Wild Hogs in TX - specific question

[MikeK]

My cousin and her husband live in Texas (2 hours east of Dallas). They have been plagued by wild hogs, probably 300+ pounds. They have had traps out for at least six months with no results.

She just E-mailed to say that her husband bought some buckshot for the 12 gauge. After searching the threads here, slugs seem to be recommended. My question is - Should he buy some slugs or will the buckshot suffice?

The shotgun is the only weapon they own that would work and I don't think he'll buy a large caliber rifle.

Anyone with experience in this area, your input would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Sawdust]

No direct experience, but slugs would be my choice by far.

Sawdust

 

[Matthew Courtney]

I thought that 2 hours East of Dallas was North Louisiana. In any event, slugs would by what I would use, and I would do it from an elevated position so that a wounded hog could not get to me.

 

[keano44]

Please do a search, in the Hunting forum, about buckshot and its appropriate/inappropriate-ness for shooting wild hogs.
Personally, I'd prefer slugs, or a rifle, .30 caliber or larger.

 

[Oscar Orum]

Feral hogs

With 12 guage I believe you have 4 choices of buck shot
in a 2 3/4" shell you have 27 #4 buck which each measure .24 inch
12 #0 buck which each measure .32 inch
9 #00 buck which each measure .33 inch
8 #000 buck which each measure .36 inch
I believe #3 buck is found in 20 gauge and #1 buck in found in 16 gauge.
It would be important to pattern some of the different size at what you would caluate to be a fair distance of you shot and have discussion.
My choice is #4 buck but be careful if piglets and a sow. I feel comfortable with a .41 magnum as back up and in East Texas be close to a tree that you can climb quickly. Hogs is not a game of honor.

 

[Dave R]

The impression I remember from the threads I've read on the subject is--buckshot will NOT penetrate enough to kill a big hog.

Think about the ballistics. You've got a .32 ball (OK, 9 of 'em) moving about 1,000fps? Each one is a hot .32acp. Its not going to penetrate enough.

Might at distances of 20 yards or less, where the projectiles act like one big slug, but I don't want to be that close to a shot hog.

 

[Stand_Watie]

I thought that 2 hours East of Dallas was North Louisiana

Depends on how fast you're driving For me driving the speed limit, two hours east of Dallas is about the Tyler area.

Mike, you'll undoubtedly get lots of good answers regarding buckshot vs. slugs (vs. rifle calibers).

My advice is if your cousin just wants to get rid of the hogs, to continue with the trap(s) as well as the hunting, or perhaps to bring in some other hunters (local guys that he can trust would be the best) as well.

The traps around here sometimes go forever without seeming to catch anything (although they seem to do best in the cold months anyway) and then catch a whole rash of them at the same time.

 

[Lennyjoe]

Slugs work great on Javalina here.

I would rather go with slugs for Ferals as well. The armor plate on the sides of them beast are pretty darn thick.

On that note, we used mostly 30-30's on hogs when hunting them brutes in Georgia.

 

[jsalcedo]

Earlier this year my dad was cornered by a wild hog and all he had was a ruger super blackhawk .357 and a box of 110 grain JHP

It took 19 shots to kill it and 18 of them made it really pissed off..


Slugs for sure.

 

[MrMurphy]

Advice from a wild pig hunting friend who uses a shotgun.

Slugs.


Also: get some going-bad produce, bury it about six inches deep, say 10lbs of it.

Get a high point to hide in and wait till it gets a bit dark with a spotlight. Pigs will apparently zero right in on the produce and ignore everything else (friend who told me this said he walked right up on an entire herd and whacked several from 5 yards this way).

Fire several solid shots at the front shoulder... till it goes down. Get as many as he can, repeat a week later.

 

[SunBear]

Any pictures of that SuperBlackhawk in 357. Never seen one. Happy trails.

 

[JohnKSa]

I've had some friends kill hogs with buckshot. There are a couple of public hunting areas that allow only buckshot--no slugs, rifles or pistols.

I'd recommend slugs anyway as long as you're not in a buckshot only area.

If he goes with buckshot he should go with the hottest 000 load he can find.

 

[patentnonsense]

Don't even think about buckshot - even if you do wound a 300 pounder even to kill him, he'll kill you first.

Have your friend call me, I'll bring out two heavy rifles - once they dress one out, and see how thick the "plate" is on the shoulder, they might think differently about shotgunning.

You hear a lot of conflicting pig stories, and part of that is becuase wild boar stock is mixed with domestic pig stock. Porky Pig might lie down and die from a loud noise - he's bred to be bacon - but if your target looks anything like the Arkansas razorback he might just decide to take out your femoral arteries first.

 

[Splat Shot]

Slugs, no doubt about it. I had a friend almost killed by a TX hog. Damn thing chased him down and gored him a good one in the leg, blood spurted out just like in the movies. Also knew a guy who hit one with a 7mm magnum, it still got away. Get serious about your safety when hunting these things.

 

[DigMe]

Wow, a lot of misinformation here from people who apparently have little experience hunting hogs.

I've killed many a hog with 00 and 000 buckshot in both 3" and 2 3/4" loads. If you're shots are within, say, 30 to 40 yards then it will suffice and it's best to go with magnum loads. Do not use buckshot with longer range shots though. On my land the scrub and trees are pretty thick so most of my shots are 30 yards or less. It's more exciting up close anyway. I've taken BIG boars with buckshot. Hogs can be tough but the toughness is often exaggerated or based on one extreme experience (jsalcedo's story is WAY extreme and out of the ordinary). These days I most enjoy going out and hunting feral hogs armed only with my .357 blackhawk and 180gr castcores or sjhps. The first boar I ever shot was taken with 00 buckshot. I can't remember if I used magnums or regular loads on that one but one shot dropped him and he had also had a 1"+ thick crust of dried mud covering the side where I shot him.

