Not again.......! Feral Hog Control in East Texas

[Stony]

I picked up a couple this morning in traps. Maybe 70-80 pounders, but it's been really slow lately. Up to 456 on this property now.
I have thought about snares from time to time, but have decided against it. I'm just afraid of the risk of catching animals I don't want to catch. The deer around here seem to get into about everything and I don't want to inadvertently do damage to one. I had a small 5 pt. buck sneak into a hog trap this morning and I was able to get it out without any damage to it, but it was one tired critter from fighting the trap to get out. I put heavy sticks across the doors to the traps so the hogs will have to get under about 18" to get in....and the deer still occasionally get under them.

 

[Flintknapper]

^^^^^^^^^

Snares can be an effective tool for you, but as you say there IS 'risk' of catching non-target animals. Deer the least among them in my experience.

It really comes down to 'where' you place the snare and 'how' you place it.

Obviously....you don't just place them randomly.

Fence crossings, certain brush lined trails and 'rub areas' (telephone poles, fence posts, trees) will result in hogs only...... if you are dutiful to set the snare correctly and take measures to discourage other animal travel at the set.

Coyotes and raccoons are the most often caught non-target animals, and even those are pretty rare.

Even so, I don't recommend that anyone set snares for hogs unless they are willing to study how/where and when to do it. Also, you must be able to check them DAILY...no excuses.

The successful and responsible use of snares is too broad a subject to cover here, but if someone wants to start a separate thread about it, I will contribute what I am able.

Stony....what type of 'doors' do you have on your traps (most of them)?

Do you have any that are 'root through/continuous catch'? A neighbor down the road says he has a couple and that he catches 4-5 small pigs at a time.

I asked him if has cameras on the traps to show that the pigs 'rooted through' the door (he sets them with one door partially open) or any proof that others continue to enter. He said he couldn't 'prove' that they do...but guessed by the numbers of pigs caught, that they do.

I'm skeptical about that. I think most of the time he is simply catching a group of little ones as they first enter the trap and trip the door. But I am willing to be educated.

My preference on small portable traps is a single that closes and stays shut once tripped. Your thoughts?

 

[horsey300]

Something like this set low enough might work handily for your purposes, for the little I know of pigs, setting it just high enough to clear their snout in a makeshift alley just long enough to hold the stopper with bait on the inside. I KNOW it works for cows in a chute, and if I had hog troubles, I'd give it a try. https://www.nrsworld.com/priefert/p...-stop-141457?gclid=CL6Syu74zs8CFQkKaQodfIwMRQ

 

[Stony]

Flint...I use nothing but single doors that fall and stay shut. I've tried some of the rooting type doors in the past with zero success. Some folks talk about all the hogs they catch with rooting doors but I have a lot of doubt about those stories. I see a local lumber yard here that sells pretty small hog traps with very small doors that a hog would have to open by working against a spring. I can see no way this could be effective.
I once bought a door that consists of 3 smaller doors that would have to be rooted to be opened. I set up a large trap out of cattle panels and had zilch for results. I would spread corn heavily on both sides of the doors and the hogs would eat the corn on the outside and leave. I finally wired the 3 doors together and worked up a trigger sort of mechanism to where the doors stay open and close together when the hogs walk across a rope in the trap.
I think we will hear all kinds of things from folks about how to trap hogs....but in the end we have to just develop what works best for us.

 

[alsaqr]

All my traps are home made. Except for one, they have single root style doors: That wider trap has two. The door is propped open with a stake attached to a trigger line through a pulley. This setup has worked well for us.



The presence of a hog in the trap sometimes entices other hogs to enter through the closed root doors. First thing i do is to check all the traps: Then i start shooting trapped hogs, if any. Several times more hogs came into traps before i got around to shooting the inhabitants.

My first snares will be set at some well used rubbing posts.

 

[Stony]

That is a similar arrangement I use for my large trap made with cattle panels. I bought a trap similar to yours in the pic from a guy once but was concerned about the swing distance within the trap using up a lot of the interior...if that makes any sense. I welded up a drop door on it and use them on most of mine.

 

[der Teufel]

Keeping deer out of a hog trap

I've posted this photo before:

​

This trap has saloon doors, and I caught deer in it a couple of times. It was a real pain getting them out, so I placed a strand of heavy fence wire across the opening about a foot below the top. Inside, just behind the doors, I placed another strand. The theory is that deer can't see the wire and bump into it, and that causes them to back out. Supposedly it works best on male deer with antlers, but I can say that since I placed the wires across the opening I have not yet caught any deer in the last couple of years.

