OK, I don't get it. Please explain.

[cabledad]

I have simular problems with a piece of land(1700 acres) I owned in Mountain Home,Texas. I had too many deer on the place and needed to kill off 40 does and all the spikes by the biologists  recommendations. I let lots of people hunt free I had them shoot on to neighbors land,on the road going out, after it was all over I never got a written thank you note. I got invited hunting on 3 different places after I got rid of the ranch.I even had a priest kill a very young 9 point buck instead of a doe or spike,he said he would never see that good of a deer again.He won't on my place. People are tough to deal with.And I want another ranch so bad. Chuck

[Dixie Dude]

Hogs are legal year round in Alabama.  Here are the problems:
 
1) There are not enough hog only processors.  State doesn't allow processing of Deer and Hog together.  Hogs carry tricinosis.
2) Because hog meat spoils quickly, most people only want to hunt them in winter when it is cold enough to either process themselves, or be able to transport to a processor.  Nearest processor from where I hunt is about 60 miles. 
3) Hogs are generally heavier than deer unless you get small half grown ones, which are actually better eating. 
4) Can't hunt hogs during stalk deer hunting times and during spring turkey hunting times. 
5) Coyotes are legal year round also.
 
So in Alabama, the best fishing times are in February and March.  Turkey season is from late March through April.  May to September is good fishing at night, evenings and mornings.  Dove is in September.  Bow season starts in October as well as small game.  Gun Deer season goes from mid November to the end of January.  February is also rabbit and quail, but is good for hogs.  Just so much a person can do, and if he has a spring-summer Garden.  Also football season is in the fall, and in Alabama it is either Alabama or Auburn.   
 
 

[mechanic]

Land Owner, it's been too many years now.  The old man has passed, and the land broken up.  Instead of wheat or soybeans it grows dog fennel and scrub.  I hate to pass it, because it was one of those places people stop  to take a picture of while he was alive.
 
I probably could have still hunted there, but I was so peeved I didn't pursue the matter.  Picture a truck driving corner wise across a ripe wheat field, spinning his wheels.  There was a road around to the back.  It was just stupid, and he was ONCE my friend.  I don't deal well with stupid.
 
 
I'll be fine on that small tract this year, as it is surrounded by much larger tracts.  I've begun clearing some shooting lanes, and had the tractor up last week and 'hogged the road.  Lots of sign, even as hot as it is.  I almost ran over a flock of turkeys, who seemed in no hurry to cross.....I'm looking forward to it.
 
Ben
 
Ben

[swordfish]

Dang Richard, sorry to hear bout the poachers on your land.
Some people have no common sense. I had a great time when we went, nice land.
There are a few WMA's I go to down towards me, if you want to join me during "small game" season. Lots of hog sign but it get pretty wet in areas.

[Land_Owner]

Stewart...you'll get the free ride when the hogs return.  You're a good man and I will gladly give you a key.  No reason to drive up here yet though.  No hogs!  I will let you know when...that was good sipping scotch don't you know.)  And I kept the Memo with the "Guidelines". 

Guidelines?  Guidelines!  We ain't got no stinkin' Guidelines!  Get the truck in.  Fill it with hogs.  Get the truck out again.  It is darn wet in there and chewed up.  Those are the Guidelines.  And they are hogs we're shooting - sows and boars.  They don't offer any quarter, we don't give any...provided they participate.  No guarantees.

Shoot them with 22LR and up.  Or bow hunt 'em.

Take any and all you want.  If you shoot but don't want them (any or all), they will go in the house freezer.  Spouse says I can continue to hunt provided: 1.) the freezer isn't full; 2.) I eat those I kill; 3.) nothing goes to waste.  The less fortunate are the recipients when the freezer is filling up.

This Saturday would be good if it is good for you.  All day?  Daylight to Dark?  Daylight to Noon?  Mid-morning to Dusk?  Whenever you get on stand until you have three or four on the ground?  Let me know your thinking.  I am an early riser and would rather hunt than eat (but I do like to eat).

I appreciate quid pro quo (more-or-less equal exchange or substitution of goods or services) from the locals that hunt with me and on their own.  My hunting partner, at 73 years young, has COPD and cannot walk more than 25 yards without suffering a lack of fundamental oxygen  Like going from Sea Level to over 10,000-feet instantaneously and starved for oxygen.  He is my eternal friend and hunting partner, but I get Supervision only from him.  Very little output like driving the golf cart while I spray, seed, or cover a food plot.
 
So food plotting, bush hogging, discing, purchasing all of the materials, fuels, supplies and maintenance myself...is tedious in a year-in-year-out old man sort of way.  I thoroughly enjoy the exercise and the game I take but the hot weather and the work take their toll on me too.  It is so much more satisfying when I have been a large part of the process and not just the one behind the trigger.

