pig hunting

[Mescalero]

Seems we have some feral pigs up in our area, and some less fortunate folks who could use some meat.
I have never done this before, any tips on field dressing, etc.
Things to avoid?

[RIHMFIRE]

I dont bother field dressing feral hogs unless we plan to BBQ the entire side...
I usually just remove the hind quarters and the front shoulders and pull out the
back strap from the top of the neck right down to the tail....and if its a decent size
I'll pull the tenderlions....

[Old Savage]

The boys around here tend to have quite a bit made into sausage. Some of the best BBQ ribs I have had came from one and of course the obvious good parts. Hope you have a great Christmas there Mescalero and don't forget Festivus and the Feats of Strength begin today.

[Mike Rintoul]

You don't have to gut them unless you're taking them a long ways before being able to cut them up. Split it down the back and remove backstraps. Extend cut down legs and circle shoulder blade to remove front. Repeat on back but find the hip ball joint and seperate. You need a saw to cut the pelvic extension to divide the two halves. I recommend elbow length gloves and thorough washing or meat and yourself due to a variety to swine carried unfriendlys. Good luck!

[RKrodle]

You don't have to gut them unless you're taking them a long ways before being able to cut them up. Split it down the back and remove backstraps. Extend cut down legs and circle shoulder blade to remove front. Repeat on back but find the hip ball joint and seperate. You need a saw to cut the pelvic extension to divide the two halves. I recommend elbow length gloves and thorough washing or meat and yourself due to a variety to swine carried unfriendlys. Good luck!

Agreed, especially the long gloves. A lot of outdoor type stores carry them now, or go to a farm/ranch store and but some pregnancy testing gloves that you use on cows. They're the same thing and cheaper at the farm/ranch store. Hogs carry blood born diseases such as bangs (brucellosis).

[TedH]

The boys around here tend to have quite a bit made into sausage. Some of the best BBQ ribs I have had came from one and of course the obvious good parts. Hope you have a great Christmas there Mescalero and don't forget Festivus and the Feats of Strength begin today.

I thought we started with the Airing of Grievences?

[Old Savage]

You may very well be right But in some groups the would end the holiday right there. I will have a paralegal research the proper procedure.

[Hobie]

I've seen a lot of techniques. I think Mike's is probably best. Then I saw this... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJy5SWpeqWU

[stew71]

Seems we have some feral pigs up in our area, and some less fortunate folks who could use some meat.
I have never done this before, any tips on field dressing, etc.
Things to avoid?

If possible, find out what what these pigs are eating. Acorns, grubs, feed, etc...you're good to go. But sometimes they dig through trash piles and chow down on rotten food, dead animal carcasses and such. Those are nasty. Believe me, it makes a difference.

Try to pick off a nice sow, preferably one without any piglets. I've found the barren sows to taste better for some reason. No idea why...maybe it's just me. (?) Also, go for a head shot, if possible. I lost a lot of good meat on the one sow I collected with a shoulder hit.

Once you dress it out, take a deep sniff from the body cavity. If it smells like fresh pork (as from a market), you're good to go. If you get a whiff of something nasty, you may have punctured the bladder or lower intestine. Make sure to wash that stuff out. Also, once you have the carcass back at camp or home, skin it to get it cooled down ASAP to hasten any spoilage. Or skin it in the field and use a game bag.

I sprinkle some black pepper on the game bag and inside the body cavity to help keep flies at bay.

Ditto goes for wearing good quality grippy rubber/latex gloves. Keep your knife as sharp as possible. I find my Buck Hunter 110 folder is perfect for the job.

[JReed]

I have found the easiest way to skin them is using a sharp knife cut the skin in to 3" wide strips from bow to stern grab the strips with vice grip pliers and pull. As far as parting it out the others covered it.

Oh the heart is low and forward in the chest. Standard deer type bullet placement will get the lungs but usually misses the heart. If you want them to drop fast put one threw the head.

[Mescalero]

That is the plan Jerry, where is proper brain placement?
Thanks for the tips to all.
OS is on a roll again.

[RKrodle]

Here's some info on hog anatomy from texasboars.com website. It's fairly graphic for those who don't like that kind of thing. It's a good website for all things hog hunting related.

http://www.texasboars.com/anatomy.html
And this next one shows why I don't take head shots.
http://www.texasboars.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=19765

[John in MS]

Watching that video, and knowing the diseases that wild hogs carry, I really cringed when
he was bracing the carcass with his leg, and cutting TOWARD his leg with the Sawzall!!!