I should add, however, that I haven't been working this trap this year so the data isn't as conclusive as it sounds. Still, so far so good.

 

[alsaqr]

I bought a trap similar to yours in the pic from a guy once but was concerned about the swing distance within the trap using up a lot of the interior...

My trap pictured is too tall and the door intrudes too far into the trap. It should be cut down to 32-34 inches.

i like saloon doors and we have them on a small corral trap.

We've been pretty lucky with the deer: Only caught one.

 

[Flintknapper]

Almost didn't go hunting tonight because it has been so hot and humid all day long.

But I've had this Boar hog coming into a bait site right behind the house for almost a week now and at almost the same time each night (about 8:30 pm).

I REALLY hate sitting on this particular stand because it is in a swampy area and the mosquitoes are really thick until we get cold weather.

They are SO bad...we call that stand the 'Blood Donor'.

Anyway, I decided that if I put on pair of thick sweat pants and hooded top, I could keep most of the little blood suckers off of me. That worked pretty well (except for my hands) but my gawd...it was HOT!

Right after dark a raccoon came in under the hog light and started picking around at the corn I had scattered about. I like having coons under the lights when I am hog hunting because they make good sentry's.

He stayed about 30-40 minutes, looked around a few times but never alerted or got nervous. He finally walked down to the creek and disappeared. I sat there listening to the 'night sounds' and just let my mind wander. An hour passed before I knew it and it was getting close to the time the pig had been showing up.

Out on the very edge of the light I thought I could see some movement down in the creek. In an instant the hog popped up out the depression, slipped under the barb wire fence and was right in the middle of the light pattern. It kind of caught me by surprise because he didn't enter from the direction I thought he would.

This put him not upwind or downwind of me but directly inline and parallel to my scent cone. The only thing working for me...was that there was 45 yards between us. BUT this bait site is down hill from the stand and the cool evening thermals settle to the ground and carry your scent with it.

I knew I'd have shoot quickly. I didn't let him stop walking or even get to the corn, I just settled the crosshairs high on his shoulder and pressed the trigger. The 405 gr. soft point slammed home and he went down like one of those ducks in an old time carnival arcade.

Had to drag him about 60 yds. up the hill and out of the swampy area where I could get to him with my truck. Not a big pig (heart girth 41 inches) but he was 'punctual' (came in right on time) and I like that in a pig!

 

[Flintknapper]

Hah.......you just have to laugh (I guess)?

This group came in (same spot) 30 minutes after I left last night.

Standing in the same spot where I shot the Boar.

 

[Flintknapper]

One of the many things I like about my .458 SOCOM is the ease in which I can clean it.

I don't often 'brush' the bore...but sometimes its necessary.

When I do....I can use my shotgun cleaning kit that has a full 5/16" diameter cleaning rod (NOT gonna bend that one). It does take four 3" x 3" shotgun patches (doubled over) to swab the barrel though. Not tight enough otherwise.



And when I'm done, I don't need a Bore Light and I don't need to squint one eye to look down the barrel. Just hold it up, both eyes open...and look right down it.




Slap it back together, go shoot more pigs. Easy Peasy...!

 

[Resist Evil]

Gosh, Flint, if you ever get evicted, that barrel looks big enough to hole-up in!

 

[luffy100]

bacon !!!, i will love be a part of the hunt.

 

[Flintknapper]

Gosh, Flint, if you ever get evicted, that barrel looks big enough to hole-up in!

Own my home, so eviction isn't going to happen (Mrs. Flintknapper isn't big enough to throw me out either).

Was sitting on a stand one evening with my Brother, waiting on some hogs to show up. Looked at the end of my barrel and there was a June Bug backing itself out of the muzzle. Guess it thought it had found a home.

 

[tightgroup tiger]

Looked at the end of my barrel and there was a June Bug backing itself out of the muzzle.

Man, this new site is sweet! I guess that June bug can be glad you didn't see a hog or he'd have gotten to rid the hog hammer express.

 

[Ibmikey]

I have been re reading many of the responses on this post and once again am getting the Hog Fever. I shoot with Stony whenever I can get out of the frozen North and receive an invite for me and my Westie to visit for a month or two. Next trip I not only have the AAC Handi Rifle but also several AR's and now a Ruger American Ranch, all in 300 Blackout. A 125 gr supersonic seems to do the job just fine, however this year I must have my Ruger Scout (.223) get blooded also. Here piggie!