[mannyrock]

 
   When I had my place, I never let anybody hunt unless I was with him. I had four good stands.  I always gave him the choice of which stand to take.  Once he was in it, he was not allowed to get down and walk around.  I took another stand.
 
  I made it clear that if he shot a deer, then he could get down to stretch his legs only, but that he could not leave the base of the tree and he had to wait there for me.  I would then show up, and we would find the deer together (if it was not already down.)
 
  I never had any problem whatsoever with a guest, and I never heard a single complaint about the rules.  They were all close acquaintences from the city or suburbs, and were overjoyed that I let them hunt with me.  Many took a deer.
 
  The biggest mistake is to let someone hunt on your land in their own dumb-ass pickup truck, four wheeler or other vehicle.  You are begging for a problem,  because the prospect of cruising around in it, exploring in it, or doing something stupid with it, is just too irresistable for them.
 
  Just my experience.
 
Mannyrock
 
 

[SHOOTALL]

Don't take this wrong but it depends on who you let hunt. Alot of folks are just like manny posted outhers aren't . I get to hunt several places with out the owner present and would not think of abusing the land . Respect is the word.

[mannyrock]

 
   A common problem for city and suburban folks, even those who try to be careful and respectful, is how to know when a dirt or other farm road is just too wet or muddy to drive on.   They have almost no experience with this.
 
    And there they are, in their super-charged 4-wheel drive pickup trucks which, according to the commercials, can drive through swamps, and push through 4 feet of mud, and climb up mountains made of cinderblocks.  They honestly believe it.
 
  So, they just put her in  4 wheel low, and go. 
 
  We all know the results: a massively torn up road, with eight-inch deep ruts going all over the place, ending in a pig-pen where the truck, stuck in the mud, wallowed back and forth, and around and around, digging up the road and everything around it, trying to turn around and get out.
 
   This is a tragedy for the the landowner, as he now has to pay to scrape and rebuild the road.
 
  Again, I avoided this by just refusing to let guests drive onto the land.  I made them park up front.
 
    If you are not going to be there, then tell them they have to park up front and WALK in.  If they are too darned lazy to walk a mile or so into some nice land to hunt, then they don't deserve to hunt at all.
 
     If they are worried about dragging out the animal, then tell them they have to bring a mechanical mule (a small frame on fat bicycle tires, to carry out the animal.)  Or, buy one yourself and leave it chained to a convenient tree on your property with a combination lock, for them to use.
 
    If they don't like it, tough beans. No hunting.
 
Mannyr
 
 

[SHOOTALL]

I guess around here you get judged by your own actions not what commericals claim. The land owners here have to know ya well before turnning ya loose . Here the rule is wet road don't drive on it simple really. Take trash out . Don't leave gut piles where they will cause a stink or be seen . I guess it boils down to the cal. of people you hunt with .

[His lordship.]

One idea to get around the problems is to organize as a group.  I had read years ago that the state of Illinois had a registry of land owners who would allow people to deer hunt on their land, and people who wanted to go after white tails on private property. 


This was a win-win deal as you could contact and accept/or refuse other interested parties.  The land owners even got to rent out extra rooms, serve meals and pocket the profits instead of having Mr. Hunter stay at a Motel.  You eliminated driving around wasting gas and asking the property owners.


I saw an article in the free Texas hunting newspaper that is passed out at gun shops in Central Texas of an event to eliminate feral hogs in East Texas recently.  It was advertised and people showed up.  This way the land available can be checked out, the hunters screened and kept an eye on them to avoid trouble.  The pork was given to a food shelf.  Unfortunately, I did not keep that newspaper with the details.


The state of Texas or other game groups could setup an event, charge a small fee to pay for advertising, personnel, etc.  Have a group of hunters work a county area and clean out destructive oinkers.  The food shelf could get some free food, the hunters could get a small tasty pig to take home, and the land owner would get his land cleansed by people who are chaperoned.


Just a thought.   

[ratdog]

land owner sad to here you had problem with outsider's i had the same problem with some land i bought.i have seen what people are doing to are public and gov lands. they won't be on mine.

[Land_Owner]

The State is considering opening up the adjacent lands to the Public.  Not yet, but one day I think.  When/if that happens, my small parcel will become a hazardous place due to hunters over there and a hazard to them due to hunters on mine.  I don't want to shoot anyone and I don't want to be shot by someone.  I suppose I will worry about that day when/if it comes.  Maybe even find some great places to hunt over there myself :-)

[markc]

I've found, over the years, that a number of small Texas towns sponsor hunts that are open to the public on occassion for feral hogs, kinda like Chris. D. said.  The Texas wildlife association might be a good place to look for hunts like that, for those in or close to Texas.  Uvalde & I believe Hondo Tx as well as Ozona have held public hunts for hogs in the past. Some of these were bow hunts only, but they included a dinner and prizes for hogs taken if I recall.  Never been on one of these, but have seen the banners up while passing through town.

