Did You Know . . .

that when hunting boar with dogs it is imperative to know what your dogs just bayed - wild pig or true boar. Bayed wild pigs focus on the dogs,  true wild boar concentrate exclusively on the hunter.
A hunter can slowly walk right up to a bayed wild pig without distracting the pig from focusing on the dogs as I found out first hand during some of my hunts. Do not attempt that with a bayed Eurasian boar.  He will charge head on explosively and viciously – at you, not at the dogs.

Annual Rattlesnake Reminder - Beware your step, look out for your dog!

Rattlesnakes emerge from hibernation around April of each year. Exactly when depends much on local weather conditions. Encounters with these reptiles are almost unavoidable during activities outdoors. Hunters are particularly exposed to threats from rattlesnakes because they 'work' often off commonly traveled pathways and in brushy areas, tall grass and heavy ground over. Hunting dogs are in the forefront of snake encounters because they travel ahead of hunters sniffing for game. Any dog worth his salt will be intrigued by that strange buzzing thing he finds under a bush. The result is a snakebite - usually in the face of the dog.

A good way to train your dog is to take him to a rattlesnake awareness clinic. These clinics are held in early spring or summer in many parts of California. Training a dog usually takes about 15 minutes. During this time your dog will be exposed to live rattlesnakes under 'field' conditions. The snakes are caged to keep the dogs safe. The cost per dog is around 50 to 75 dollars. That is a small price to pay for the safety, and possibly the life of your dog. A dose of anti-venom can cost you several hundred dollars. Google  for snake (rattlesnake) 'avoidance clinics' to find a training course near you.

The following press release from the Department of Fish and Game explains in detail rattlesnakes and how to avoid getting hurt.
PJJ

DFG reminds California Residents about Rattlesnakes

April 26, 2011

As springtime calls people to the outdoors, encounters with snakes become inevitable. California has a variety of snakes, most of which are benign. The exception is California’s only native venomous snake — the rattlesnake.
California rattlesnake species include the northern Pacific rattlesnake (in northern California), and the Western Diamondback, Sidewinder, Speckled rattlesnake, Red Diamond rattlesnake, Southern Pacific, Great Basin rattlesnake and the Mojave rattlesnake (all found in Southern California). Though rattlesnakes are dangerous if provoked, they also provide humans with a tremendous service — they eat rodents, other reptiles and insects, and are in turn eaten by other predators.
In California where rattlesnakes are found from sea level to the inland prairies and desert areas and to the mountains at elevations of more than 10,000 feet, enjoying the outdoors means learning how to avoid contact with rattlesnakes. Generally not aggressive, rattlesnakes strike when threatened or deliberately provoked, but given room they will retreat. Most snake bites occur when a rattlesnake is handled or accidentally touched by someone walking or climbing. The majority of snakebites occur on the hands, feet and ankles.
Rattlesnakes can cause serious injury to humans on rare occasions. The California Poison Control Center notes that rattlesnakes account for more than 800 bites each year with one to two deaths. Most bites occur between the months of April and October when snakes and humans are most active outdoors. About 25 percent of the bites are “dry,” meaning no venom was injected, but the bites still require medical treatment.
The potential of running into a rattlesnake should not deter anyone from venturing outdoors, but there are precautions that can be taken to lessen the chance of being bitten when out in snake country — which is just about anywhere in California.
The dos and don’ts in snake country
First, know that rattlesnakes are not confined to rural areas. They have been found near urban areas, in river or lakeside parks and at golf courses. Be aware that startled rattlesnakes may not rattle before striking defensively. The California Department of Fish and Game (DFG) recommends the following safety precautions be followed to reduce the likelihood of startling a rattlesnake:

• Wear hiking boots and loose-fitting long pants. Never go barefoot or wear sandals when walking through wild areas.
• When hiking, stick to well-used trails. Avoid tall grass, weeds and heavy underbrush where snakes may hide during the day.
• Do not step or put your hands where you cannot see, and avoid wandering around in the dark. Step ON logs and rocks, never over them, and be especially careful when climbing rocks or gathering firewood. Check out stumps or logs before sitting down, and shake out sleeping bags before use.

• Never grab “sticks” or “branches” while swimming in lakes and rivers. Rattlesnakes can swim.
• Be careful when stepping over doorsteps as well. Snakes like to crawl along the edge of buildings where they are protected on one side.
• Never hike alone. Always have someone with you who can assist in an emergency.
• Do not handle a freshly killed snake, as it can still inject venom.
• Teach children early to respect snakes and to leave them alone.

