NON-LETHAL
CONTROL
METHODS
HERE PIGGY PIGGY
Effective fencing is one method of eliminating wild pig damage and reducing economic impact on valuable agricultural land or where other control techniques are not possible.
For exclusion fences for hogs and wild pigs to be successful, the fences need to be made of special high tensile wire installed in a way that leverages the strength of the wire with strong structural members at corners, gates and terminal points.
Trap materials and construction techniques must be able to withstand the forces exerted by captive animals. Jump bars can increase effectiveness at keeping pigs from escaping from rectangular cage traps.
Interest is strong in developing contraceptives capable of limiting wild pig populations over time. Some studies have shown injections of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) to be effective in captive wild pigs. Results of GnRH injections included reduced ovary and testis weight, reduced levels of testosterone and progesterone, and reduced pregnancy rates in treated pigs when compared to controls.
Excluding wild pigs with wire mesh fencing, electric fencing, or a combination of both can be an effective control measure. While few fence designs completely exclude pigs from an area, many fences can restrict pig movements. Though fences may restrict pig movements, they can be expensive to install. Sturdy wire mesh fencing, particularly with the addition of an electrified wire about 6 to 8 inches off the ground, seems to be the most effective fence design to exclude wild pigs.
POPULAR NON-LETHAL
FERAL HOG CONTROLS
TRAPPING
Dispatching after trapping is the most popular method of lethal control for wild pigs. There are a wide range of trap designs for wild pigs, but they generally fall under two categories; box traps and corral traps.
NIGHTHUNTING
Wild pigs are generally active at dusk and dawn, but human activity and climatic conditions may cause them to exhibit nocturnal feeding behaviors across portions of their range. In these areas it may be most efficient for hunters to shoot pigs at night under the cover of darkness.
RECREATIONAL HUNTING
Texas allows hunters to kill wild hogs year-round without limits or capture them alive to take to slaughterhouses to be processed and sold to restaurants as exotic meat.
AERIAL HUNTING
Shooting wild pigs while flying in fixed wing or rotary aircrafts is often referred to as aerial gunning. Aerial gunning is a highly effective means of quickly reducing wild pig populations in areas with large expanses of sparse canopy cover and high densities of wild pigs.
HUNTING
FERAL HOGS
IN TEXAS
