wild hogs

[wgr]

saw were some guys were traping wild hogs, is this new if so what do they do with them? would love to get a few my self but cant afford to much cash

[John Wayne]

Some trap to eradicate and dispose of but others pen them up and feed and de-worm them.
The 2 pictured in my header pic were quite good! You shoulda seen those hams ;^)

[challenger_i]

Trapping feral pigs is a real thing. Many folks around these parts have traps out. There are two operations in the area that buy the trapped critters (you deliver them, of course) but for the most part folks put a bullet in them and take them to the far side of the property for the buzzards to have them. They are very much the destructive nuisance. You should try running a tractor over where they have been rooting! And they will completely destroy a sorghum crop, right darn now!

If it is your intension to pen them up, you had best build a VERY sturdy pen, and cover the perimeter with sheet tin so as they cannot see out. If they can see out, they will do their worst to GET out.

[challenger_i]

Hey, JW! I have been curious as to what the bacon looked like on a feral. Any intel?

[Winger Ed.]

Here, folks will build the traps like real big box (cube) made out of chain link fence mesh.
10-15 feet on a side is common. Chain link mesh on the top AND bottom is normal too.
It'll often have 2 spring loaded doors that work sort of like a air lock.
A hog can go in, it closes, but it has to go through a 2nd one into the main cage/trap space.
That keeps ones already in it from getting out when a new one opens the door.

They'll be shot inside the trap and processed to eat, or drug out and left for scavengers.
Being cannibals-- One dead hog left in the trap is real good bait.

If the trap isn't tended often enough, the ones in it will eat one of their own.

Taste wise, they're like a regular hog, just more lean, a bit more firm (but not tough), and with more flavor.
They stink so bad, and are so filthy, before you process one,
you need to wash it off with a pressure washer- but not with soap in it.

Land owners often get people to pay to hunt them.
However; if they're doing a lot of damage, they'll usually let you hunt them for free.
If you want to hunt over bait, dig a hole and but a big package of pre-sweetened Cherry or grape
kool-aid a few inches under the dirt. And scatter some around.
It will draw and hold them there.

[HWooldridge]

We can trap and/or shoot them on open range. They are considered vermin by most farmers.

I set out a trap a couple weeks ago and baited it with sour mash and cherry jello. They have been rooting the neighbor’s field so should find my treats pretty soon.

The meat seems to be affected by what they eat but most taste just fine. It’s important to keep the feces and urine off the carcass when the animal is dressed. A friend of mine who probably killed more hogs than anyone I know, used to tie off the entire bladder and urinary track inside two plastic bags (in case one broke) while he was gutting them. We also split the hide down the back and down the belly so it’s easier to peel off.

[Giblett]

I don't gut them just stretch them out on their belly get back straps and what i can of hind quarters. They make great carnitas and that fried back strap is mighty fine eatin.

[KCcactus]

I have a circle trap on my place. I only use it when my freezer is empty. Caught 14 in it one time and don't want to clean that many again. Set the trigger closer to the door last time and only caught 3. I prefer to get them 1 or 2 at a time hunting from a blind.

[MUSTANG]

Some "Hog Hunts" in Florida are trapped Hogs from State or Rural properties; transported to "Fenced" hunting preserves of 3 to hundreds of acres for "Fee Hunts".

[Hogtamer]

You better be really careful about transporting a LIVE wild hog anywhere. DNRs are getting deadly serious about this. In high agricultural states now you cannot transport a live hog from a trap on your land to a holding pen on your land without a permit. Get caught moving a wild hog can cost your vehicles, guns, etc. There used to be some good old boys who caught them in the Savannah River swamp where I hunted, pull the whetters and feed ‘em a while, then off to some fenced operation in Tennessee who guaranteed “dangerous wild boar” hunts. Lord knows I loved to hunt ‘em for lot of years but you don’t want them in your neighborhood.