Is it a rattlesnake?
Many a useful and non-threatening snake has suffered a quick death from a frantic human who has mistakenly identified a gopher snake, garter, racer or other as a rattlesnake. This usually happens when a snake assumes an instinctual defensive position used to bluff adversaries. A gopher snake has the added unfortunate trait of imitating a rattlesnake by flattening its head and body, vibrating its tail, hissing and actually striking if approached too closely.
A rattlesnake is a heavy-bodied, blunt-tailed snake with one or more rattles on the tail. It has a triangular-shaped head, much broader at the back than at the front, and a distinct “neck” region. The rattlesnake also has openings between the nostrils and eyes, which is a heat-sensing pit. The eyes are hooded with elliptical pupils. Additional identifying characteristics include a series of dark and light bands near the tail, just before the rattles which are different from the markings on the rest of the body. Also note that rattles may not always be present, as they are often lost through breakage and are not always developed on the young.
Keeping snakes out of the yard
The best protection against rattlesnakes in the yard is a “rattlesnake proof” fence. It can be expensive and requires maintenance, however. The fence should either be solid or with mesh no larger than one-quarter inch. It should be at least three feet high with the bottom buried a few inches in the ground. Slanting your snake fence outward about a 30-degree angle will help. Vegetation should be kept away from the fence since the snake could crawl to the top of an adjacent tree or shrub. Discourage snakes by removing piles of boards or rocks around the home. Use caution when removing those piles – there may already be a snake there. Encouraging and protecting natural competitors like gopher snakes, kingsnakes and racers will reduce the rattlesnake population in the immediate area. And, kingsnakes actually kill and eat rattlesnakes.
What to do in the event of a snake bite
Though uncommon, rattlesnake bites do occur, so have a plan in place for responding to any situation. Carry a portable phone, hike with a companion who can assist in an emergency, and make sure that family or friends know where you are going and when you will be checking in.
The first thing to do if bitten is to stay calm. Generally, the most serious effect of a rattlesnake bite to an adult is local tissue damage which needs to be treated. Children, because they are smaller, are in more danger if they are bitten.
Get to a doctor as soon as possible, but stay calm. Frenetic, high-speed driving places the victim at greater risk of an accident and increased heart rate. If the doctor is more than 30 minutes away, keep the bite below the heart, and then try to get to the doctor as quickly as possible.
The California Poison Control Center advises:

• Stay calm
• Wash the bite area gently with soap and water
• Remove watches, rings, etc, which may constrict swelling
• Immobilize the affected area
• Transport safely to the nearest medical facility
• For more first aid information please visit California Poison Control at www.calpoison.com.

Boar Hunt at Rancho San Fernando Rey

A report on another successful hunt.

Last month I reported in several articles on boar hunting in Santa Barbara County, specifically on Rancho San Fernando Rey. This ranch was a sleeper for a long time,  mainly known to locals and to the initiated. Not so any more.
Wild pig populations on the ranch are expanding – and so is the number of hog hunters heading out to the ranch.
One of our readers must be one of the most avid fan of Rancho San Fernando Rey. He just returned from his second hunt at the ranch and submitted the following report for your perusal. His report contains several valuable hints and observations. I will comment on them in a separate brief article shortly.




