year to the extent you have not previously claimed the capital gains exemption.

Principal Residence

Your principal residence is technically subject to the deemed disposition rules. However, if you only have one house (no cottage) and have lived in that house since it was purchased, your estate will typically be able to claim the principal residence exemption on your behalf and that property will be tax-free. It is important to note that your estate may have a capital gain or loss when it sells your principal residence, if the value of your principal residence has increased or decreased from the deemed value on the date of your death. This can occur where it takes a while to sort out the estate and the principal residence is not sold for months or even years.

Some Exceptions to the Deemed Disposition Rules

There are a couple significant exceptions to the deemed disposition rules:

(1) There is no deemed disposition on your cash holdings; however, if you hold foreign currency, you could have a foreign exchange gain.

(2) There is also no deemed disposition on your TFSA; however, there are various rules relating to what happens after your death to your TFSA. Taxtips.ca has a good summary here.

Depreciable Capital Property

Depreciable capital property would typically include buildings owned for rental purposes by the deceased taxpayer, and equipment used in an unincorporated business.

For depreciable property the same deemed disposition rules apply. However, there can also be recapture of prior depreciation (capital cost allowance claimed) where the FMV exceeds the undepreciated capital cost allowance (“UCC”) or instead of a capital loss, there may be a terminal loss where the deemed proceeds are less than UCC which can be used to offset other income in the year of death.

RRSP/RRIF

At the date of your death, the value of your RRSP or RRIF is included as income on your terminal return. For example, if your RRSP has a FMV of $560,000 on the day you die; your terminal return would reflect income of $560,000. The estate is supposed to receive a tax slip for the $560,000 RRSP/RRIF value upon death, but it has been my experience, that these slips are often not issued or are issued incorrectly, so you need to be diligent that the correct value is included on the terminal return. (As noted at the outset, I have assumed your spouse has already passed away, so the RRSP cannot be transferred tax-free to your spouse. However, the tax may be deferred if the beneficiary is a financially dependent child or grandchild under 18 years of age, or a financially dependent mentally or physically infirm child or grandchild of any age).

Note: See the comment section below for an interesting point made by Jean-Pierre Laporte about using a personal  pension plan to avoid the deemed disposition in relation to RRSPs.

Asset Rich but Cash Poor

Under the deemed disposition rules, it is possible to have a large deemed capital gain and a large associated income tax liability, yet not have the liquid assets to pay that liability. For example, you have significant real estate assets that appreciated considerably before your death, but little cash. In these cases, the estate may qualify to file form T2075 which allows for taxes to be paid in ten or less annual installments, with interest. In order to utilize this provision, security would have to be provided to the CRA.

The above is just a general overview of the income tax rules upon death. There are various other detailed rules I have not discussed that may relate to the death of an individual. Next week, I finish this discussion when I review the rules relating to the ownership of shares of a private corporation.

This site provides general information on various tax issues and other matters. The information is not intended to constitute professional advice and may not be appropriate for a specific individual or fact situation. It is written by the author solely in their personal capacity and cannot be attributed to the accounting firm with which they are affiliated. It is not intended to constitute professional advice, and neither the author nor the firm with which the author is associated shall accept any liability in respect of any reliance on the information contained herein. Readers should always consult with their professional advisors in respect of their particular situation.

The Ontario Retirement Pension Plan - Who is Self-employed?

The consultation paper on the Ontario Retirement Pension Plan (ORPP) has been released. You can read it here.

One of the most significant groups excluded from the ORPP are self-employed people. In the initial announcement it was unclear who was considered self-employed. Was it a sole proprietor? Was it a corporation with sole shareholder or was it a professional corporation, or was it all of the above?

These questions have been addressed in the consultation paper and essentially, you are considered self-employed if you operate an unincorporated business or are the shareholder of a corporation and

only receive dividends as remuneration.

Who Are the Self-Employed?

 

For purposes of the ORPP, the paper states that self-employed individuals not eligible to participate in the ORPP would refer only to individuals who either:

1. own and operate unincorporated businesses (i.e., sole proprietors, partnerships and some independent contractors); or

2. own and operate incorporated businesses but are not employees and do not receive a salary or wages as compensation (e.g., an individual who receives distributions from the corporation that are not considered salary or wages, such as dividends).