[stubshaft]

When I used to do eradication hunts, I trapped/snared and shot many a feral hog. At one of the colleges that I serviced I had a semi-permanent cage trap that I baited with sour mash and rotten guavas.

[challenger_i]

I have had great luck with watermelons. Bust them in my favorite spot and come back later. Sometimes, the hogs run up to the spot when I drive up to bust more melons...

[KCcactus]

321918321917

I had a request for info on my trap. It's made out of four 16 ft fence panels. I put t posts 3-4 ft apart along a 16 ft diameter circle that has a tail. The panels overlap to make it stronger. Where the v by the tail is the door. I fasten the top of the door to the top of the other panel. A chain with a turnbuckle with hooks on both ends is the trigger. The chain hooks about 12 inches up on the door and is used to hold the bottom of the door open. The other end of the chain goes on a small tent stake wired to a panel on the opposite side. I put a cheap gate latch where the door meets the side panel. That keeps them from forcing their way out. Put bait under the chain and they will pull it off the stake and the door springs shut. PDF shows the outline. I couldn't find a pic of the door.

[challenger_i]

Thanks!

[Texas by God]

They have stayed away from our place due to the drought the past year.
I hope that the recent rains don’t bring them back!
I’ve ate a few, but it’s not worth it to me. They are varmints and I treat them as such.
As a teenager, my bigger older brother and I saw one in the spotlight(we were predator hunting).
I was fixing to pop that hog with my 22-250 when my misguided brother said “Stop! That pig probably belongs to someone!”
While we argued the hog left.
That was in the mid 1970s. I could have reduced the future hog population by 100 at least if I’d pulled the trigger!
I quit listening to that brother soon thereafter.


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[racepres]

Considered Vermin here... Shoot on sight...If ya don't feel like foolin with it...leave it Lay..now ya gots a bait pile!

[contender1]

wgr,, trapping hogs is a bit labor intensive. And it does require good materials,, or as noted above,, they will get out. They've been known to climb over some fencing,, root out under others, and just plain tear up some traps.

And as you can see above,, considered a nuisance in many, many places. For Damage Control Agents,, the goal is to remove as many as possible from a property due to the extensive damage they cause. "Just a few" does nothing for real control due to the reproduction rate they have.
Generally speaking,, younger pigs are the better eating ones. And yes,, they are delicious, IF,, IF,, properly handled from the time of the kill to processing. Pressure washing the carcass is an excellent way to assist in this. Gloves,, and extra care in gutting, skinning & butchering is also a must.

[kerplode]

Some "Hog Hunts" in Florida are trapped Hogs from State or Rural properties; transported to "Fenced" hunting preserves of 3 to hundreds of acres for "Fee Hunts".

Lol! Sounds about right.

I've also noticed that the folks who complain the loudest about how destructive the hogs are are often the ones making the most money hosting "hunts". I think that, despite the noise, nobody really wants the hog "problem" solved because there is too much money to be made from it.

[HWooldridge]

I think there are a lot of farmers who would be perfectly happy to see all wild hogs eradicated. I knew one farmer who lost 2-3 acres of cabbages every night to hogs. They would take one big bite out of the head and leave the rest of the plant, so it was completely ruined for human consumption. He ultimately lost over half his crop that year.

My son works on a farm that has one ruined pasture of about 50 acres. The pigs have wallowed out so many holes that it can't be plowed with a tractor. They also kill every type of baby animal, deer, turkey eggs, quail - they will eat anything they can get in their mouth.

This huge growth spurt has primarily happened in my lifetime - we never saw feral hogs when I was a kid - now they are everywhere and continuing to multiply. That's basically a 65-year cycle of eruption.

[HodakaGA]

One of my favorite youtube channels is David Ellis (Yawt Yawt). He uses a drop trap and cameras linked to his phone. Gets a notice and can drop the trap with his phone.