“17 April 2011 Santa Barbara Mountains Pig Hunt
Last month, taking a 200 pounder within 10 minutes is a terrific experience, but leaves one with a longing for a bit more chase and a little less kill. However, Guide Marco of Rancho San Fernando Rey in Santa Barbara California counseled patience to my request last March for another hunt, as an historic 11 inches of rain in the area had made the Santa Ynez River crossing impassible even in his 4x4 F450 truck.
After almost four weeks, the declining river depth made fording a possibility.  We met up at 5:30 AM in front of ranch HQ,, threw the ice chest in the back of the flatbed and trundled off to the crossing. Despite Mario’s dozer work the prior week to shore up the stream bed, the F450 got little traction and slid two feet downstream in the deep section – we barely made it across to the north county of the ranch, with its 30,000 acres of rolling fields and Oak forested canyons.
The boar were far more elusive than five weeks ago despite being left alone to their own devices for five weeks. Our slow search along the dirt track took us through the meadowlands and up a wide flat bottomed canyon where deer, quail, turkey and squirrel abounded.  Early on we spotted a single 350 pound boar 200 yards off, but I was hoping for an eating pig and Marco felt obliged to keep looking.  After one hour without any pig signs we reached the end of the canyon and turned around to drive out from the canyon.
Halfway back down the track Marco spotted a couple shadows 200 yards off under a large Oak.  Glassing the area he identified two pigs bedded down from a night of foraging.  Looking at the same spot, I could see what looked like a pile of dirt with what might be an ear sticking out, but nothing that I would have given a second glance.  That one ear would turn out to be a sounding of eight pigs!
Marco’s guide services are successful in part because the pigs have never connected the truck we rode in with hunts, so we continued to trundle down the dirt track and over a rise to where we couldn’t be seen.  We left the truck and Marco immediately noted that the light morning winds put us directly upwind of the sounding.  He figured that we had only minutes before they would catch our scent and leave the bedding area. Marco decided we would hustle across the canyon and ascend the ridge behind the pigs to flank them until we had a line of sight for their expected route of departure from the bedding area.  Sure enough, as we crossed the canyon we could see in the distance that the sounding was already rousing and moving slowly downwind and up canyon away from us.
Being 20 years older and stuck in an office all day didn’t do me any favors while I followed Marco up the ridge in the thick Oak forest.  Later he explained that the pigs are foraging these lands with grazing cattle, and are a bit indifferent to the sounds of twigs snapping and leaves being crushed underfoot.  Unfortunately, I didn’t know that at the time, and was pushing myself hard to keep up with my guide while being quiet.
After 10 minutes of fast movement we got ahead of the slow moving sounding and could see them down on the canyon floor through the trees.  I set up my rifle on a tree branch just as a 125 pound sow stepped from behind a log; there was heavy forest everywhere but I had her clearly in sight at a range of 150 yards down to the canyon floor. I took the shot, and missed.
With perfect hindsight, my bad aim was predictable.  My heart was still racing and I was gasping from the hike to the interception point, resulting in an unsteady aim. I had zeroed the rifle at 200 yards and was aiming down at a 25 degree angle, which put the point of impact 2 to 3 inches higher than my aim point.  However, my biggest transgression was to target the sow’s shoulder rather than her lower heart/lung area, so my shot flew past her. Of course, I thought that I had scored a hit and saw a pig-sized pile of dirt in the canyon that was sure to be my trophy; Marco thought otherwise.
Luck followed Marco and I, and after climbing down from the ridge to the canyon floor we continued tracking the sounding’s slow movement up the canyon.  They hadn’t been spooked by the sound of my rifle and hadn’t seen us through the forest.  We quickly closed the distance by moving slowly from one Oak tree to another to arrive at my second chance, from a range of 60 yards.  The sounding was rooting for grubs when a 80 pounder stepped out from behind the far side of a log. Not wanting to push my luck, I took the shot and had my pig.

The truck, the guide and the unlucky wild pig.

Due to the thick cover, the rest of the sounding was only confused by the rifle shot and their downed sister, but not alarmed.  Spying around to try and find the source of the rifle noise without success, they ambled off 300 yards to the far side of the canyon.  We stayed under cover until the sounding lost interest in what had happened, and went to the pig.  After bleeding the carcass, we doubled back to my missed shot to look for blood trails in case I had actually wounded my target.  Fortunately there were none, because Marco had warned me that I would have to give the pig CPR if I didn’t have a second pig tag.
Marco provided a most excellent field dressing and consoled me by saying that a 80 pounder was the best size for eating.  He also counseled me to change my scope to a 100 yard aim point, which he thought would provide better accuracy under the conditions of the Rancho and his guiding skills.  The next day I used Handloads.com ballistic calculator to figure out that my first shot may have worked had I followed his advice.  Regardless, I am looking forward to the BBQ with my family.
Grant H.”

That looks like a great meat pig. There is no better eating!
PJJ

Did You Know . . .

this hunter wisdom from European boar hunters: 

Heart/lung (combined) shot equals drop on the spot. 

Heart shot alone means death flight.

Hunting Guide Caught Violating Law.

Loses License.

Hunting guides are subject to all laws other hunters have to obey. That is common sense. But apparently not to all hunting guides. The California Department of Fish and Game just issued a press release regarding such a bad apple.

Remember it when you go hunting with a guide and he asks to see your hunting license, pig or deer tags or any other special tags that might be required. He is only doing his job and protecting his license.

Read below what Ca DFG News had to say in a press release published on April 19, 2011.

