Kristi Noem Posts Gory Photos From Her 'Super Fun' Hunting Trip — And It Completely Backfires

Mom, can you pick us up? We’re scared. Kristi Noem is bragging about killing animals again.

The former Homeland Security secretary managed to gross out plenty of social media users Monday when she posted several gory photos of an elk she killed with a bow during a recent hunting trip. The carousel post on Instagram, which the app flagged as “sensitive content,” features Noem and others on her “super fun hunt” smiling and proudly posing next to the dead carcass like a trophy. Multiple snaps show Noem’s weapon propped up next to the elk’s wound that’s oozing with blood.

“Finally had a little time to post a few pictures of my archery elk,” Noem captioned her post. “Super fun hunt … The strategy and work paid off and I’m so grateful for their help and friendship.”

Although some Instagram users were impressed by Noem’s photos, others were disturbed considering her history.

Prior to Noem’s brief stint in President Donald Trump’s Cabinet, the then-South Dakota governor wrote about shooting her puppy Cricket in her 2024 memoir. She defended the move by saying the 14-month-old wirehaired pointer was “less than worthless” as a hunting dog, and that she reached her tipping point with Cricket after the dog attacked a local family’s chickens.

Noem also exhibited callous behavior during her tenure as secretary of Homeland Security. Under her watch, two Minneapolis residents and U.S. citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, were fatally shot by federal officers within weeks of each other, setting a new and unsettling precedent for the department.

“Literally no one wants to see this,” one critic on Instagram said of Noem’s hunting post.

“Why post something like this? You have little perception of how you are seen in the world,” another Instagram user said.

“Heartbreaking to see such a magnificent animal lose its life for sport. Wildlife deserves our respect and protection, not to be treated as a trophy,” another Instagram user pointed out.

“You killed a beautiful animal, wow what a hero,” echoed another user.

“Imagine seeing something so majestic, and your overwhelming desire is to kill it,” an X user said.

“In Trump’s economy, that’s less of a threat and more of a statement of reality,” joked a Reddit user.

Noem was swift in responding to the blowback in the comment section of her original post.

“For those of you who choose to be ignorant and uninformed and critical,” she wrote. “Of course this beautiful animal will nourish our family and many others we will share with.”

She continued, “These majestic animals are incredible and I’ve so loved learning their ways from my father, sharing memories in the mountains with him and my brothers and now my friends.”

“Shame on you who desecrate and don’t understand the stewardship responsibilities God has given us,” she added.

She concluded, “Go to a store and shop for anything that hasn’t been harvested and you will find bare shelves and your family will starve.”

Instagram users also reacted to Noem’s justification for posting numerous photos of a dead animal in a variety of ways, but one user summed up the public backlash by simply writing: “I have no problem with hunting. But why post something so polarizing with everything you’ve been through?”