 

[Stony]

Hey this is Texas and we even welcome northerners....as long as they are not wearing blue uniforms or carrying carpetbags. Ibmikey gifted me a HiPower from his last session here and I popped this critter with it this morning (#557). Lots of folks worry about penetration more than necessary. A 115 gr. fmj went through his noggin and out his shoulder...and dropped him straight down. I realize shooting one like this in a trap is a lot different from shooting them at distance, but a good hit sure puts one down in a hurry. At my age my biggest problem sometimes is loading one in the truck, so I scabbed together an old boat winch and some angle iron to help get them up on the tailgate. I have tried it on some really big ones and it's still a challenge though.

 

[Stony]

Sorry about the coon pic....I must have goofed up somewhere as that is a pic from a previous post that seems to have resurfaced. Here is another pic of the hog.

 

[Flintknapper]

I like the hog loading apparatus. Very clever.

Good job on that pig.

 

[iceman7668]

Sorry about the coon pic....I must have goofed up somewhere as that is a pic from a previous post that seems to have resurfaced. Here is another pic of the hog.

I cut a lot of firewood and load large rounds all the time. I am talking 18" long, 40-48" diameter oak. I bought a harbor freight 12 volt, 2000lb electric winch and welded it onto a swing arm to lift my logs. I bet this would work good on your big pigs also. A lot easier pushing a button to life instead of muscling it up into the truck.

 

[Flintknapper]

I cut a lot of firewood and load large rounds all the time. I am talking 18" long, 40-48" diameter oak. I bought a harbor freight 12 volt, 2000lb electric winch and welded it onto a swing arm to lift my logs. I bet this would work good on your big pigs also. A lot easier pushing a button to life instead of muscling it up into the truck.

I like that set up. I have a pair of skidding tongs like in your picture, maybe I should use those on the pigs too?

Joking aside, as long as I could drive up to the pig, that would work very well.

Sometimes they are in an area that I don't want to take my vehicle, so I will load them up in the tractor bucket on those occasions.

Those are some big 'rounds' you are working with. I had a large Oak go down in the pasture recently. Made a lot of fire wood. Had to get my Solo 603 out (103cc) and put the 43" bar on it.

 

[iceman7668]

I have an 066 Stihl and use a 28" bar. I have a 36" bar for it but I don't like to run it too much. people say the saw will pull it well, but I personally think saw is underpowered at 92cc for that bar in hardwood. The saw likes the 28" bar way more.

 

[Flintknapper]

Snared this boar last night....but I was a little surprised to find him very much ALIVE and not at all happy.



I set a snare at an obvious 'fence crossing' for hogs, got it all brushed in and have checked it the last couple of days. In this pic the 'brush' is all gone because the hog destroyed it while pulling against the cable, but this represents an excellent spot to set a snare...with low probability of catching a non-target animal.



As I approached the snare set...the boar which had been laying down (I couldn't see it) stood up, let out a loud, guttural grunt and ran straight at me! It caught me very off guard...because I wasn't paying that much attention as I walked up. I normally carry a 45 acp with me whenever I go to check snares, but the hog would/could of covered the distance between us before I could have drawn and fired if it had popped the cable.

The cable held and actually snatched him around 180 °. He went back under the fence line, pulling the cable tight and facing me again.

I use cam locks on my snares and when hogs are caught properly around the neck...it dispatches them quickly.

So I wasn't quite sure why this one was still alive. One thing I WAS certain of....was that I was going to go back to the house and get my RIFLE. The 45 on my hip wasn't feeling all that comforting.

After dispatching the Hog I found out why it had been so mobile. It had been caught around the SNOUT and not the neck.



Now...this isn't first time I've caught one by the snout, but its the first time I've caught one with the snout and lower jaw together. Usually they will have the snare around the upper snout. This happens when they push through the snare with their mouth open.

Anyway, it is clear by the position of the snare loop (cam lock on bottom) that this hog either tried to 'back out' of the loop as it dropped off the wire...or pulled back and tightened the loop after it had already 'fired'. A lucky catch actually.

But that is precisely the reason I double load my snares and rig the 'deer stop' so that loop can close down to 3-1/2" which will allow deer (foot caught) to escape...but still close down on a hog. Fortunately....I have never caught a deer.



So....one less hog in the local population. A few thousand more to go.

 

[Stony]

That is absolutely awesome!! I can really appreciate the well thought out approach you take with something like this....and I envy the tractor you have to haul them around. The land I hunt and trap is not agricultural property so we don't keep anything like tractors handy.
Great job and an awesome hog!

 

[der Teufel]

Another good job. That charging boar would've caused me to go back for my rifle as well, along with a change of undies…