“Northern California Hunting Guide Loses License

A Department of Fish and Game (DFG) investigation led the Humboldt County District Attorney’s office to file 17 charges against a bear hunter and licensed guide. In an April 12 plea agreement, Edgar Ray Roden, 56, of McKinleyville, pleaded guilty to four Fish and Game Code violations.
In June 2009 DFG wardens caught Roden running his hounds in a dog control zone in Northern Humboldt County that was closed at the time. They later served a search warrant at his residence. The subsequent investigation uncovered 17 violations of California’s wildlife laws. Charges ranged from illegal take and possession of black bear to illegal possession of mountain lion hides that were made into rugs. Licensed hunting guides are subject to the same laws – and the same penalties for violating them – as all other hunters.
“People who offer guide services to hunters in California know the difference between legal hunting and poaching,” said Warden Jackie Krug, lead investigator in the case. “We count on them to help educate hunters, and expect them to know, respect and obey the laws and regulations.”
Roden pleaded guilty to taking two bears over the legal limit, using hounds to pursue/take mammals in a closed zone, falsifying his guide license application by failing to disclose a prior spotlighting conviction, and failing to keep and submit guide log records as required.
The court sentenced Roden to three years of probation and fined him $3,140. He was also ordered to forfeit his 2011 hunting license and hunting privileges for all species, beginning the opening day of bear season and ending the closing day of bear season. In addition, he will not be permitted to apply for or receive a guide license for three years from the date of sentencing.. .”


If in doubt about any guide, his license or any violations or disciplinary actions against him in the past, contact DFG for more information.
Contact numbers for this press release are at http://cdfgnews.wordpress.com/2011/04/19/northern-california-hunting-guide-loses-license/. The DFG Enforcement Division can help you with your inquiry.

PJJ

How to get the boar newsfeed on your mobile phone.

A simple trick.

You can get our news feed an your data connected mobile phone by subscribing to Google Reader. Then point your mobile phone's browser to:  reader.google.com.
PJJ

Did You Know . . .

that wild pigs are not only adept in avoiding hunters but also learn rather quickly how traps work and how to defeat them? In Australia where exterminators slaughter them from helicopters they learned to play dead when shot at from a copter.

Feed Merger

We are merging the audio feed with our standard feed.

If you subscribe to the audio feed, you will no longer find the audio feed at the old URL. Please subscribe to
http://feeds.feedburner.com/blogspot/opmWb instead.

The feed is identical with the previous audio feed. Articles on the first page have audio.

We will establish a link to archived free audio versions of articles shortly.
PJJ

Boar Mother

The Telegraph
Pictures of the day: 29 March 2011

Keep it in mind before you take a shot that could maim an animal. They deserve it!

Something New

Kern River Trout Fest Set For April 30

Kern River Hatchery in Kernville will host its annual Trout Fest on April 30 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Coinciding with the statewide trout opener, the free event will provide hands-on learning experiences and demonstrations for people of all ages.

DFG

Advanced Hunting Clinics In June 2011

Wild pig hunting and deer hunting will be the topics of advanced hunting clinics in June of this year. The Department of Fish and Game holds these clinics in cooperation with the Pacific Coast Hunter Education Association. This series of hunting clinics is designed "to develop ethical, conservation-minded, successful hunters through education... taking the hunter a step beyond the basic Hunter Education course."

The wild pig hunting clinic is scheduled for June 11, 2001 at the Russian River Sportsman Club, Duncan Mills, Sonoma Co. Participation is limited to only 30 hunters. Price for the clinic: $ 45.00. A BBQ lunch is available as always for
$ 10.00. Boar hunting experts will cover "pig biology, hunting considerations and requirements, methods of take, methods for locating wild pigs, hunting techniques, locations to hunt, care of game and, the final reward...wild pig recipes."

June 18, 2011 will see a deer hunting clinic, specifically designed for hunting deer in California, at Cañada De Los Osos, Santa Clara County. This clinic is also held in cooperation with the Pacific Coast Hunter Education Association. Space is as always limited. The price for the deer hunting seminar is $ 45.00.


For details and to download a registration form go to http://www.dfg.ca.gov/huntered/advanced/ or contact  Lieutenant Dan Lehman at 916-358-4356.

Hunters can always learn something new by participating in an advanced hunting seminars. They are a fun way of learning more about your favorite game, making hunting contacts and benefit from interaction with other hunters.
Padre

Did You Know . . .

that trichinosis can kill you? Wild pigs and boar can have trichinosis. Eat their meat undercooked, not well cooked, and you can get it as well. Nausea, fever, diarrhea, abdominal discomfort are the first signs. Then there are headaches, muscle aches, more fever, swelling of the eyes and many other 'goodies' as six boar hunters in Spain found out recently. One died of the infection with this worm.

Boar can harbor the larvae of Trichinella (a roundworm) embedded in their muscles and tissues. Most frequently they are found in the peritoneum. European meat inspectors therefore check the abdominal membrane first and most carefully.
I encountered the larvae of this parasite in one of the wild pigs harvested. It is wise to inspect the muscle tissue of your boar closely. Cooking the meat well will kill the larvae.
Beware of something like this in muscles of wild pigs:

Boar In The News – March/April 2011

Swedes get beating instead of hunting boar.