Here's his latest video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_eykVzIE1Hc

[kerplode]

I think there are a lot of farmers who would be perfectly happy to see all wild hogs eradicated. I knew one farmer who lost 2-3 acres of cabbages every night to hogs. They would take one big bite out of the head and leave the rest of the plant, so it was completely ruined for human consumption. He ultimately lost over half his crop that year.

My son works on a farm that has one ruined pasture of about 50 acres. The pigs have wallowed out so many holes that it can't be plowed with a tractor. They also kill every type of baby animal, deer, turkey eggs, quail - they will eat anything they can get in their mouth.

This huge growth spurt has primarily happened in my lifetime - we never saw feral hogs when I was a kid - now they are everywhere and continuing to multiply. That's basically a 65-year cycle of eruption.

They're in the wrong business...Fence in that cabbage plot, add hogs, charge $500/person/day for "hunting". Problem solved.

Probably make more money than cabbage farming and it'd be a lot less work.

[country gent]

Im finding this post interesting. Ive trapped but not animals this big or with the "stakes this has. You take a sow and you take her and every piglet she would have had, You take a boar and you make the remaining boars happy.

These animals are real pests and very destructive. Controlling them is hard especially with the easier winters weve been having. One issue is as people populate remoter areas they push these animals out into other areas its a migration of sorts. Some suburbs around here the deer coon coyotes have become nuisances because of this.

Game departments frown of transporting them because of the diseases and different things that are also transported with them into a new area..

Pigs were brought into some areas when they were settled released, not for hunting but to clear underbrush snakes and make the ground easier to clear for farming. The pigs cleared the vines thorns and snake leaving the trees for logging and then pulling stumps.

[Tripplebeards]

Don’t have a population of them in my state. If there ever was I think they were farm escapes gone rouge. Saw one along the road about 15+ years ago probably closer to 20 along the riverbank. Thought it was a dog at first becuase it was furry with knotted up looking hair. Lighter brown than a Russian boar with longer hair all messed up. Figured it was a pig that got away and just lived on the Mississippi river islands. Don’t know if it was wild or somebody’s pig that got away would be my guess. Always thought it’d be awesome if they ran around here cause I’d love to shoot them but I’m sure as soon as you have them around and they start causing damage you think else wise.

[Winger Ed.]

Some in Louisiana are originally from Russia, and were brought and released to hunt.
In a tight spot, or when wounded---- they will kill you, and maybe your horse too.

They may be the same kind some rich guy in California brought in to hunt there,
and they escaped or were released and ranged into farm lands.

The common ones all over the place are domestic pigs that have gone wild.
It's hard to believe, but they morf into the black, furry, boar looking snout things that are causing all the damage.

There is another variety that's moving down from Canada that is pretty big compared to
the size of our local ones. It may be the same as what they've killed a few of in the lower East Coast.
They're talking about a few 'hogzillas' weighing several hundred pounds out there in the wilds.

[HWooldridge]

They're in the wrong business...Fence in that cabbage plot, add hogs, charge $500/person/day for "hunting". Problem solved.

Probably make more money than cabbage farming and it'd be a lot less work.

I reckon you must not like cabbage...LOL

It's common for farmers to presell contracts to a wholesaler then they use the contracts as collateral to buy fertilizer and other necessities to ensure success. Predation from any type of pest sabotages that investment and drives up prices when the product isn't available for consumption.

I don't know how profitable cabbages are, but the farmer I knew with the hog problem grossed $25,000 an acre from jalapeno peppers during one picking session, and 2-3 harvests per year - this was back in the late 1980's, when it was real money. Of course, that was before expenses - all I know is that he worked long hours but lived pretty well. He retired sufficiently wealthy that he and his family moved to Colorado when he quit the biz.

[MaryB]

wgr,, trapping hogs is a bit labor intensive. And it does require good materials,, or as noted above,, they will get out. They've been known to climb over some fencing,, root out under others, and just plain tear up some traps.