“By contrast, an individual who owns and operates an incorporated business and earns a salary or wages as an employee of the business would not be considered self-employed for the purposes of ORPP eligibility. As a result, these incorporated owner-operators would be required to participate in the ORPP, to the extent that they are considered eligible employees.”

The report states that according to Statistics Canada, “On average, incorporated owner-operators receive two-thirds of their annual income from wages and salaries. In the event that these individuals receive other types of income (e.g., dividends), they would not make contributions to the ORPP on this other income.”

Unique Status of the Self-Employed

 

The report notes that the self-employed occupy a unique position in the labour market, in that their income can fluctuate year to year, and that self-employed individuals may feel that it is more prudent to invest in their business, rather than contribute to a mandatory savings plan.

Notwithstanding the above, the report notes that “evidence suggests that self-employed individuals may also be undersaving for retirement. In fact, research indicates that self-employed individuals are less likely to be financially prepared for retirement when compared with paid employees.”

Submissions

 

The report states that “although the self-employed under current ITA rules would not be able to enrol in and make contributions to the ORPP, there may be interest among self-employed individuals in participating in the ORPP, as they do in the CPP. Ontario could engage in discussions with the Government of Canada to amend the relevant ITA rules to allow individuals who are not in an employment relationship and who do not report income from salary and wages to participate in the ORPP, as is the case with the CPP.”

As someone who operates through a professional corporation, I am not that keen to make an employee and employer contribution to the plan; however, other self-employed individuals may feel the ORPP would help supplement their retirement income and would welcome the opportunity to have the option to be part of the plan.

If you are self-employed and wish to make a submission or comment, you can do so at: ORPP@ontario.ca.

This site provides general information on various tax issues and other matters. The information is not intended to constitute professional advice and may not be appropriate for a specific individual or fact situation. It is written by the author solely in their personal capacity and cannot be attributed to the accounting firm with which they are affiliated. It is not intended to constitute professional advice, and neither the author nor the firm with which the author is associated shall accept any liability in respect of any reliance on the information contained herein. Readers should always consult with their professional advisors in respect of their particular situation.

The Two Certainties in Life: Death and Taxes

We have all heard the famous quote “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes”. Did you know the person who uttered this profound statement was none other than Benjamin Franklin?

This blog post and the two follow-up posts, will share with you the income tax consequences of Benjamin's second certainty, the always popular subject of dying.

Deemed Disposition

Ignoring the fact that the U.S. Income Tax Code in the 1700's may have been slightly different than today, Franklin's view on death and taxes was that of an American. This distinction is very important. The U.S. tax system taxes you on the value of your estate upon death, while Canada deems you to have disposed of your property at death, at its fair market value, which triggers income tax on any unrealized capital gains (paper gains).

I will explain this “deemed disposition” in greater detail later on, but simply put, if you own shares in say Bell Canada that are worth $40 upon your death, that you purchased for $15, you/your estate are deemed to have a $25 ($40-$15) capital gain per share, if your assets are not left to your spouse.

Probate Fees

Depending upon the province in which you live, you may also be subject to probate fees (Estate Administration tax in Ontario) on the value of your estate at death. However, notwithstanding people plan around probate fees, often to their detriment; these fees/taxes are typically fairly immaterial to an estate in Canada (1.5% versus 40% Estate tax in the U.S. or higher, depending upon the state and size of your estate). Here is a summary of the probate fees for each province. For purposes of this blog, and the two follow-up blog posts I have written, I am just going to focus on the “deemed disposition” upon death and ignore probate fees.

Personal vs Corporate

 

It has been my experience that most people are not clear about how the income tax system works upon their death. In particular, shareholders of private corporations are often surprised when I inform them that any increase in value of the shares of their private corporate shareholdings are subject to income tax upon their death (they often think the yearly corporate tax they pay has covered this liability). This does not even account for the fact that without proper tax planning, there could be double taxation in respect of their corporate shareholdings.

In order to deal with the distinction between the personal and corporate income tax consequences, I have made this topic a three-part blog series. Next week, I will deal with the personal income tax consequences of you dying, and the following week, I will discuss the income tax consequences of dying when you own shares in a private corporation.