A dozen Swedish boar hunters visiting Tunisia for boar hunting were beaten instead by local residents who mistook the Swedes for 'foreign terrorists' after they found hunting rifles in a taxi hired by the Swedish hunters reported the British newspaper The Telegraph.

Police had to rescue the unfortunate boar hunters. No wild boar were injured in the incident. (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/)

Wild Boar Sightings in Connecticut

Wild boar were spotted in north east Connecticut reported Channel 8 (WTNH) in Thompson, Conn. The hogs did not only move into a quiet corner of the state but also had the audacity of tearing up the ball field of the local school.

Turns out it was only one wild pig. The grounds-keeper for the school took a picture of the boar close to the field near adjacent woods.

"Basically our understanding is that the pig likes to eat the grubs, and we have grubs on the baseball field, so that creates holes," said Dr. Michael Jolin, Superintendent of Thompson Schools.


What a mild, scholarly remark.

At least one of the students is equally understanding of the poor boar.

"I actually think it's pretty cool how we can have wild animals come and be able to see them and stuff," said Tourtellotte High School Freshman Jasmie Falke.

Give me a 'B' . . . Give me an 'O' . . . Give me an 'A' . . . Give me an 'R' . . . Roar for the boar.

* * *

Boar in the news are slowly getting boaring to me. It seems that they always are up to the same mischief. Digging up rose gardens, scaring little old ladies, making police look bad and annoying industrious farmers and ranchers.

Talking about farmers. Canadian farm owners in Saskatchewan are complaining that

Boar are Attacking Cattle.

On April 8, 2011 the The Prince Albert Daily Herald quoted Francis Kinzie who complained that the cattle on the farm near Pike Lake, are in danger from the boar, especially during calving season.

Says Kinzie: “Wild boars are considered dangerous strays, regulated under the Stray Animal Act.

They have been known to attack people, and livestock, and . . . more needs to be done to get rid of them.”

The boar are escapees from local boar breeding farms. Fifty boar farms are still operating in Saskatchewan. A ban on new boar farms is in effect.

* * *

On this uplifting note and in anticipation of more exciting boar news than the recent crop of over hyped pseudo misdeeds of evil boar digging one puny little hole in an entire ball field, I will take a deserved break from boar news.

PJJ

Did You Know . . .

that wild pigs – like many other animals – are more active right before a major, dramatic  change in weather?  Before a big rain, thunderstorm or the like. Even before or after diluvial rain – it does not matter.
Fishermen know that fish are more active  at those times.

Hunting Hogs in Texas - A thrilling experience and a new business.

Texas is home to a huge number of wild hogs. They cause damage that goes into the millions. Ranchers, environmentalists and authorities hate them or simply want to get rid of them. Hunters like the challenge they pose. Wild hog exterminators appreciate the income wild pig control and extermination is presenting. And the hogs? They just keep on rooting , they just keep rooting along . . .

Hunters and hog exterminators.

Let's face it: Far too many wild pigs are calling Texas home. It does not matter whether a person believes in the old 'baseless' estimate of between 1 and 4 million or adheres to the 'meaty' revised estimate of between a minimum of 1.9 and a maximum of 3.9 million. Every single hog can easily cause 200.00 dollars in damage per year. No wonder landowners demand a drastic reduction in the number of boar running wild , free and roughshod over precious Texan soil.

On the other hand, it is a wondrous mystery why the very same proprietors are generally reluctant to allow hog hunters access to their land.

Numerous studies of the effects of hunting on wild pig populations have established that hunting does indeed result in measurable reductions of boar populations and can slow down annual growth rates. Hog hunting alone can reduce their numbers by between 6 and 50 percent. On average intensive hunting reduced hog numbers by 24 percent. Trapping and other traditional removal methods add their share to the overall reduction of hog populations. There is some light at the end of the tunnel.
Really?

Our previously quoted Dr. Lopez says that ". . . in order to hold a population stable with no growth, 60 to 70 percent of a feral hog population would have to be removed annually."


Is that goal achievable?  Enter a new breed of hog hunters:

Hog Exterminators

Because of the abundance of wild hogs Texas hunting regulations allow the take of wild hogs day and night. Almost any hunting method known to man is permitted. As long as a hunter holds a valid Texan hunting license that is. Wild pigs do not enjoy the special protection of daily or bag limits. They can be hunted year round and shot on sight. No special weapons restrictions are in effect, including automatic weapons.

