Here in Texas, hogs have completely exploded to the point that they are a costly nuisance to land owners. They multiply like rats and root up the land like a tiller, causing millions of dollars in damages. Extreme tactics have been employed to control the hog epidemic. Trapping, snaring, shooting, darting, and even killing them by the dozens out of helicopters! (Which I have done, and let me tell you, it is the more fun then you could ever imagine. But that’s a different story.)
The good news is, this environment leads to a great opportunity for hunters to have a year round target that is both ample and exciting to hunt. However, with the slightest amount of pressure, hogs tend to become nocturnal, making it extremely difficult to harvest these animals in the daylight hours. Unless you have a helicopter, the best way to get at these pigs is with dogs.
I’ve had the opportunity to do this type of hunting with one of my closest friends, Steven Wilson. I call him “Sty-ven”, because that’s how he pronounces his name. He is stone cold country. He was raised with a gun in one hand and a
It seems to be becoming more apparent everyday that the wild hog population explosion in this country is getting out of hand. Talk to most anyone in Texas with land and they’ll likely tell you that they’ve either always had them or they just started showing up x-years ago. [Go back a few blog posts and you'll see a video (Too Many Hogs) that illustrates just how out-of-hand hog popsulations can get].
It’s well known that wild hogs can do irreplicable damage to farm crop, natural vegetation, and hunting businesses…and once they get started, it’s very difficult to stop. The insurgence-like spread of these “feral barrels” & “root monsters”, not only has most farmers and landowners up in arms, but has caught the attention of the national media as well.
In a recent article by FoxNews.com, “No Oink About it, Pig Problem Spreading”, the hog population in this country is estimated at over 4 million! As alarming as this number may be to some, it likely represents a “best case scenario” on the low end, due to the difficulty in conducting such massive population surveys and the hogs’ prolific nature. Hogs are said to cause approximately $8 million in damages each year. That number also doesn’t take into account (more…)
AUSTIN, Texas – Hunting affordability and accessibility are growing concerns in the outdoor industry, but it was not a problem for nearly a dozen children and their parents who enjoyed the thrill of the hunt and the taste of pork at the 2nd Annual Pigapalooza Youth Hog Hunt. Sponsored by the American Deer & Wildlife Alliance (ADWA), the event was recently hosted at the DB Hunting Ranch in Bertram, Texas.
“The Pigapalooza is always a fun event for the kids but, more importantly, it is another means for us to address the growing problem of hunting affordability and accessibility,” says John Meng, president of the American Deer & Wildlife Alliance. “Our children today are the sportsmen and conservationists of tomorrow. We, as a society and an industry, must work now to ensure that wildlife stewardship and outdoor participation exists 10, 20 and 30 years from now. The Pigapalooza is only one event during the year, but I know each and every one these kids will remember this experience for a long, long time.”
