[Dave P]

I see in some mags. that some places in the southern U.S. offer free shooting for feral hogs. Have any of you done this? Pros/Cons, recomendations? Other thoughts? taking a youngster (13) with you? ETC.!

 

[zeroed4x]

If you are going to shoot Hogs please come down here to Florida.
Most of the land owners will let you shoot as many as you want.
They are at epidemic proportions down here and they are both destructive and dangerous. ( Must be Democratic Hogs )

 

[Don Steele]

I live down here ( in Florida...)and have heard stories about landowners allowing all this feral hog shooting for years. Problem is, when you ask the story teller for specifics..name, phone number, etc...it turns out they're always referring to "somebody their uncle knew who said.."..."some guy at work told them..."..."Their sister's cat's best buddy says..".
There are a lot of PAY to "hunt" places where they bait the pigs, you sit in a box blind and shoot one when they come in to feed. If you want to put a feral pig in your freezer, that's the way to go.
There are several private hunting clubs. These allow deer, turkey and hog hunting. I called one near Lake Okeechobee 5 yrs ago and was told membership was $6,000.00 per year. A little outta my league.
When you go into a gun shop around here and ask about hunting...most guys point NORTH. Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina.

 

[7bcshooter]

I have a friend that goes to Texas to shoot feral hogs. He said feral hogs are really a problem there and that most ranchers will allow you to shoot all the hogs you want. He also stated that some will show the best places to hunt and even furnish 4 wheelers to get into these areas. I guess it gets kind of tricky at times because they sometimes spotlight them at night. Don't know if this is exactly how it is, but this guy is usually a very reliable source for information.

 

[Dr.Longshot]

They allow and encourage Feral Hogs to be shot here in Ohio, there are quite a few of them in Hocking, Vinton Counties, and they are also eing hit by cars crossing the roads.


Gary Bryant
Dr.longshot

 

[DoubleAuto]

I was out in southern Oklahoma hunting doves this September. A dove hunter on another dove hunt about 15 miles away was attacked by a wild boar. Had one hand really chewed up while trying to get the hog off of him. He ended up losing three fingers on the hand. Game warden said it took 26 shots of birdshot to kill the hog (thats all the other hunters had with them). Feral hogs are getting bad in a lot of areas.

DoubleAuto

 

[Mismost]

A group of us do game management shooting on a large South Texas ranch...does, varmits, and hogs. Even with about 10 guys shooting, this ranch is getting over run. The owner is scheduling a helicopter for us to shoot out of.....I can't wait! Am hearing rumors of night vision fitted 308's for when the sun goes down! I also can't take anybody else to this ranch, sorry.

I would suggest you contact the local feed stores in the area you want hunt. Many times the feed stores know of ranchers that want the hogs gone. Around here there are guys that charge the ranches for killing the hogs...kinda of the reverse of pay for hunting. You may well find a place to hunt for free if you ask around.

If you do, say thanks, follow any rules the rancher lays down, take plenty of shells, big ice chests, spot lights, and sharp knives. A AR platform rifle is great...my favorite is a AK47 with a red dot...this ain't benchrest shooting, this is all about a dose of lead to the head. These ranchers want hogs killed, it isn't sport to them, they just want them dead. Don't go shoot one hog, go kill every one you see.......you will get invited back.

 

[Dave P]

Mismost: If you shoot that many obvioulsy you can't take them all with you. Do just let them lay?

 

[Mismost]

Dave, that is just the way it is and everybody around has all the wild hog meat they want, freezers are full and you can't give it away. Used to be we would shoot, drop the guts, haul them into town and give them away.......now folks want you skin, quarter, and bar-b-que 'em too! It is a sad waste of good pork. It's a lot of work just picking them up and hauling them to the pit to be buried.......if we had to clean every one of them, we would be on that ranch forever. They are infested. This all about shooting, not sport...the fun left a long time ago.

Wild hogs are big problem that is getting worse every year down here.