"Actually, there's nothing wrong with using full-auto in Texas, as long as you're not hunting "game animals. Machine guns, just like suppressors are Title 2 devices, governed by the National Firearms Act. As long as they are properly registered with the ATF, They are perfectly legal to use on hogs and other non-game animals or "exotics", as defined by the Texas Parks and Wildlife department.", writes Clark Osborne, of Tactical Hog Control.

Where there are too many wild hogs wreaking havoc on fauna, wildlife and the environment there is also a loud chorus of angry landowners demanding relief from the marauding hogs. A decade ago some of them went one step beyond complaining. They took hog control into their own hands. Taking advantage of liberal hog hunting regulations they applied modern weapons technologies and highly advanced military equipment to wild pig hunting.
Two ranchers and hunters started to use night vision and thermal imaging to hunt hogs.
The new hunting strategies were so successful, that more and more Texan landowners asked for help in controlling their wild hog populations. A new business concept centered on big game hunting was born. The pioneers called their new venture Tactical Hog Control. The company is not only a successful hog exterminator but has also provided ideas and a model for many imitators. Hog extermination is big business in Texas. There are numerous imitators.


Months ago when I came upon the ads from hog exterminators I was quite skeptical, even critical. I contacted Tactical Hog Control for information beyond the contents of their website.


"The hog hunting business started as "an effort to control the hog population on our own land, we began hunting the hogs at night, using night vision and thermal imaging, about 10 years ago. This started out as an complement to our trapping efforts. Once we got the hogs under control on our own land, we started helping the neighbors....and it grew from there. I can't begin to tell you how many hunts we've conducted or how many hogs we've eliminated, but it would be in the thousands. We recently began offering guided hunts as a method to help pay the increasing costs associated with our gear. State-of-the-Art gear comes with a hefty price tag....and since we don't charge landowners for our services, this seemed like the best solution", stated Clark Osborne in a written response to my inquiry.

Most of the land Tactical protects is located in Madison, Brazos, Grimes, Leon, Walker and Houston counties in central East Texas. (approx. 1/2 way between Houston and Dallas). Much of the acreage they protect is used "for grazing and/or hay production for the cow/calf industry. The remainder of the land is used for row crop farming....wheat, corn, soybeans and so on."

So far, so good. Wild pigs love the crops mentioned above. Remember the picture I posted recently on the effects of a wild pig attack on a corn field? Chasing them out of the rows makes sense. It is also notoriously difficult and dangerous as the death of a German hunter in the rows of a cornfield demonstrates.

Tactical Hog Control places emphasis on a good experience for hog hunters. But protection of valuable agricultural property and hog control come first. In the words of Clark Osborne:
" As you well know, the damage done by feral hogs is increasing every day. With the tight profit margins that exist in agriculture today, many producers are turning to us to minimize the impact of these hogs on their operations. Fewer hogs means 1) less crop loss, 2) less damage to the terrain and 3) less damage to the associated farming/ranching equipment. All of these factors directly affect a producer's bottom line."

And the bottom line of Tactical Hog Control, I might add.

Let Clark Osborne sum it all up: "We're offering a valuable service to the landowner while offering a unique experience to the hunter.....a Win - Win combination. . . "

True, it is an almost ideal situation. Landowners get rid of their hog plague for free. Boar hunters are presented with an exciting experience.
That is true without doubt. All you have to do is to look at the pictures of real hunters on Tactical Hog Control hunts having a blast – military outfits, combat-style helmets, gear, vehicles and weapons. Oh, yeah, rifles – and big scopes, and large magazines and even bigger scopes. Only grenade launchers are missing!
Did I even spot a few Ramboettes in the mix dutifully looking excited – sort of?

See for yourself. The website is at http://www.tacticalhogcontrol.com. Do not forget to peruse the pictures and videos. They represent a gallery of conventional after the hunt photos featuring the great white hunter, excitement over a very unconventional hunt and reflections of human machismo in the presence of powerful, high-tech weaponry and equipment.

Beware, if you love Miss Piggy and hate hunting in general, do not watch the pictures and videos. They are full of death and dying. On the other hand, they also contain plenty of material you could use during your next anti-hunting demonstration to illustrate the depravity of hunting..

Imitators aplenty

A successful business concept inevitably attracts competition. The idea of gaining access to private ranches with plenty of boar under the banner of wild pig control is very convincing to landowners and hunters alike. Ranchers deal with a responsible business entity that is insured and keenly aware of the fact that the way they treat landowners and respect their land makes or breaks the future of the enterprise.
Many individual hunters on the other hand regretfully display a here today and gone tomorrow mentality. Their disrespect for people, land and livestock is without doubt one of the main reasons for the exclusion of hunters from so many private ranches not only in Texas but also in most other states.
One bad apple spoils a whole barrel.

