Bringing Back the Wild with Mike Arnold

Larry Weishuhn—Mr. Whitetail—returns for our first-ever repeat guest episode, and he delivers a masterclass in deer, habitat, and conservation.

Larry takes us deep into two extraordinary hunts for the smallest whitetail subspecies in North America: the Carmen Mountain whitetail (Odocoileus virgininianus carminensis) and the Coues deer (Odocoileus virgininianus couesi). He breaks down their biology, behavior, and habitats—from the r...

At the Safari Club International Convention in Nashville, we sit down with Mark Newton, Managing Director of John Rigby & Co., for a powerful conversation about heritage, leadership, and the future of the British gun trade. Mark traces his roots back to stalking roe deer with his father in the English countryside, where hunting shaped his character and forged lifelong family bonds. Today, he pours that same intentionality into ...

In this episode of Bringing Back the Wild, host Mike Arnold sits down with Daniela Fanzoj of the historic Johann Fanzoj in Ferlach, Austria. Daniela shares how she grew up surrounded by mountains, hunters, and a 300-year family legacy rooted in a 500-year gunmaking tradition. She recounts taking over leadership after her father fell ill and describes how she and her brother transformed the company into an elite, niche manufacturer ...

In this episode of Bringing Back the Wild, Mike Arnold sits down with his longtime friend Joe Croot, a professional gamekeeper, outfitter, and founder of Royal Outfitters UK. Joe shares how his grandfather introduced him to hunting, land stewardship, and harvesting food from the wild, setting him on a lifelong path outdoors.

Joe explains how strict firearms laws in England shaped his early hunting career and pushed him toward rifle...

In this episode, Mike sits down with Dan Cabela, one of today’s most influential voices in hunting-led conservation. Dan shares the origin story of Hard Truths of Conservation and explains how a conversation around a campfire in Mozambique sparked a television project that now reaches global audiences. What began as documentation of lion reintroductions evolved into a cinematic series carried by History Channel and now Discovery Ch...

In this episode of Bringing Back the Wild, Governor Kelly Armstrong of North Dakota joins the conversation at the Dallas Safari Club to talk hunting, conservation, and the real-world intersection of land use, agriculture, and public policy. Governor Armstrong shares how his upbringing in western North Dakota shaped his lifelong passion for bowhunting, bird dogs, and wild places, while teaching patience, humility, and respect for th...

While visiting College of Coastal Georgia to give a seminar, Dr. Mike Arnold sat down with Tim Lowe and Duane Harris—the two visionaries behind an innovative speaker series within the college’s Environmental Sciences program.

Their shared goal was both bold and intentional: to bring forward voices willing to discuss the often-misunderstood importance of consumptive sports, including hunting and fishing, in modern c...

In this episode of Bringing Back the Wild, host Mike Arnold talks with longtime friend and professional hunter Mark Haldane about one of Africa’s most remarkable conservation success stories—Coutada 11 in Mozambique.

Haldane traces his path from a free-roaming childhood in South Africa to nearly four decades in the safari industry, culminating in his work restoring a war-ravaged landscape. When he first entered Coutada 11 in 1994, ...

In this engaging and wide-ranging conversation, Mike sits down with Diana Rupp, Editor-in-Chief of Sports Afield, for a fun, thoughtful, and insightful discussion.

From stories of Diana as an eight-year-old helping her parents field-dress deer, to her professional journey in outdoor media, the episode traces how a lifelong hunting heritage shaped her worldview.

The conversation goes deeper into Diana’s understandin...

In the inaugural episode of Bringing Back the Wild, Dr. Mike Arnold sits down with legendary outdoorsman Larry “Mr. Whitetail” Weishuhn.

From walking Texas woods alongside his father to taking his first whitetail from a tree stand some 30 feet above the ground, Larry’s story is one of curiosity, grit, and a lifelong devotion to the wild. That early passion set him on a remarkable path—one that would lead him to be...