Anyone know about the feral hog market in Texas?

[alsaqr]

The state of Oklahoma will not allow us to shoot hogs at night: A landowner can get a permit to shoot hogs at night. i tried that and found out trapping works much better.

Outside of deer and elk season the only guns legal to take hogs in the WMAs are shotguns and small shot and rimfire rifles. Then the OWDC and hires helicopters at great expense and shoots wild hogs from the air in the WMAs-go figure.

 

[MCgunner]

I've often wondered about wardens and how they'd treat a night hunter hunting hogs during deer season. The times I've night hunted, I've waited until after deer season, but really, who's to say you aren't out spotlighting deer. Game warden's call, eh?

Yeah, there are some WMAs in Texas that say you can hunt hogs, but only with rimfire. Now, that's stupid IMHO. I don't understand that one. I can understand the WMAs that restrict you to buckshot and don't like THAT a whole heckuva lot. I've yet to find one that allowed night hunting, but a few allow baiting.

 

[desidog]

Perhaps the market will improve.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/wor...k-shortage-unavoidable-year-article-1.1168289

Time to set up an export firm to the UK!

 

[Art Eatman]

Phone either a game warden or the sheriff's office and let them know the where and when of your hog hunting.

I've taken to doing that in my Terlingua back country. We now have city types who've moved to the desert and go all wonky when they hear gunshots at night. Saves a bunch of wear and tear on the deputy's war wagon if he already knows what's going on.

 

[MCgunner]

I've been hearing more about this pig shortage in Europe. I'm started to get excited about this idea.

I picked up a local Thrifty Nickel ad paper, Victoria edition, had a big ad in it says "WE BUY HOGS" with five or six phone numbers the Hallettsville number being one of 'em. Yep, this sounds like it might work in the future.

 

[alsaqr]

Stay out of hog pens and traps that contain live adult hogs. Domestic hogs ate an Oregon farmer. One sow had previously bitten the farmer when he accidently stepped on her piglet.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/ondeadline/2012/10/01/hogs-eat-oregon-farmer/1607401/

12:16AM EST October 2. 2012 - Oregon authorities know only two things for sure about the death of 70-year-old farmer Terry Vance Garner: He died Wednesday and his hogs ate most of him, according to news reports.

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The Coos County district attorney's office said today that one hog had either bitten or been aggressive with Garner in the past. District Attorney Paul Fraiser told The Register-Guard that Garner may have had a heart attack or other medical emergency, or perhaps knocked down by the hogs. But investigators aren't yet ruling out criminality by humans.

 

[MCgunner]

I get attacked from inside the trap every time I approach a hog in it. LOL You'd have to be a complete idiot to climb in to a pen with a wild hog. ROFL Now, this guy in Oregon might have died of a heart attack and the pigs just decided he looked delicious. Not sure, but if you were to climb into a pin with feral wild hogs, well, my money's on the hogs.

For now, I plan to transport IN the trap, never remove the hog into a trailer, just pick the trap up with a hoist and set it on a flat bed trailer. I will put a sheet of treated 3/4 plyboard under the trap to facilitate this. Not sure how the release at the buyer's will go, but I'll chat with 'em soon, have the phone number.

However, my mind is still workin over the transport thing. LOL This is an evolving project and all y'alls input is greatly appreciated, especially those with experience with hogs.

 

[alsaqr]

Several years ago i knew a young guy who worked his way through college by trapping and selling hogs. He converted a single axle trailer into a tilt bed trailer. Theres a wire cage with wheels on the back and rollers. The wheels overhang the back of the trailer when loaded.

Sammy would back the trailer up to the trap and unload the transport cage at the trap door, open the trap and shoo the hogs into the cage. There is a 12 volt electric winch on the front of the trailer that pulls the cage back on board.

 

[Swampman]

I haven't trapped hogs commercially since 1994. At that time boars over 300 pounds were going for twice the price of farm raised feeder hogs. The guy who purchased them said that they were shipped to Germany and France for use in high dollar restaurants.
I never could understand why they paid more for big, rank old boars. In my experience, they don't even make good dog feed and the smell when you cook 'em would knock a buzzard off a gut wagon at 50 paces.
Here's a good source of info on wild hogs in Texas.
http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/huntwild/wild/nuisance/feral_hogs/