Texas Losing The Feral Hog Fight

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  • Butch627

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    No mention of bounties in that article. I wonder if the concept of a bounty is outdated or how much per hog would make it worthwhile for hunters to take them out.
     

    Bigtanker

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    I was listening to someone talk about the coyote problem in the US. They were saying the same thing. The stat they stated was 60% of the yotes would need to be killed to stop their growth. Utah has a $50 bounty for yotes too. South Carolina has proposed a $75 bounty for each yote killed.
     

    Alamo

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    I wonder if there is a paradox, or at least some conflicting interests. Hog hunting is big business for a lot of people here. People put out bait...i.e. food... for them, and depend on them coming back to their properties so hunting leases and trips can be sold. It's not exactly in their interest to remove all the hogs.
     

    Rookie

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    Sep 22, 2008
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    Google Texas hog hunting, and you'll see why they're overrun with hogs. There are hundreds of places charging ridiculous prices for something that is such a problem. I have a hard time feeling sorry for them.
     

    DRob

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    I wonder if there is a paradox, or at least some conflicting interests. Hog hunting is big business for a lot of people here. People put out bait...i.e. food... for them, and depend on them coming back to their properties so hunting leases and trips can be sold. It's not exactly in their interest to remove all the hogs.

    Exactly. Do a little research on hog hunting and see how expensive it is. $$$ for the trip allows you to shoot X hogs, $$ for each additional hog, $ for butchering per hog/per lb, and you don't get to keep the meat. They've made hogs a "cash crop". It sounds like a great time and probably is but all those $$$$s add up to prohibitively expensive unless you only want to shoot 2-3 hogs. Hell, I thought they were going to be the next "prairie dog".
     

    Rookie

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    I wonder if there is a paradox, or at least some conflicting interests. Hog hunting is big business for a lot of people here. People put out bait...i.e. food... for them, and depend on them coming back to their properties so hunting leases and trips can be sold. It's not exactly in their interest to remove all the hogs.

    Straight from the Texan's mouth...

    I was googling before I replied and didn't see his post, but here's a good example. https://www.independenceranch.com/h...7tV3GnKOLB2XWrIJ2nACaxnQyvEjfY_hoCSMEQAvD_BwE
    $399 for three nights seems reasonable until you get to the fine print. $100 per hunter for a guide fee isn't bad, I'd pay that without being required to. Cleaning fees at $1 per pound and only the staff can clean, that's where it gets into ridiculous.
     

    HKUSP

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    Dec 5, 2015
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    This is how it all ends. The hogs, coyotes, and Canadian geese form an alliance, and we all die in a pile of warm brass.

    Somehow I had hoped it would be a little more glorious.
     

    phylodog

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    No sympathy from me. I lived there three years and made many, many offers to kill as many hogs as I could when I'd hear someone complaining about the damage they were doing. Every single one of them had the exact same reply... "how much you gonna pay me?". That was 1993-1996, seems plenty had a chance to thin the numbers at zero cost, they chose otherwise.
     

    churchmouse

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    No sympathy from me. I lived there three years and made many, many offers to kill as many hogs as I could when I'd hear someone complaining about the damage they were doing. Every single one of them had the exact same reply... "how much you gonna pay me?". That was 1993-1996, seems plenty had a chance to thin the numbers at zero cost, they chose otherwise.

    Always about the money. Always.
     

    AGarbers

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    They had a tool to combat this called Warfarin but public opinion made them choose to not use it. Hunting isn't the cure because as a population thins in an area there is more food for the rest and reproduction rates increase. Kansas and Nebraska have programs that are somewhat effective as they do not allow hunting of the hogs. Government contractors/hunters go in and trap/kill them. Since there isn't an incentive to have them around, hog hunters have no incentive to bring in more. Trapping is far more effective than hunting. In Texas, the hog lifestyle is so much a part of their culture now they will never allow getting rid of all of them. There is a good series on YouTube about this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTIxox-46Aw
     
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    Dec 29, 2008
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    You wouldn't know they were losing by what they charge for licenses and access for out of state hunters. I won't feel too much sympathy until they make it a bit easier for me to go down there and help out.
     

    BigBoxaJunk

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    I remember from a Wildlife Biology class in college, that bounties had been proven time and time that they didn't work to control populations.

    But, it's one of those things that looks like a good idea at first glance, so lawmakers tend to do it just to appease the public and give the illusion of doing something. One thing that govt people know is that it's much better to do things that LOOK like a good idea first.
     

    DeadeyeChrista'sdad

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    Feb 28, 2009
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    View attachment 75996

    This is the western border of the Santa Anna National wildlife preserve. As you can see, the trail runs right along the fence row. If you look to the west, you'll see about 300 yards of open field, and then a wood line. About every 100 yards or so in this woodline is a fairly tall shooting stand. There's big money in them there hogs!
     

    Clay Pigeon

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    Aug 3, 2016
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    I remember from a Wildlife Biology class in college, that bounties had been proven time and time that they didn't work to control populations.

    But, it's one of those things that looks like a good idea at first glance, so lawmakers tend to do it just to appease the public and give the illusion of doing something. One thing that govt people know is that it's much better to do things that LOOK like a good idea first.

    If bountys or dollars per animal are enough money, some will turn it into a full-time job. When enough do it as a full-time job that species will be controlled or eliminated. History proves it.
     

    KJQ6945

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    When I was planning my hog hunting trip a few years ago, I did a thread about it. This, was my biggest gripe. I was wanting a shooting trip for some army buddies, not a trophy hunt. More of a kill them all, not a pick out your favorite.

    After months of searching, I did find what I was after. We met the mayor of a small town, she owned the diner, and she put us in touch with several ranchers. They all offered us they're properties free of charge, to kill all of them we wanted. We even discussed coming back and taking them up on it.

    The biggest problem would be logistics. Where we went, we stayed on the 1,000 acres we were hunting. We came and went at all hours. We had a gun rack on the porch. We hunted from trucks, four wheelers, and side by sides. What ever we shot that we wanted to keep, we put it in a big freezer, and the ranch hand would clean them in the morning. We paid him $50 for a full size hog. It was money well spent. When we were done hunting in the morning, we'd hang out by the fire pit and have a few beers until everybody got back.

    The local Motel Six ain't gonna skin them, package them, and freeze them for $50. They probably wouldn't appreciate all the guns, and they probably wouldn't let us drink beer around a fire in their parking lot.

    The "free" property is out there, but unless you're staying on it, it's gonna be a pain in the butt.
     
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