And as you can see above,, considered a nuisance in many, many places. For Damage Control Agents,, the goal is to remove as many as possible from a property due to the extensive damage they cause. "Just a few" does nothing for real control due to the reproduction rate they have.
Generally speaking,, younger pigs are the better eating ones. And yes,, they are delicious, IF,, IF,, properly handled from the time of the kill to processing. Pressure washing the carcass is an excellent way to assist in this. Gloves,, and extra care in gutting, skinning & butchering is also a must.

When I hunted them in TX on my nephews property(he has a little over 1,000 acres in TX hill country, pretty much leased out to hunters for the next 20 years... 2 week blocks but he reserves 2 weeks for family) I always shot the 100-150 pounders... much better eating, no rank boar taste... I had 2 chest freezers in the back of my truck, mine and my sister and brother in laws. We filled them. Ran a generator al the way home. Usually added a deer or two also.

[MaryB]

Some in Louisiana are originally from Russia, and were brought and released to hunt.
In a tight spot, or when wounded---- they will kill you, and maybe your horse too.

They may be the same kind some rich guy in California brought in to hunt there,
and they escaped or were released and ranged into farm lands.

The common ones all over the place are domestic pigs that have gone wild.
It's hard to believe, but they morf into the black, furry, boar looking snout things that are causing all the damage.

There is another variety that's moving down from Canada that is pretty big compared to
the size of our local ones. It may be the same as what they've killed a few of in the lower East Coast.
They're talking about a few 'hogzillas' weighing several hundred pounds out there in the wilds.

Ones in Canada are a Russian Boar, BIG suckers, 400+ pounds... I would not want to run into one deer hunting! Unless I was using a 300 win mag or larger rifle!

Head and front of the shoulders on them is armored, even the ones in the lower 48. .223 rounds will fragment and bounce off! Or just embed an inch into the shoulder hide because of expansion. Just makes them madder... .223 is okay on little ones but past 150 pounds? NOPE!

[Winger Ed.]

Ones in Canada are a Russian Boar, BIG suckers, 400+ pounds... I would not want to run into one deer hunting! Unless I was using a 300 win mag or larger rifle!

I think that's the kind released in Louisiana back in the 50-60s.
There was stories from down there where some idiot would go into the brush after a wounded one.
In one, the fella shot the boar 6 times with a .44Mag...... before the boar killed him.

[country gent]

One of the first things done at birth is to nip the tusks with a set of side cutters, this is usually done as they drop. Ears are notched and when they get to 20-30 lbs males are castrated. In the wild this dosnt happen so the tusks grow as normal.

Being short heavy pigs have a very low center of gravity the wide long stance combined make them very stable and hard to take off their feet, then they are built like a speed bump.

[challenger_i]

It has always amazed me that trying to raise pigs is problematic at best (care, feeding, medicating, keeping them warm, keeping them cool, onandonandonandon!) yet, in the Wild, they multiply like rabbits, grow like weeds, laugh at sub-freezing and 100-degree temps and just simply THRIVE!

[Texas by God]

It has always amazed me that trying to raise pigs is problematic at best (care, feeding, medicating, keeping them warm, keeping them cool, onandonandonandon!) yet, in the Wild, they multiply like rabbits, grow like weeds, laugh at sub-freezing and 100-degree temps and just simply THRIVE!

^^^^This^^^^
I still hate pigs except for the ham/ bacon/ sausage bits…


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[Winger Ed.]

^^^^This^^^^
I still hate pigs except for the ham/ bacon/ sausage bits…

Now days,,,, I'm more inclined to hunt them at the local grocery store.
I don't have to get out bad weather,
and I've heard they aren't harmed by getting then into those clear plastic wrapped packages.

[Buzz Krumhunger]

321945


My friend Walter Jr posing with one we trapped just after Christmas.

