Feral hog, Wild boar hunting
Hunting through the use of spears and other tools used to be the
ancient man's primary way of sourcing food. Today, hunting is
still very much alive in the modern society, although it is
being for various reasons.
One of the top hunting targets for men is the wild boar, a known
ancestor of domestic pigs although they look different. Boars
are classified as feral hogs, Russian wild boar or hybrids, a
mixture of the first two kinds. Boars are called full bloods if
they are pure wild boars and standard if they are a result of
breeding domestic pigs and pure wild boars.
Feral hogs are hogs that have escaped domestication and became
wild. The free roam farming, or the practice of branding hogs
and releasing them into the open to roam free and breed, is said
to be responsible for the existence of feral hogs today.
Feral hogs can be found in nine States, with the largest
population found in Texas. Texas and other States consider hogs
as nuisance animals so hunting rules are very lenient. In fact,
hunters are allowed to hunt feral hogs using any kind of weapon
or bait, at any time of the day. True Russian boars are said to
exist only in Texas and New Hampshire.
The increasing population of feral boars is attributed to their
ability to reproduce fast, the practice of free ranging
husbandry methods and the existence of more water in arid areas.
These boars can produce four to six litters depending on their
breed and the availability of food in their area.
A hunter's success in hunting boars using rifle will depend on
the population of the wild boars, the hunter's knowledge of the
behavioral patterns of wild hogs, and the use of the right kind
of rifle.
Feral hogs have keen eye sights and they have a very good sense
of smell and hearing. A fully mature feral hog can weigh from
200 to 700 pounds while a wild boar or the Russian boar can
weigh up to 400 pounds.
Wild boar hunters should consider the kind of gun they are going
to use, the gun caliber, the load of the gun which should match
their hunting style, the terrain where they expect to encounter
the hogs and the range between them and the boars.