Just Die First

 

You can avoid all these messy income tax complexities upon death by just dying first☺ if you are married or in a common-law relationship. This is because if you leave your property to your spouse or common-law spouse, the property passes to them at the adjusted cost base of the property and the capital gain is deferred until the surviving spouse or common-law partner dies, or they sell the property during their lifetime.

Consequently, the deemed disposition rules typically only apply in the following three situations:

(1) Your estate elects out of the automatic transfer to your spouse (this can be done on a property by property basis).

(2) You are the last to die spouse.

(3) You leave your property to your children or other beneficiary, instead of your spouse.

Next week, I will discuss in greater detail, the personal income tax consequences of passing away. 

This site provides general information on various tax issues and other matters. The information is not intended to constitute professional advice and may not be appropriate for a specific individual or fact situation. It is written by the author solely in their personal capacity and cannot be attributed to the accounting firm with which they are affiliated. It is not intended to constitute professional advice, and neither the author nor the firm with which the author is associated shall accept any liability in respect of any reliance on the information contained herein. Readers should always consult with their professional advisors in respect of their particular situation.

Mark & Lori’s Excellent African Adventure – Part Three

You are about to read the final post on my African adventure series.

Warning: This blog contains two graphic pictures (Note: any photo can be enlarged by clicking on the image).

In my previous two posts (part 1 & part 2) I discussed our stay in Botswana. We completed our safari experience at the Lions Sands Game Reserve, located on the western border of the famous Kruger National Park in South Africa. Lion Sands is a luxury reserve. Since we were on a bucket list trip, we decided to splurge for two nights. The accommodations were superb and the food was gourmet. This is definitely not your Safari on a budget pit stop.

The game viewing at Lion Sands was outstanding, thanks in large part to our guide Ferdie Muller and our tracker, Rector. We had not had a tracker to date and it was very interesting to watch Rector look for footprints and dung. Yes, tracking is done as much by dung as anything else.

We shared a jeep with a young couple from the U.K. that were pretty much in sync with what we wanted to see. As we headed out on our first safari, Ferdie told us that a Rhino had recently been killed in a fight with another Rhino and that Lions were now eating the carcass.

We knew we were approaching this site when we saw like a 100 vultures hovering in the sky. I am not exaggerating, there may have been even more. Watching three lions feasting on the Rhino was fascinating; although depending upon the wind, the smell was terrible.

The next day we tracked a leopard in a tree with an impala it had just killed. This was mesmerizing. Somehow the leopard had dragged the impala up into the tree and hung it over the branch like laundry hanging on a clothesline.

That night as we were driving, Rector stuck out his hand. He had us get out of the vehicle and he showed us a leopard paw in the sand. He then told us to look at the flat drag mark near the paw; which he said was an impala being dragged by a leopard. Ferdie then followed Rector’s directions as we tried to track that leopard. Two minutes later we found the dead impala hidden in the bushes. Ferdie said we must have just missed the kill and scared off the leopard. If you have been paying attention to my series, you will know you do not wish to be reincarnated as an Impala ☺.

That day we also found a hyena den, with some babies and tracked a lion for over a couple hours through thick bush until Ferdie found it below us in a valley. The tracking experience at Lion Sands was extremely interesting and educational.

You may have noticed I have not mentioned that we saw rhinos (other than the dead one being eaten by the lions). I am not posting any information or pictures about the rhinos as they are constantly being poached for their horns to send to Asia for medical and aphrodisiac reasons and I have no intention to provide any location details.

Cape Town

We concluded our trip by flying to Cape Town, where we stayed at the Twelve Apostles, a beautiful hotel in Camps Bay just outside of Cape Town that overlooks the Atlantic Ocean.

Cape Town is a stunning city with mountains, water and beaches. It is often ranked as one of the most beautiful cities in the world and within five minutes you can see why. It also has some tremendous restaurants and seafood. We loved our dinner at the Codfather in particular.

