Wild boars in Texas?

[762 shooter]

I have hunted just north of Laredo. Both animals and plants hold a grudge against humans. I'll never forget the sight of my fletching wobbling through the cactus stuck into a 6.5 foot Rattler. My snake boots made the cactus tolerable. As always, shot placement is your friend no matter what you carry.

762

[Arctic Blues]

I'd love to go down there an do some hawg huntin!

Anybody down in Texas willin to take a old hillbilly huntin?

[DanWalker]

I'd love to go down there an do some hawg huntin!

Anybody down in Texas willin to take a old hillbilly huntin?

Good luck with that. All we ever seem to hear are people bellyaching about how destructive these pests are. Try to get permission to help them out with their "problem" and they IMMEDIATELY get into your wallet. Paying $500 per day per person doesn't make me feel very helpful. I am well aware of the financial burdens inherent in being a landowner. Charging people big money to come and help you with critters that are trashing your deer lease is something else.

[Keith Sacane]

I agree with the above comments, but I would want nitrile or vinyl gloves instead of latex. The latex tear a little too easily for my tastes if there are any jagged pieces of bone anywhere, and I'd still wear two pair. I don't want to catch something from them while field dressing.

[TXGunNut]

Rattle Snakes are a Big Concern. I have yet to see one under 6 Feet. Also I have yet to see one rattle. And I take at a min of 2 a year off of the ranch.-Jester Grin 1


Good post, just wanted to expand on that point a bit. A guide/friend shared something with me a few years ago. He was seeing more snakes, often near gates, and they quite often coiled without rattling. His theory was that hogs ate all the ones that buzzed. I can't hear a rattler unless I'm standing on it (tinnitus) so I have to keep an eye out for them. I've not seen many 6-footers where I hunt but the smaller snakes seem more agressive. I toyed with a very small rattlesnake once while breaking camp and have never seen a more aggressive creature. Guess it didn't help that I was whizzing on the bush he was seeking shade under.

[sixshot]

Since we're mentioning rattlers I'll add a bit. Last fall a couple of friends were hunting Big Horn sheep in the Idaho backcountry. One morning they were hiking up a game trail when a medium size rattler struck without warning, it struck Cory's pant legs but somehow missed biting his leg. He said within an hour the spot around the levis were stiff as a board from the venom. Very lucky, getting bit in the back country would not be a fun experience. He said they were miles from their truck.

[smokeywolf]

Gotta watch the little rattlers. They don't know how to meter their venom when they strike, so they just inject everything they have. The babies can kill you twice as fast twice as fast as the adults.

I would love to help Texas whittle down it's hog population, but in all honesty, I could be real happy just to have the opportunity to do a 12 to 14 hour smoke of a couple of 60 to 80 pound specimens.
It's hard to beat babysittin' a well built smoker all night long with a good stack of mesquite and apple wood handy; the stars shining down and a good supply of beer and chips & dip right next to you. Just as the sun starts peeking up, the Mrs. brings a BIG mug of fresh coffee and a plate of eggs, grits and venison sausage. Ah-Ah-Ah...

smokeywolf

[jmort]

"They don't know how the meter their venom when they strike, so they just inject everything they have. The babies can kill you twice as fast twice as fast as the adults."

That is an Urban/Suburban/Country myth. The small snakes have far less venom to begin with. A large snake has far more venom and is more likely to deliver a fatal dose. The little ones do what they can with what they got, and a little goes a long way towards killing. A guy here in California died last year or so within 20 mins from a bite that had fangs spaced far apart. Never found the snake, but it had to be real big. BTW, the physician on the show "Venom ER," dude with the pony tail, top expert in rattlesnake bite treatment in the U.S./world, at Loma Linda University Hospital here in California, confirmed this fact, and I have read it elsewhere. Aside from the fact that it makes sense.

[lonewelder]

Good luck with that. All we ever seem to hear are people bellyaching about how destructive these pests are. Try to get permission to help them out with their "problem" and they IMMEDIATELY get into your wallet. Paying $500 per day per person doesn't make me feel very helpful. I am well aware of the financial burdens inherent in being a landowner. Charging people big money to come and help you with critters that are trashing your deer lease is something else.

that is the way it usually goes down here.Help,help,...wait, I can make $

[smokeywolf]

Thanks for that update jmortimer. Guess it's time to brush up on my nature/first aid facts.

[JesterGrin_1]

Well I just got back in from attempting to do some Hog Hunting lol. I went down there yesterday afternoon and the only thing I got to look at were some Javalina. Took another try at it this morning but did not even see a Javalina lol. A few does and a fawn is all. My Buddy saw a few Javalinas this morning and just had a small argument with one lol. But nobody got hurt lol.

I wish I had more to report other than the fact it was HOT lol.

[lars1367]

My brother that lives near Bastrop suggests you bring something that you can hit them with from a distance, because they aren't going to let you get close enough to spit at them. He has used an AR, but likes the 308 for boars. Probably won't need to pack the snow bibs or thermal underwear!

[JesterGrin_1]

Yep I have never been able to get close to a Hog. Usually 80 to 140 yards.

[Lonegun1894]

Most of my shots are 10-75 yds, but the longest on a hog was just over 400yds. Depending on your terrain, the range can vary widely, but remember that their sight is lousy, but the sense of smell is great, so watch the wind.

[300savage]

Hogs that have been pressured are hard to get a shot at. Not saying you can't but you are likely to have to work at it. Over bait , or out in food holding fields early or late in the day. Night is the most productive of course.
Don't forget that pigs are the most intelligent animal you will ever hunt. If they were not such gluttons we would never kill one.

[DanWalker]

Don't forget that pigs are the most intelligent animal you will ever hunt. If they were not such gluttons we would never kill one.

AMEN to that! After 4 years of intensive eradication efforts,the remaining hogs on Catalina when I was gunning them there had PHD's in hunter evasion! They were under incredible daily pressure by us, and evolved RAPIDLY. It was rare to see many black hogs or any other color except tan with black spots. Care to guess which color blended the best into the underbrush?

[luvtn]

I killed 11 hogs at 9:30 PM during May,2013 in Carta Valley on 231 headed for Del Rio. A whole herd of them jumped in front of my Chevy Cavalier. 4 deep and all across the road. No choice but to hit them. Once contact was made I gunned. 4 DRT with one pregnant and 6 fetus on the road. Another with a broke back that I euthanized (.380). I highly recommend the Cavalier for hog hunting. It only Cost me $994 to fix. They had to take guts and skin and other pieces parts out of the motor compartment! When you take your truck make sure you have huge Brush Guards. All the Texans do. Now I know why. No I didn't take any hawgs home with me. Stink doesn't begin to describe the odor.
lt

[drinks]

Don't forget to try a Czech breakfast, 2 prune kolaches and a Shiner long neck.

[youngda9]

It's hard to beat babysittin' a well built smoker all night long with a good stack of mesquite and apple wood handy; the stars shining down and a good supply of beer and chips & dip right next to you. Just as the sun starts peeking up, the Mrs. brings a BIG mug of fresh coffee and a plate of eggs, grits and venison sausage. Ah-Ah-Ah...

smokeywolf

OMG that sounds like heaven. And a woman who can cook grits and venison sausage...I gotta get me one of those!

[popper]

small snakes have far less venom

Partially correct. Venom sack stops growing after a while. Young one are more defensive. Rattles on young ones are not fully developed and don't make much noise. Never did have one rattle at me. GS buddy's dad collected rattlers to milk for his med experiments at KU med center. Kind of fun to watch him milk em, he even demonstrated at school. He wallpapered his basement den with the skins. Uglyiest, creepyist thing I've ever seen.