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A Plague of Pigs in Texas
Smithsonian Magazine ^ | January 2011 | John Morthland

Posted on 01/01/2011 2:49:31 PM PST by EveningStar

About 50 miles east of Waco, Texas, a 70-acre field is cratered with holes up to five feet wide and three feet deep. The roots below a huge oak tree shading a creek have been dug out and exposed. Grass has been trampled into paths. Where the grass has been stripped, saplings crowd out the pecan trees that provide food for deer, opossums and other wildlife. A farmer wanting to cut his hay could barely run a tractor through here. There’s no mistaking what has happened—this field has gone to the hogs.

(Excerpt) Read more at smithsonianmag.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; News/Current Events; US: Texas
KEYWORDS: texas; wildhogs; wildpigs
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To: cfrels

Difference is that whitetail generally just destroy vegetation, they don’t try to kill you.

Actually, the meat of a healthy feral hog is quite good, but the key word is “healthy.” They do carry disease, and the old boars are nasty, nasty creatures.

The state is putting some aggressive programs in place. No bounties, yet, that I know of, but that may be coming. This fall the Texas Dept. of Ag sponsored a contest among counties with cash reward for the one with the most kills. And the state is offering trained trappers for private property owners who join together to offer access.


61 posted on 01/01/2011 5:47:51 PM PST by Jedidah
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To: cfrels

Difference is that whitetail generally just destroy vegetation, they don’t try to kill you.

Actually, the meat of a healthy feral hog is quite good, but the key word is “healthy.” They do carry disease, and the old boars are nasty, nasty creatures.

The state is putting some aggressive programs in place. No bounties, yet, that I know of, but that may be coming. This fall the Texas Dept. of Ag sponsored a contest among counties with cash reward for the one with the most kills. And the state is offering trained trappers for private property owners who join together to offer access.


62 posted on 01/01/2011 5:48:02 PM PST by Jedidah
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To: dfwgator
Yep Pasedena won't be the same with all them horned frogs loose out there.


63 posted on 01/01/2011 5:48:59 PM PST by deport
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To: Ditter
His wife cooked it. They threw it out because the smell was so sickening they couldn’t eat it.

You gotta' take the guts out first.

64 posted on 01/01/2011 5:50:00 PM PST by muleskinner
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To: Bellflower

It is possible, and that’s what the pros do. They’ll build a pen surrounding the feed with easy access, then wait to close it some night when the pigs get comfortable and aren’t expecting it.


65 posted on 01/01/2011 5:51:49 PM PST by Jedidah
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To: Ditter

“My husband took our neighbor hunting and he killed a wild hog. His wife cooked it. They threw it out because the smell was so sickening they couldn’t eat it. She recently got a new oven and said the smell finally left the house when they carried the old oven out. I don’t even want my dogs to eat anything that stinky.”

As I understand it, the meat runs good or bad, and the experienced (say a guide/outfitter) know what’s up when the pig is skinned.

Hell, shoot a bunch and keep the good stuff.


66 posted on 01/01/2011 5:53:13 PM PST by 4buttons
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To: Bellflower
October 2010 was "Hog Out Month - Get the Hog Outta Texas!" however I don't know who won or the statewide results.

"Get the Hog Outta Texas" month will feature a challenge among Texas counties that will run until October 31. The county that documents the most hogs removed during the month will get a $25,000 grant toward what the Texas Department of Agriculture terms "feral hog abatement technologies."

67 posted on 01/01/2011 5:53:18 PM PST by deport
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To: deport

It’s hard to take TCU seriously with that silly name for a mascot.

Real Texans know they’re horny toads.


68 posted on 01/01/2011 5:55:03 PM PST by Jedidah
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To: 4buttons; Ditter

My son says the trick is to smell the fresh meat. If it smells like apple, it’s good. Otherwise, toss it.


69 posted on 01/01/2011 5:56:51 PM PST by Jedidah
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To: deport

Maybe the foxes can help thin the hog population.


70 posted on 01/01/2011 5:58:02 PM PST by deport
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To: The Comedian

Bacon?

The fat picks up the taste of what they have been eating.

Most of the time the fat, like you would have on bacon, taste like a hand full of acorns.


71 posted on 01/01/2011 5:58:12 PM PST by IMR 4350
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To: Jedidah

Shhhhhsh.... Don’t let the toad outta the bag....


72 posted on 01/01/2011 5:59:29 PM PST by deport
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To: muleskinner

LOL! This hog was pretty big 350 to 400 pounds, I don’t think it would all fit in an oven.


73 posted on 01/01/2011 6:01:12 PM PST by Ditter
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To: Jedidah

That sounds like a good suggestion.


74 posted on 01/01/2011 6:03:07 PM PST by Ditter
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To: yefragetuwrabrumuy
I'm related to Al Gore. I'm a Freeper.
75 posted on 01/01/2011 6:09:42 PM PST by GAB-1955 (I write books, love my wife, serve my nation, and believe in the Resurrection.)
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To: Ditter

Gotta trim ALL the fat off. That’s what makes it stink and taste bad.


76 posted on 01/01/2011 6:10:05 PM PST by IMR 4350
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To: FlyVet
I think all game animals get pretty smart about that. I used to have my best luck with rabbits hunting right along the outside of the state park boundaries, where they were relatively easy to approach. And everyone knows how docile the wild ducks act, when they are on a pond where they can't be hunted.

F.E. Warren AFB has a substantial antelope herd. The population explodes at the start of the hunting season. While on base, they're pretty relaxed. I walked through the middle of the herd from the Ops building to the BX during my lunch break several times. They stayed just out of reach, but weren't "spooked."

77 posted on 01/01/2011 6:21:57 PM PST by Grizzled Bear ("Does not play well with others.")
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To: Hot Tabasco
Here in Michigan I guess a bunch escaped from an exotic game ranch a number of years ago...

THAT explains Governor Granholm and Senetor Stabinaw!

78 posted on 01/01/2011 6:24:32 PM PST by Grizzled Bear ("Does not play well with others.")
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To: Jedidah

“wrapped in a thick layer of cartilege that bullets often don’t pierce”

These work just fine:

http://www.cabelas.com/rifle-ammunition-barnes-vor-tx-8482-rifle-ammunition-1.shtml


79 posted on 01/01/2011 6:24:51 PM PST by SVTCobra03 (You can never have enough friends, horsepower or ammunition.)
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To: EveningStar

New Year’s Day = Pork feast


80 posted on 01/01/2011 6:29:28 PM PST by Cvengr (Adversity in life and death is inevitable. Thru faith in Christ, stress is optional.)
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