Cape Town also has a dark underside, with Shanty Towns and townships that look like you are in the third world. The contrast is startling and we were constantly warned to be careful where we walked and be cognizant of who was behind us. The local people we chatted with provided us different opinions on the current status and future of Cape Town and South Africa. Some were optimistic, others not very hopeful. South Africa is a complicated country still sorting itself out and I for one am far from qualified to offer an opinion other than noting the huge contrasts I observed.

By co-incidence, one of my staff members was in Cape Town at the exact same time we were; with her father who was born there. Her father graciously offered to be our chauffeur and guide for the day. He picked us up at 9 and returned as at 5 and we felt like we saw all of Cape Town. He took us through Camps Bay to Lions Head for a view of Cape Town and then onto Fish Hoek and Simon's Town. We stopped at the Scratch Patch to shop for local jewelry, went to Boulders Beach to see the penguins,

drove to Cape Point and took a cable car to the top, went back along the coast and to Chapman’s Peak for an awesome view and onto Hout Bay for some great fish and chips. The next day they found a killer cobra snake on the beach we walked at Hout Bay. It was a full and great touring day and we appreciated our host and his insights into Cape Town and South Africa.

The following day we had booked a car to take us to Franschhoek and Stellenbosch (the wine

country outside of Cape Town) and notwithstanding Lori’s diligent research, our driver Bryan had his own ideas for the day. He came into the car and told us which wineries he recommended and booked lunch for us at the Delaire Graff Restaurant. He did not disappoint with his suggestions and the food and view were spectacular at Delaire Graff.

One of the wineries we visited was the Avondale Wine Estate. Avondale is an organic winery and its proprietor Johnathan Grieve is a pioneer of the BioLOGIC® approach to sustainable viticulture. He oversaw the transformation of Avondale from over-used and abused land into a thriving, robust vineyard. This was an interesting visit, as the considerations and issues in organic wine making are numerous and captivating.

View from Avondale Winery

We concluded our day with a quick visit to the Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden. This is a highly acclaimed botanical garden. However, because of the time of year, we missed the blooming of most of the flowers and were a bit disappointed in our visit.

We then caught the last stunning sunset from our hotel room and readied ourselves for our journey home, which is the downside to any trip to South Africa. We left for the airport on Wednesday morning at 10:30 to fly from

Cape Town to Johannesburg to New York and then on to Toronto; 30 hours or so later, we arrived home—exhausted but exhilarated.

That’s it for my African adventures. I hope you found these posts interesting. Next week I get back to my regular tax/financial/money fare.

This site provides general information on various tax issues and other matters. The information is not intended to constitute professional advice and may not be appropriate for a specific individual or fact situation. It is written by the author solely in their personal capacity and cannot be attributed to the accounting firm with which they are affiliated. It is not intended to constitute professional advice, and neither the author nor the firm with which the author is associated shall accept any liability in respect of any reliance on the information contained herein. Readers should always consult with their professional advisors in respect of their particular situation.

Mark & Lori’s Excellent African Adventure – Part Two

On Monday, you read about my special safari experience at the Kwetsani Camp. Today, you will be a part of my unforgettable encounter with Wild Dogs at the Savuti Camp, located in northern Botswana.  Heads up; this blog has a graphic picture at the end of the post (although, I picked one of the least explicit photos).

Upon arrival in Savuti (on our mini-me plane), Goodman, our guide, greeted us. Goodman guiding the Goodfield’s, how’s that for a co-incidence. Lori read great things about Goodman on tripadvisor, so we knew we were in good hands. Our safari wish list in Savuti was to see wild dogs and a leopard.

This camp is surrounded by a watering hole, yet considered a dry camp. Go figure that?

Our accommodation was a beautiful  tented room raised off the ground on platforms, with hippo’s swimming in front of our deck. The downside to this room were the frogs who croaked continuously throughout the night. Savuti Camp was a different experience than the Kwetsani Camp. Kwetsani was more charming with only five rooms and it took on the personality of its managers, Savuti, with its seven rooms, is more of a well-oiled machine, friendly, but more structured. We enjoyed both.

