Feral Hog Damage

[Specop_007]

Got home from work about 5:00PM, got a cup of coffee, sat down to read a magazine when the wife pulls up in her car onto the carport, she walks in and says, "Your friends are back."

Grabbed a rifle, walked out the back door, saw the 40 something hogs rooting up the driveway, picked the largest one in the group and fired through his lungs.

I don't need to bait anything, hogs are all over the woods, but sometimes I wish I had a Night Vision scope and a night hunt permit because they appear to be night-owls most of the time and I could basically double the kills...

I highly recommend night vision. A lot of guys want to have a dozen rifles, but every rifle hits the same brick wall when the sun goes down. Having quality night vision allows you to use your rifle 100% of the time. Thats saying a lot.

 

[schmism]

from TX? perhaps talk to these guys

YouTube - Nueces Helicopter Pig Hunt (no music)

 

[beenthere]

Great video. Not that easy when they are hiding in the woods. But not a better way to take them in the open.

 

[two_bit_score]

We've had big problems in Texas with ferel hogs. Here is a good webinar coming up on June 17, 2010 at Forestry Webinars

It's titled 'Feral Hogs - The Good, the Bad and the Ugly". It would be worth the time to check out this webinar.

Also, Texas AgriLife Extension Service has some good info on building hog traps.

Also, check out Texasboars.com for a lot of good info on traping and hunting hogs.

 

[EddieWalker]

I just started baiting them again this week. It's a lost cause to do anything to control their numbers, but it's something to do and the small ones taste really good.

Here in Texas, there are very few restrictions on killing hogs. Common sense rules on the regulations and everyone wants as many killed as possible. Dogs, bait, traps, night time are all legal. Just kill as many as possible seems to be the main objective.

Poison is the only thing that I'm aware of that illegal, and it's used quite a bit too. Without givng out any details, and not spreading any rumors that I cannot support, there were two very large ranches in the general area that had a very large number of hogs die in a very short period of time. It never made the news that I even noticed, and from what I'm told, nothing was done to the landowners,or their employees. From the person who told me about it, and he's very reliable, it was one of those things that needed to be done and even though it was illegal, nobody looked into it, and it was treated like it never happened. Unfortunately, both ranches are way too far away from my place to have had any impact on my hog population.

Eddie

 

[sodamo]

Pigs seem to be getting worse every year here, this year being the worst. In fact, as I was reading this thread there was a TV news report about how the drought is bringing them into many of the farms. A papaya farm on Oahu was the report, but we are on the Big Island and have an even larger feral population.
Back to the damage. Even the hunters couldn't keep up in our area. Couldn't take it anymore so earlier this year, I bit the bullet and fenced in about 6 acres around the house - hog wire with a strand of barb wire at bottom. Mowing today out side the fence I see we don't have any less activity, just now it's outside the house area. Before the fence they'd come within 5 ft of the house to do their damage. We have 4 dogs, but guess the pigs knew which side of fence they were on.
To repair the damage, I have used my tiller and make several passes through the area. I don't have it set to till below the surface, but it will break up the overturned turf and sorta level it out. Not perfect, like new level, but at least the ankle twisters are gone. Another irritant is that they tend to root up the rocks, so now I have to hand pick them all over again.
Best of luck with both your control efforts and smoothing out the damage.

David

 

[archerm3]

Anybody that needs help shooting some hogs, I will offer my services! Love to have a hog hunt, have gun will travel...

I also have access to a helicopter and I'm a pilot...would love to set up something similar to the neuces hunts mentioned above, at extremely reduced prices...My buddy/protege needs some flight time and I'd love some trigger time...

 

[LRTX1]

Last Jan. I trapped over 25 in that month. I used two 4'x8'x4' guilitine door traps and a holding pen. I would transfer the caught pigs to the holding pen, that was stationed where I could water, and set my traps next to the holding pen. The already caught pigs made it a lot easier to catch the rest. It may calm them down, i dont know but it worked. I caught at least two a night when I set the traps.

I even caught the same pigs more than once when I had a mishap in the transfer process. I gave a lot of them away in exchange for help butchering. By using the holding pen we were in no hurry to butcher and had time to worm em out a little.

 

[stravis]

Last Jan. I trapped over 25 in that month. I used two 4'x8'x4' guilitine door traps and a holding pen. I would transfer the caught pigs to the holding pen, that was stationed where I could water, and set my traps next to the holding pen. The already caught pigs made it a lot easier to catch the rest. It may calm them down, i dont know but it worked. I caught at least two a night when I set the traps.

I even caught the same pigs more than once when I had a mishap in the transfer process. I gave a lot of them away in exchange for help butchering. By using the holding pen we were in no hurry to butcher and had time to worm em out a little.

That's my plan if I can catch them. I've got some spare pasture fenced in right now and if I can catch them, I can put them in the fence until I find folks that want to process them.

archerm3, I'd love to do something like that on my property, but with only 110 acres mostly wooded, I think it would be difficult. I'd love to try it though.

 

[LRTX1]

Better be a stout fence. Might ought to think about a few Hog Panels wired to some fence posts. I would not trust regular pasture fence to hold wild pigs.