Feral piglet question

Our trapper is having a heck of a time right now. He's baiting with corn, but the pigs either don't like it or have figured out what those huge cages are for, because they've come up empty every night this week. But the pigs are there; I was out walking and suddenly in the woods there was an awful, screaming fight going on. What a horrible sound that is, so much scarier than the grunting.
 
Corn or soured corn? Dry corn can be quite a lack luster bait...

You may have to pin the doors open and only put the sour corn inside with just a little outside...

Trap shy is common on the midsize and up hogs...

Brent
 
+1 on the Security Six or the XD, both fine guns for your needs.

I'd pass on the scope for the Security Six though. Tough to aim when they're up close and / or moving fast, and makes the gun a PITA for packin'.
 
I was talking with someone I know who grew up on a farm not far from me. She told me that a few years ago her husband had been out hunting with a friend (bow and arrow), and they accidentally stumbled on some piglets. The mama came charging out and tore up his friend's leg really bad, and he ended up losing it. Scary.
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My dad, growing up in Texas, was gifted a bow and arrow set as a child. He went out searching for a rabbit to catch and eat. He heard something in the bush and shot at it. It turned out to be a boar which chased him through 3 backyards (including running through the fences) until he got into his house.
 
Hogs.

A long time ago I was squirrell hunting with a .22 rifle, and had a 1858 Remington .44 replica on my hip, I heard something coming through the woods rooting It turned out to be 4 piglets, and momma.

I started to shoot one of the young ones, but didn't know how she old take to that, I thought of shooting the momma, but didn't know if the black powder pistol would take her out.
(Ballisticly about equal to a .38 spl.)

So I passed.

Years later, I started hunting hogs seriously, and found a well placed .22 is all you need, I never carried a rifle when hog hunting, just a .22 pistol with a red dot sight.

They may run a few yards, but a hit to the heart/lungs is swift and deadly.
Right behind the front leg, game over..
 
If Rifles are out of the question due to housing or local game laws try a shotgun and either buckshot (depending on the ranges you will most likely encounter said porkers) or slugs (in either 12 or 20 gauge)
 
mess

We were trapping hogs in a park I worked early in my career. Set up was a dug in 8x8 chain link type fence and big dropping door, w/ a catch pen door on the other side. We caught some piglets, but not the momma.

The guy that checked the traps that AM was not armed and the momma ran him up on his vehicle. We made a point of always having somebody that was authorized to be armed check traps from that point on.

I'd say the sow in the OP story would not have been far off.
 
I think you're right. The scary part was how fearless the piglets were; they just came right up to me, and that is not good. I ran away as fast as I could, along with my dogs. At least with coyotes, they try to avoid people, and teach their pups to avoid people; the wild boar don't seem to instill that fear in their piglets. Well, actually that's not all together true; it seems to depend on the sounder. The really multi-color one we had would come up close to the house, but take off running when yelled at; some of these newer sounders moving through, with pigs that are black or brown, they don't seem to be as wary. Heck, I had four sows and babies in my front yard; this keeps up they'll be making peanut butter sandwiches in the kitchen...
 
Tony, do you think that would work? I mean, if a pig was charging, do you think it could make it stop in its tracks? Because if it will, aye matey, lead me to the boat horn!!

Hmmm... let's see. Bear spray. Crossbow. Boat horn. Okay, it's safe to go for a walk now! :o
 
My granddad slaughtered pigs at about 200#.

Except for the breeding boar. That puppy was the size of a Volkswagen. Friendly fellow to.
 
I hunt hogs and trap them on a daily basis and have for several years as a retirement hobby....that's sort of turned into a job. It has been a fun and interesting hobby to say the least. I have had one sow in that time grunt at me like she would have liked to be agressive...since I had a bunch of her babies in a trap....but turned around and ran. They can be a tough critter, but will almost always run the other way if it's possible. Any of them in a trap will act agressive, but open the door and they are gone. I doubt many people get hurt by them unless they are trying to carry them away live (they don't take much to pettin') I once had a boar that weighed in right at 400 lbs that was a problem. I had to shoot him 3 times through the boiler room with 240 gr. 44 mags before he would fall over, and this was under 25 yards. He only wanted to get away from me. I did a european mount of his head and found another bullet hole right in it's forehead and the bone looks like it was trying to grow back. The spine where it runs into the back of the skull looked like it was deformed from this, but the hog kept going and everything had healed over.
Basically I have no fear of agression from the feral hogs in the open. If they are agressive it's because you are trying to make them do something they don't want to do or working in a confined space where they are just trying to defend themselves.
 