Don't forget that the most important thing is shot placement. Of course it's not going to drop a hog if you pepper his ass with shot. The way people talk about hogs you'd think they were some kind of near-invinvible super dangerous game that only the stoutest of men would dare hunt. It's just not true. Hogs run away a lot more than they charge and they often go down much easier than you'd think. I have a friend who took down two big old boars on our land one day with his .22 mag. Shot placement.

brad cook

 

[Freedspeak]

Out of Florida

If you are using a 12 Ga. then slugs are the way, rifle 30 cal or better. As to pistols and such, 357 or 44 are good, and I use a crossbow on the smaller ones where the neighbors might complain.

 

[Sylvilagus Aquaticus]

2 hours east of Dallas for me is Longview, but I drive faster than you, Stand_Watie .

Anyway, that's the general area where I was born and raised. I've been hunting hogs (and other stuff) around there since I was able to go out. I have some friends who supplement their incomes and freezers by hunting/clearing hogs all over the area. Some of them use buckshot, some use slugs, and others use the ubiquitous 30-30. Of those, I know a couple who have the scars and sliced dogs to show for shoddy work in a pinch.

I've taken them with a 30-06 and softpoints, and my .30 Carbine Blackhawk with hard-cast bullets from tree stands. I later discovered the 6.5x55 and found it to be wholly satisfactory, as it leaves a very decisive channel that can traverse a hog.

Tree or stand hunting is a presumption. Ground hunting hogs is only called for if you do not value your flesh. Feral hogs have tusks, which are usually removed early in life on domesticated piggies or those which go to market before they grow long.

My experience has been that if you use large, heavy projectiles that move fairly fast you'll do ok if you do your part behind the trigger. Of course, it's tough to concentrate when you hear those tusks a'poppin below you.

I'm going to see my folks this weekend and I may even try to get in a little time hunting a few while I'm there. Holler and I'll show you how it's done.

Regards,
Rabbit.

 

[Stand_Watie]

I have a friend who took down two big old boars on our land one day with his .22 mag. Shot placement.

Gotcha beat there......22 lr out of a colt cadet. One shot, DRT

Although the range was only about 24 inches and he was standing there glowering at me from the other side of a sturdy trap

That blood around his mouth is from him tearing himself up trying to get to me through the side of the trap.

 

[patentnonsense]

Tree or stand hunting is a presumption. Ground hunting hogs is only called for if you do not value your flesh.

You're right, that's the other big variable - and I think ground hunting is much more fun. Yes, a .22LR in the ear might drop him, and a good hit with a .44 probably will - but IF he figures out who's hurting him, and you haven't nailed his central nervous system, things can get exciting. I really admire their inclination to take out whoever got them - and mutual risk makes hunting more interesting.

But if you're just talking about a landowner trying to clear them out, I understand that the pleasure of hunting may not be the top priority. AFAIK shooting hogs from vehicles is illegal in Texas, but night vision and Class III are perfectly legal...

 

[Nathanael_Greene]

Let me tell you, from experience, buckshot cannot be counted on to stop a boar, even at very short range.

I was hunting with some guys one night, and two loads of buckshot from within 10 yards did not faze a wounded boar.

One 12-gauge slug, however, settled the issue.

 

[Stand_Watie]

AFAIK shooting hogs from vehicles is illegal in Texas, but night vision and Class III are

I assume you mean shooting from the roadway. I wouldn't have thought a clarification neccessary except the other day I saw a guy down the road from me has built himself a deer stand atop his suburban

 

[Sylvilagus Aquaticus]

.....has built himself a deer stand atop his suburban

I know (and you probably do too) a couple of fellas in the 'oil bidness' from Gregg County who cut the top off a perfectly good new Oldsmobile station wagon they bought specifically as a 'hunting car'. One of these ol' boys has a fireman's pole in his house if that gives you a hint who it was.

Sometimes I miss the old days back home .

Regards,
Rabbit.

<edited to add>
Sorry, thread drift...to bring it back on track, who among us would help sponsor a hog hunt with the likes of say, JShirley, Matt G., Thumper and fjolnirsson hunt big hogs with boar spears? I bet that'd be a trip to remember.

good times...
Rabbit.

 

[jsalcedo]

Any pictures of that SuperBlackhawk in 357. Never seen one

Oops I meant Stainless blackhawk....

 

[Lonestar.45]

Safety?

Judging from the responses here, I guess I'm crazy for bowhunting them from a ground blind! I've killed around a dozen, from 30 lbs on up to 150 or so, and they never knew what hit them. They do get ticked off with a broadhead zipped through their vitals, but if you're camoflaged, and not moving, yelling, etc., they have no idea where it came from. They usually just spin around a bunch, and/or take off like a shot in the same direction they were facing. At least that's been my experience. (Of course, I did have a little 35lb javelina chase me around once with my arrow sticking out of his forehead like a unicorn, but that's another story).

 

[DigMe]

Let me tell you, from experience, buckshot cannot be counted on to stop a boar, even at very short range.

This is NOT the typical occurrence. Did you examine the hog afterwards. Did you find positive entrance wounds for the buckshot? Where did the buckshot hit? I've dropped plenty of hogs in their tracks with 12 gauge buckshot and seen them dropped by others as well. If you had hit that hog in the vitals or CNS it would have gone down. You apparently did not do that.

brad cook