Shot a wild hog - was it sick?

[Conagher]

We have a few wild hogs around. Yesterday morning I was walking over the "back 40" which I've hired a dozer guy to clear off. It extremely thick brush, trees, vines, etc. He also has one of those "environmental machines - kind of a cross between a bush hog and a tiller" that he was making paths for the dozer to work. I noticed a lot of hog tracks in the newly cleared area. As I was walking along the paths made by the environmental machine I came across a hog (or pig if you prefer), approximately 75 lbs laying on the ground. It was alive, but acted as if it's back was broke and couldn't get up. I don't think it had been there long, even though the ground was tore up a little with it kicking it's feet, there was not a lot of evidence it had been there for an extended period. I shot it to put it out of it's misery, but wonder what was wrong with it? There was no physical evidence of any injury. Could it have been the machinery pushed a tree down on it or something? It was laying in an open spot with no tree on it. Or could there be some type of disease affecting it?

Thanks!

 

[showme]

I hope you don't plan on eating that meat and it is probly good you shot it because they are really mean and to put it out its misery.

 

[Conagher]

I must admit, I thought about butchering it. Even though it was a boar, it was a young one and I enjoy BBQ pork. But without knowing what was wrong with it I decided to just dispose of it.

 

[I Love Beefies]

Conagher,
Hard to say what might have been wrong with it, you did the right thing by shooting it. It's possible it was sick or with it could have gotten injuried some other way.
Three years ago we had what our county extension agent described as a "virus" come through South Texas and wipe out 90% of our hog population it also took most of the javelina. Even with ferel hogs being nomadic last year we had such a problem that we had to have a licensed trapped come out to our ranch and trap them they were tearing up everything and got tired of capping them. It was so bad that we were considering shooting them from the copter and letting them lay. Our ranch hand could only eat so much bacon and ham.

 

[milesvb]

Conagher,
Hard to say what might have been wrong with it, you did the right thing by shooting it. It's possible it was sick or with it could have gotten injuried some other way.
Three years ago we had what our county extension agent described as a "virus" come through South Texas and wipe out 90% of our hog population it also took most of the javelina. Even with ferel hogs being nomadic last year we had such a problem that we had to have a licensed trapped come out to our ranch and trap them they were tearing up everything and got tired of capping them. It was so bad that we were considering shooting them from the copter and letting them lay. Our ranch hand could only eat so much bacon and ham.

How much for a bottle of that virus?

 

[ALACOWMAN]

COULD HAVE BEEN HIT BY MACHINE YOU WHERE TALKING ABOUT

 

[I Love Beefies]

milesvb....
I'm not sure how much to sell it for... I'm still working on the patent for it......
the ranch hand just called and said he capped a boar yesterday while filling the feeders that had 7 inch tusk and he guesses it weighed approx 450 lbs. not too much you can do with them when they are that big. We still have a lot a hog activity they have started tearing up the red top that we planted.

 

[Conagher]

ILB - Was the "virus" identified? I would like to know more about it if you have any information.

ALACOWMAN - That was my initial thought as well, it's just that I did not see any obvious signs of damage. But I guess it could have been internal damage.

Thanks!

 

[milesvb]

milesvb....
I'm not sure how much to sell it for... I'm still working on the patent for it......
the ranch hand just called and said he capped a boar yesterday while filling the feeders that had 7 inch tusk and he guesses it weighed approx 450 lbs. not too much you can do with them when they are that big. We still have a lot a hog activity they have started tearing up the red top that we planted.

At least he managed to catch up with him. My neighbor and I have been after the same boar hog for 3 months. Between the neighbor's corn patch and my coastal patch that rascal has done an amazing amount of damage. He's even eluded a pack of hog dogs several times so far. I'm starting to think he's some sort of evil spirit :help:

 

[Beefy]

wild hogs are pretty skittish and sensitive to noise. i think it would have gotten out of the way of machinery if it could. i'd say something else was wrong with it.

 

[Jake]

milesvb....
I'm not sure how much to sell it for... I'm still working on the patent for it......
the ranch hand just called and said he capped a boar yesterday while filling the feeders that had 7 inch tusk and he guesses it weighed approx 450 lbs. not too much you can do with them when they are that big. We still have a lot a hog activity they have started tearing up the red top that we planted.

Grind him up and mix with deer and hamburger. 1/3 of each makes some DANG good eats! let the rest lay as ditch filler somwhere

 

[samm]

the winter before last, the hogs tore up all kinda of dirt, and this was in town....this past winter, we didnt have any damage at all...dont know if they moved on, or died out....i was just glad they left....

 

[dj]

Most directly, whether it be a 300-400 lb. boar with 4 inch tusks, or a sow with pigs, these animals are formidable and will attack people. More than one hunter has been treed by aggressive sows who sense that their piglets are in danger. People are also at risk from these animals that are infected with swine brucellosis. This disease has been found in wild pigs in ten states and is known as undulant fever in humans. It can be contracted through handling infected tissues of wild pigs.

If you want to read the entire article

http://mdc.mo.gov/landown/wild/nuisance/hogs/threat/

 

[sidney411]

I would say some sort of injury. Hogs around here are skittish of humans and dogs but not so much with machinery. I saw a pack of hogs cross the hay field the other weekend as we were bailing hay in the middle of the day. They were just moising along, in no hurry at all. I swear thay have some sort of 6th sense that tells them when you don't have a gun! I could have shot them all 100 times over, darn the luck. I have also seen hogs broke down in the back end haul them selves quite a distance faster then you would think possible with just their front legs. Just because there was no tree where you found him doesn't mean he just didn't wear out where he layed. It could have been he was shot previously and made it that far. I would say it was a good decision to not eat him though - you never know what might be wrong. BEtter safe then sorry.

 

[ctlbaron]

I wouldn't mess up good venison with wild hog meat. Smells like a sweatty rag cooking. Wild onions I guess.