[challenger_i]

Late 70's, early 80's GM heavy metal. Sweet!
Hope you let the fleas jump off that beast before you put him in the truck! :)

[MaryB]

It has always amazed me that trying to raise pigs is problematic at best (care, feeding, medicating, keeping them warm, keeping them cool, onandonandonandon!) yet, in the Wild, they multiply like rabbits, grow like weeds, laugh at sub-freezing and 100-degree temps and just simply THRIVE!

Wild hogs eat a varied diet that is healthy, captive ones are fed the same garbage grain diet every day...

[MUSTANG]

Wild hogs eat a varied diet that is healthy, captive ones are fed the same garbage grain diet every day...

Your point is well made for "Commercial" and Large Farm raised hogs. But small growers/small family farms often do not feed on grain or other manufactured Feed. Growing up; we raised our hogs (for market and "Buy Back" some pork) on the spoiled produce from Grocery Stores and Small Convenience Stores (Connivence stores used to carry real food). In Junior High School and High School; one of my many family duties was to pick up the spoiled produce in 55 Gallon Barrels before or after school in my old pickup truck.

[challenger_i]

My Dad's small porker operation was supplemented by gaining the "concession" for collecting the waste products from the local school cafeteria (School Superintendent: "What? you want to haul off our lunchroom waste? For FREE? Absolutely, sir!"). When it was getting close to market time, we would feed from the bounty of that year's milo crop (grain and stalk: my Dad wasted not a DARN thing!) to fatten them up a bit.

[Hogtamer]

I have seen hogs eating a dead deer. Rotten fish is a real treat as are snakes of any kind. Alligator carcass is a big hit. Any kind of fruit or melons drives ‘em batty and helps clean them out. In short they will eat anything dead or alive except standing timber.

[MaryB]

I have seen hogs eating a dead deer. Rotten fish is a real treat as are snakes of any kind. Alligator carcass is a big hit. Any kind of fruit or melons drives ‘em batty and helps clean them out. In short they will eat anything dead or alive except standing timber.

Bad as possums... saw one eat into a dead bloated cow carcass, it exploded and the possum kept eating its way in.... I was 400 feet down wind watching on a spotting scope and almost puked from the smell!

[buckwheatpaul]

saw were some guys were traping wild hogs, is this new if so what do they do with them? would love to get a few my self but cant afford to much cash

We have been trapping hogs for well over 20 years. I use about 10 - 12 cattle panels in a teardrop shape. I place 6' t-posts every 4 feet around the circumference. At the narrow end is a drop gate to trap them that is tripped by the hogs when the enter towards the back of the trap. We then load them in a cattle trailer and sell them at state approved sites or we eat them....they are really excellent to eat!

[Land Owner]

I bought my property to hunt deer and have been killing them (well over 500 myself) for nearly 40-years. They wander the forest in packs, eat acorns, snakes, tender shoots of palmetto, my planted fields (for wildlife), and root for earthworms and grub worms in fallen trees. They will tear a planted field up and render an unimproved forest road impassable.

As the deer, hogs are fun to hunt and "easy" to kill, if you and your hunting rifles do their parts. From "close aboard" 22LR to the "X" between ears and eyes, to 338 through and through, drop them in their tracks, dead right there (DRT), or injure them, and suffer to track on hands and knees through thick vegetation, which is a good way to get yourself killed or badly injured. I don't recommend the latter. Know yourself and your equipment. Be confident. Know where to put the bullet for a DRT experience, with no tracking required.

If they don't know they are being hunted and are not frightened before you drop them in their own tracks, their meat is excellent! Like everything, when injured, the "primordial soup" of fight or flight is in their veins, they will be running scared, and the resulting meat will be "strong".

In a cooler or refrigerator, rendering the meat overnight, bagged, in Italian salad dressing (vinegar and oil if you like), will eliminate a lot of "gamey" taste and soften the connecting tissues. ASSURE the "musky" scent glands are removed prior to cooking!!! Don't ask me how I know...

[popper]

There is small industry in Texas to trap and ship live wild hogs to hunt companies and to foreign users. Must be state medically approved shipping across state lines.