He is in for a real treat if he nails himself when cleaning a hog -- and loved the
casual bare-handedness of it all.

Wildlife biologists where I work take frequent blood samples, etc. from the hogs we
eradicate. The one I spoke to said he never wears gloves when handling deer, but will
NOT handle a hog without them...

John

[Mescalero]

Wow!

[Hobie]

Watching that video, and knowing the diseases that wild hogs carry, I really cringed when
he was bracing the carcass with his leg, and cutting TOWARD his leg with the Sawzall!!!


He is in for a real treat if he nails himself when cleaning a hog -- and loved the
casual bare-handedness of it all.

Wildlife biologists where I work take frequent blood samples, etc. from the hogs we
eradicate. The one I spoke to said he never wears gloves when handling deer, but will
NOT handle a hog without them...

John

I wondered who would be the first to mention that!

We used to do it all bare-handed. Didn't know better. I wear rubber gloves with deer now.

[Wrangler John]

When I contracted with a pig trapper none of the meat could be given away to charity, or the Men's Correctional Facility, for human consumption because it wasn't USDA inspected and stamped. It had to be inspected at time of slaughter to be legal. A hunter could consume his own kill personally, but it couldn't be given away or sold if taken on a hunting license. All the pigs went to a rendering plant. I suggest being careful due to liability if anyone becomes ill from eating the meat.

[Lawyer Daggit]

I always look at liver and kidneys to see that they look healthy. These dudes eat a lot of rubbish, and unless very young, can be mighty unhealthy.

[twobit]

Lawyer Dugat wrote:

I always look at liver and kidneys to see that they look healthy. These dudes eat a lot of rubbish, and unless very young, can be mighty unhealthy

Wild pigs/hogs are for the most part herbivors, plant eaters, in the wild. Pretty much just like a white tail we all love to eat. They will supplement this a handfull of grasshoppers in the summer, and on my place cicada larvae during late June as they come to the surface and mutate into the noisey tree dwelling adult stage. Hogs are also prone to an egg breakfast of ground dwelling birds like quail and turkeys for sure. And, I am absolutely certain that they will dine on frog legs and the rest of the little guys when they get the chance as I have watched them do it from a tree stand. He never did get to digest them though! A little 2 oz graphite arrow cut him short! But as far as them eating a lot of rubish I would argue that might tend to be the cousins living on the edge of "civilization in third world countries' instead of the common outdoor guys here in Texas.

I love to hunt hogs. I do it mostly with a bow and arrow. You do not need a cannon to kill them you just ahve to know how to shoot. A little 50 or 55 grain V Max .22-250 put at the base of the ear will drop a 200 pound hog stone dead. I know I have done it numerous times. What gets me is all the hype, hoopla, and bad information about people chasing, armor plated, need a 300 Win Mag, bad smelling, and bad tasting animals they are.

I am not here to say they need to replace the national emblem but as a game animal they deserve a bit more respect and knowledge from the hunting community.

Michael

[Mescalero]

Could you elaborate on that head shot?

[stew71]

Could you elaborate on that head shot?

I took 2 pigs last year with head shots. The first one was with a 30-30 at about 60 yards on a trotting sow. Placed the crosshairs on her snout and the round took her right below the eye. DRT. This was with a Marlin 336 shooting the Hornady LeverEvolution round.

The second one was on a running boar at about 75 - 80 yards with a 30-06. Same situation. Gave him a slight lead by placing the crosshairs on the snout. Bullet exited the other side of the head and put him down for the count. No meat wasted in either case. This load was one of those lead-free all-copper 165gr bullets from Barnes. Very accurate in my Remington 700.

[Mescalero]

Thank you.

[Markbo]

From right in front and their heada up, literally right between the eyes. With the head down/feeding you have to adjust up some, roucghly half way between the eyes and top of the head. From the side, aim right in the ear hole. Their brains are surprisingly small, but I have never lost one shot in the head. Even if you miss the brain, it will knock them completely silly and you will have time for a second shot. Not so with a missed heart or even a direct heart shot.

[86er]