Tactical is only one of many hog exterminators. A very superficial search revealed dozens of related companies. Some are small one man operations, others much bigger outfits more in the style of Tactical. They all have in common the stated goal to assist landowners in getting rid of unwanted hogs with the help of hunters.

Some hog exterminators claim to perform their hog removal services for free while others remain silent about the cost of their services to ranchers. I wonder why.

Most hog control companies use paying boar hunters to do the majority of the exterminating. Ranchers want the hogs dead, hunters desire to expedite wild pigs to boar heaven paying their own expenses as they go. Why do hunters have to pay a middleman, you ask?

Again Clark Osborne provides one possible answer.
". . .We recently began offering guided hunts as a method to help pay the increasing costs associated with our gear. State-of-the-Art gear comes with a hefty price tag....and since we don't charge landowners for our services, this seemed like the best solution".
Adding a little humorous twist he added:
"Finally we started getting calls from hunters, interested in guided trips. That's when we decided, much to our wives' joy, to start charging for hunts."

But what about those who do not use state of the art modern equipment?
They charge you as well. For their regular equipment, guide services and for access fees. Regardless of how you look at it, twist it, turn it, squeeze it or apply sales speak to it . . . you will have to pay for your hog hunt in Texas. No matter how many wild hogs are rampaging through the countryside, dig up graveyards or, oh God forbid, your neighbor's rose bushes in his front yard.

Certainly the fees are only a token, minimal contributions just to cover the expenses of the guide, one might think.
Not so.
Some fees look appealingly low. Such as $ 50.00 a day, no trophy fee. But when you read the fine print the picture changes considerably. You will pay the fifty dollars to get started with your hunt, but when you shoot a hog another $ 1.00 per pound is added. A 100 pound wild pig now costs $ 150.00. Other guides and exterminators apply similar methods of calculating the cost of your hog hunt. Nevertheless, a 150 pound wild pig will still cost you at least 150.00 to 250.00 dollars.

To make a long story short, while prices for hog hunting in Texas look temptingly low at first glance, hunters should not be surprised to find the average wild pig hunt in Texas to cost between $ 150 (for the most miserly hunter) and up to $ 500.00 for a more realistic scenario. Price averages appear to be between 150 and 400 dollars Extravagant price ranges can go as high as $ 1,000 for a hunt.

The above prices apply essentially to standard guided hunts in Texas. Hog exterminators have their own price schedules. You expect them to be lower – after all hog exterminators are assisting ranchers to eliminate unwanted hogs, right?

Following are a few hog exterminators I dug up on Google. One of the companies does not charge landowners, another has to discuss extermination needs in order to quote a price. Most do not give any indication on their websites how much they charge a rancher and how much they take from hunters. At least one of them charges $ 250.00 per hunt.
High-tech, shoot fast, shoot often wild pig hunting with Tactical Hog Control will set you back about five hundred dollars for a weekend.

Extermination methods run the gamut from conventional trapping to hunting with dogs /firearms, exterminating with dogs and knife only to the ever more frequently advertised helicopter "hunting" of wild pigs.
It appears that most of the more conventional hog controllers do so with assistance from specially bred and trained dogs.

For a quick overview of top listed hog exterminators in Texas follow these links.

http://besttexashoghunting.com/tag/hog-exterminators/
http://www.hogstoppers.com/
http://www.uglyassdog.com/
http://www.manta.com/c/mm6flt8/aaa-wild-hog-removal
http://www.easttexashogdoggers.com/forum/index.php?topic=22271.0
http://hoghuntingeasttexas.com/feral-hog-extermination/.html

This list is by no means complete. Google will give you thousands of hog control links for Texas alone, including some that only lead to sellers of hog hunting dogs.

Regardless of the method used, hunting wild pigs in Texas almost guarantees hog encounters of the exciting kind. Whether it is worth paying the asking prices is a question that only the individual hunter can answer for himself. In my humble opinion there is a disconnect between the plague of wild hogs in Texas, the need to reduce their numbers drastically and the fees ranchers and guides charge for weekend boar hunts.

All considered, in a price comparison between low-cost boar hunting in California and hog hunting in Texas Californians fair surprisingly well.
But Texans have more fun.
PJJ

Coming soon: Hunting wild pigs from helicopters.

Did You Know . . .

that wild pigs are most active during four days around full moon? And so are deer. Fishermen have used moon phases to determine their fishing schedules for a long time. A calendar specifically designed to meet the need of hunters is found here.