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Well, so far one of my neighbors had an unprovoked attack by a boar that crossed a field to ram his golf cart, and another person in a town just north of here was hiking in the woods with his buddy and a sow tore his leg up so badly it was amputated. I had one sounder hang out that was fearless and yet very easy going (I never felt nervous near them) and another one that was, like, staging a Jets/Sharks rumble yards from my house (lots and lots of screaming). The one time I had a boar pass within about five feet of me he just kept on going, but I was frozen, so maybe that helped, I don't know; either way, I've decided that I don't want to push my luck if there are babies around, just in case the sow is feeling particularly maternal that day.

I absolutely respect your experience, but I'm going play it cautiously; tomorrow I'm going to hit the feed store for a big 'ol can of bear spray! :)

I wonder if anyone has ever done a study of which sex is more likely to charge, and under what circumstance? I have a feeling that a lot of attacks are just not reported, especially if it doesn't result in a emergency room visit.
 
Yep, wild hogs usually run away, but not always. My personal observations from SW OK. The hogs in your area may do something different.

1. A person accompanied by a dog is more likely to be attacked by hogs. Hogs hate dogs: We have bird dogs killed in this area by hogs every year.

2. Do not release a live hog from trap. Once let a sow with pigs out of a trap. She tried to get in the back of the truck after me.

3. Be careful when approaching a trap that contains a sow. She may be in heat and guarded by a big boar. Been there done that too.

4. Was sitting in a lawn chair watching a pond in the late afternoon. Suddenly a big boar across the pond winded me and went nuts, snorting and tearing up the dirt. Then he ran off over the side of the dam. About 25 minutes later i heard something behind me, jumped up with .22 magnum at the ready. That hog was 15-20 yards behind me. Thankfully, he ran off. Was he stalking me? Was he just curious? Who knows. Now i stay in tree stands.

5. A few years ago i talked with a Ft. Sill hunter who saw a hog cross the road some distance in front of him. He got out of his truck close to the crossing place and was immediately attacked by a very big boar. A 12 gauge slug took care of that hog.

Wild hog attacks:

http://texaswildhogremoval.com/wild-hog-attacks.html

http://www.inquisitr.com/381526/wild-boar-attacks-four-in-berlin/
 
thallub....the OP had a fear of sows with piglets and walking around without a weapon....We shoot and trap hundreds of pigs every year....I have never been charged by a sow that is not in a trap....They always run and leave their babies behind..no matter how big the little ones are....Even if they are wounded they run....
Now if U wanna bring up traps and dogs and such..it could be a different matter....I actually would be more concerned about a boar pig that is stirred up..by cornering..wounded..dogs..in traps..etc....
I've had a couple instances where boars ran toward me....One did not know what I was..the other just happened to run that direction....When they saw me one stopped..the other veered off and hooked em..till I put 3 rounds in his side....Some folks would say they were charged....
So many folks wanna tell tall tales....Those stories on the net U posted....One pig comes in someones house? And another weighs 700 pounds?:rolleyes:
As many folks that hunt pigs around here and adjacent counties..U would think someone would go into the hospital ever so often....It would definitely make the news....Pigman said this part of TX probably has more pigs than anywhere else in the U.S.
 
We shoot and trap hundreds of pigs every year....
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So do i.

As many folks that hunt pigs around here and adjacent counties..U would think someone would go into the hospital ever so often....It would definitely make the news....
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Read my post again: The wild hogs in your area may be different from the ones here and in other places. Many of the hogs here have Eurasian boar blood. Yeah, i know, i've never done DNA testing to prove that. No one has ever done any testing that disproved it either. i have hosted German hunters here : They say many of the hogs here are German boars and boar crosses. I killed this very old boar in 2007 on Ft. Sill. He had a tag in his ear from a game farm in Bavaria:







The OP mentioned two wild hog attacks in TX, a man lost his leg in one of those attacks. A sow with pigs can be dangerous. They do not always run away.

Some hog attacks:

http://www.inquisitr.com/381526/wild-boar-attacks-four-in-berlin/

http://articles.orlandosentinel.com...ghbors-20101031_1_wild-boar-wild-animals-hogs

http://azstarnet.com/news/state-and...cle_015168ee-e85e-11e0-9185-001cc4c03286.html
 
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