Once we were settled, we set off on a dusk safari with Goodman and another couple from the United States. It is an interesting dynamic when you have another couple in the vehicle. This couple, while nice, was older, moved slower and was keen on bird watching, not necessarily our style or speed. We appreciated the guide’s challenge to keep everyone happy. Goodman did it well as he found a leopard that was in the process of finishing its impala dinner. Actually, there was not much left of the impala when we arrived and the leopard was generally content to just hang out as her belly was full. So to this point, our viewing of animal kills was fairly tame, however, that was about to change drastically.

Goodman informed us that for the next mornings safari, we had him to ourselves and we were going to head out at 5:30 am to track wild dogs. The weather was overcast and surprisingly chilly. It is hard to put into words what our morning was like: it's best described as “we ran with the wild dogs”.

We started our day with a 40 to 50 minute drive to get us to an area where Goodman hoped he could track the wild dogs. To our delight, we successfully found a pack of 4 or 5 wild dogs. The dogs were moving east and howling like crazy. Goodman told us they were howling to make contact with the rest of their pack (wild dogs are known as very social animals). We followed the dogs for a while, when suddenly a hyena came out of the bush; our first hyena sighting of the trip.

As you can see from the picture, wild dogs look like a cross between a dog and a hyena.

The dogs then took off into the bush and Goodman drove the road anticipating where they would reappear. About ten minutes later he found them and we continued to follow them, where suddenly they met up with the rest of their pack, including some babies. We continued to follow the dogs through the bush, sometimes at a fast speed to keep up.

At around 9 am Goodman said “they are just playing around and not ready for a kill so let’s just have some breakfast”. He then took us along the river bed and took out some coffee and pastries. Picture this; we are standing on the ground, out of the vehicle, waiting for our coffee when we see a few hundred yards away the wild dogs running in our direction. Goodman continues on as if it is nothing asking how we would like our coffee. Lori and I are starting to become a little concerned as we have watched the wild dogs on YouTube ripe apart animals with their huge sharp teeth and we would like to avoid that fate. Goodman says “don’t worry, they are used to humans and will leave us alone.” As they get closer we have to decide if we trust him or not. Lori keeps asking him if he’s sure it is okay to stay where we are and he says “yes”. As the moment of truth arrives, I will be honest; I put one foot on the step of the range rover and kept one foot on the ground. Lori showed real guts, she kept both of her feet on the ground. The dogs stoped a few feet from us, stared us down then continued running off down the river.

Goodman says “let’s have our coffee quick and then we will follow the dogs as they look ready for a kill”. We are a bit confused as to why we were told to stay put, when they are ready for a kill, but I guess the Goodfield’s are not a wild dog’s food of choice. We jump in the vehicle and start to follow the dogs; however, we lost them in the bush. I see something in the distance and tell Goodman who zips off. It turns out I saw a wart hog, not a dog and we turn the vehicle just in time to see an impala running in the opposite direction with fear in its eyes. Goodman says the dogs are going after an impala and he speeds off to find the wild dogs. A minute later he finds the wild dogs. In that one minute time span, they have caught and killed an impala. So we arrive just seconds after the actual kill.

Watch out for what you wish for! Lori and I wanted to see a kill (which we just missed) but are now going to see the feeding frenzy. We discussed this possibility before the trip and whether we

would be disgusted by watching a feeding or a kill or be intrigued by it. As we watched the wild dogs eat the impala, first the babies ate, then the adults came and essentially ripped it into pieces, we both said we were more intrigued then disgusted, although Lori said she was little queasy. 

To complete our run with the wild dogs, we followed them to a watering hole where they drank and washed up, so to speak. We then headed back to camp from our awesome adventure. We saw some other very interesting things, including elephants crossing a river and lots of beautiful birds, but nothing matched the thrill of the wild dog adventure.

We then flew from Savuti to Maun and Maun to Johannesburg for the night. The next morning we flew to Mpumalaga for our final safari at Lion Sands Game Reserve just outside of Kruger Park.

This site provides general information on various tax issues and other matters. The information is not intended to constitute professional advice and may not be appropriate for a specific individual or fact situation. It is written by the author solely in their personal capacity and cannot be attributed to the accounting firm with which they are affiliated. It is not intended to constitute professional advice, and neither the author nor the firm with which the author is associated shall accept any liability in respect of any reliance on the information contained herein. Readers should always consult with their professional advisors in respect of their particular situation.