Are Hogs Taking Over Texas ?

Myths, Mythbusters and Hog Exterminators.

The Myth
Wild pigs have long owned the night in Texas. Their numbers are the highest in any state. Estimates traditionally place the boar population in Texas at between 1 and 4 million animals. At last count 225 out of 254 Texan counties had established wild pig populations. A recent study found that 134 million acres of the state total of 170 million are wild pig habitat. That means that boar inhabit 79 percent of Texas. Most disturbing is the recent trend for wild pigs to move into human habitations. The trend is not confined to Texas or even the United States. It is a worldwide trend as countless media reports on boar in urban and suburban environments all over the world show.


“Feral hogs were once largely a rural or agricultural issue in Texas, inflicting over $52 million in damage annually,” Dr. Billy Higginbotham, AgriLife Extension wildlife specialist, said.
“But the porkers have literally moved to town and are now causing significant damage in urban and suburban communities. This damage includes the rooting of landscapes, parks, lawns, golf courses, sports fields and even cemeteries, as they search for food. It has been estimated that a single hog can cause over $200 damage annually.”

(Texas AgriLife Extension Service graphic courtesy of the Texas A&M University Institute for Renewable Natural Resources)




Mythbusters


The traditional estimates of 1 to 4 million wild pigs in Texas everyone quoted up to now appears to be not much more than a myth according to a study by Dr. Roel Lopez, associate director of the Texas A&M University Institute for Renewable Natural Resources. “He (Dr.Lopez) recently used geographic information system procedures to turn the guesstimates into reliable estimates,” said Higginbotham, collaborator on the study.


Geographic information systems use diverse data “from on-the-ground GPS referenced data to satellite to historical records, and organizes it geographically. Then habitat conditions in various parts of Texas and boar population density, historical data and GPS records are all incorporated into the geographical information system.
According to Lopez that is just an 'electronic map.'

Based on his research Dr. Lopez extrapolated his realistic, revised estimate above, an “estimate that has some meat on it.”


The same study also debunks the myth of population growth at warp speed. Dr.Lopez found in his study many inconsistencies in this myth. It is based on the arbitrary assumption that in 1970 wild hogs in Texas numbered 1 million. Add exaggerated litter sizes and birth rates and you get the common belief that a population of wild pigs can double in one year.


Not so, found Janell Mellish, a graduate student of Dr. Lopez. Using more realistic data regarding average litter sizes in Texas, age of a sow at first birth and average number of litters per year, Roel Lopez summed up their findings:


“We estimated the population growth of feral hogs in Texas averages between 18 percent to 20 percent annually,” Lopez said. “This means that it would take almost five years for a population to double in size if left unchecked.”
That is a far cry from boar populations doubling every year.


The final myth proven to be at least exaggerated is the common belief that wild pig hunting can control wild hog populations. Over the years the effects on hunting on boar populations were examined in many studies and in numerous different states. All showed reductions of wild pig populations from hunting. The average reduction rate of boar populations from intense hunting was calculated at just under 25 percent. The highest success rate was 50 percent. That is not sufficient. States Dr. Lopez:


“In order to hold a population stable with no growth, 60 to 70 percent of a feral hog population would have to be removed annually.”


Wildlife experts and landowners still bandy about the old population figures complaining about the tremendous damage wild hogs are inflicting on their property and the environment. One would expect hunters and hunting guides to profit greatly from the bounty, landowners, ranchers to welcome hunters eager to pursue the naughty boar. But that is not the case.


On the contrary, the majority of landowners is more than reluctant to allow strangers to hunt on their land. Those who do charge hefty access fees and/or lease hunting rights to guide and outfitters. That in itself prevents fees from dropping.


A brief unscientific look at fees for access or guide services reveals fess hovering around $ 500.00 per hunt despite the abundance of boar and the damage wild pigs inflict on the environment, livestock and agricultural crops. So, why not stay in California in the first place?
That's a good question.
Why not?
PJJ

Coming up:
A new business in Texas: Hog Exterminator.

Did You Know . . .

that the tusks of a boar are actually his lower canines? Male and female boar have continuously growing canines. But only the tusks of males will eventually protrude visibly from its mouth.
Barely half of the canine is visibly protruding from the mouth of the boar. The remainder is deeply embedded in the jaw. The total length of the visible and embedded canine is normally between 6 and 8 inches. In rare cases it can reach up to 12 inches.

Did You Know . . .

that white boar roam central Asia? Their color is not a true white but is rather whitish in appearance. These boar are not albinos. Russia is home to many 'red ' boar. Their predominant color is red over a rust brown coat. Manchuria has many almost black boar.