[BBF]

Hogs are legal year round in Alabama.  Here are the problems:
 
1) There are not enough hog only processors.  State doesn't allow processing of Deer and Hog together.  Hogs carry tricinosis.
2) Because hog meat spoils quickly, most people only want to hunt them in winter when it is cold enough to either process themselves, or be able to transport to a processor.  Nearest processor from where I hunt is about 60 miles. 
3) Hogs are generally heavier than deer unless you get small half grown ones, which are actually better eating. 
4) Can't hunt hogs during stalk deer hunting times and during spring turkey hunting times. 
5) Coyotes are legal year round also.
 
So in Alabama, the best fishing times are in February and March.  Turkey season is from late March through April.  May to September is good fishing at night, evenings and mornings.  Dove is in September.  Bow season starts in October as well as small game.  Gun Deer season goes from mid November to the end of January.  February is also rabbit and quail, but is good for hogs.  Just so much a person can do, and if he has a spring-summer Garden.  Also football season is in the fall, and in Alabama it is either Alabama or Auburn.   

 
Your problem is easily fixed.  Your State needs to add several more months to the year.

[mdwest]

Until just 4 years ago, I had a 40 acre farm in West Tennessee, in Fayette County.  This  is one of the most rural counties in all of Tennessee

Ive got to disagree with you here manny..
 
Fayette County borders shelby county.. the most populated county in the state (Memphis.. with a metro population of about 1.3M people).. and is only 30 or so miles from Jackson, TN (another 70,000 people).. Fayette county itself has almost 40K people in it.. and the most heavily traveled interstate in the US passes right through northern half of the county (Interstate 40).. there several heavily traveled national and state highways that cut the county up as well (Hwy 70, Hwy 64, Hwy 51, etc..)
 
There are small parts of Fayette county that are still fairly rural.. but the west half of the county is just another suburb of the city of memphis now... and the east half is growing very fast..
 
There is still a decent deer population in Fayette county.. but the population there isnt nearly as good as it is in other parts of the state.. and while hogs can/will live just about anywhere they can find food.. Fayette county isnt an ideal habitat for them.. too many people.. too much concrete and steel.. too many highways, interstates, etc.. (same reasons its not ideal for deer..)
 
move east just one county to Hardeman county..where it truely is rural (total population of about 25K, no interstates, minimal highway traffic, largest town only has about 5500 residents, etc..).. and they are slaying BIG hogs all the time.. My father in laws friends killed two 300+ pounders just last month on a night hunt..
 
 

[swordfish]

In FL they don't care very much about people being around. I see articals about them rootin up trouble all the time.
http://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2010/02/26/Wild-hogs-plague-Florida-neighborhood/UPI-37611267197823/
http://www.wptv.com/dpp/news/region_indian_river_county/pigs-go-hog-wild-on-golf-course-green
http://wildlifetrapper.com/wildlife-removal-services/wild-hog-removal/
http://www.coj.net/Departments/Environmental-and-Compliance/Animal-Care---Protective-Services/Feral-Pigs-Wild-Hogs.aspx
They are in the hood, on the courses, where ever they can find food. Can't shoot 'em in the city limits so they got a free pass.

[OldSchoolRanger]

I have simular problems with a piece of land(1700 acres) I owned in Mountain Home,Texas. I had too many deer on the place and needed to kill off 40 does and all the spikes by the biologists  recommendations. I let lots of people hunt free I had them shoot on to neighbors land,on the road going out, after it was all over I never got a written thank you note. I got invited hunting on 3 different places after I got rid of the ranch.I even had a priest kill a very young 9 point buck instead of a doe or spike,he said he would never see that good of a deer again.He won't on my place. People are tough to deal with.And I want another ranch so bad. Chuck

cabledad - A little off topic, I was down in Mountain Home, when Clint Smith had Thunder Ranch in Texas.  The place was beautiful, and the exotic game just blew my mind away.  Hope you get a new place.  If my wife, would move, I would buy a place down there in a heart beat.

[Rock Home Isle]

Dear Guys,
 
   For the past 5 years or so, I have been seeing on the news, and reading in articles, that the feral hog population is booming in the U.S., and considered a major problem in about 35 states, particularly in the south and the west.  Over and over you see the interviews with farmers, complaining that the hogs are destroying their crops and that they just can't seem to get rid of them.
 
  So if this is the case, then why are people paying big money to go to hog ranches and game reserves, to hunt hogs in a fenced in area, whether free range or not?   Why aren't people going out just as they would in deer hunting, and hunt the farms, national forests and leased lands?   
 
  Hog hunting at these reserves and game farms isn't cheap.  It appears that the fees generally range from $500 to $1,000 for a one or two day hunt and one hog.
 
  I'm sorry.  I just don't get it.  Something just doesn't add up here.  If wild hogs are so prolific, then states like Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas and Missouri should be overrun with them, and finding a place to hunt for cheap should be easy.
 
  Regards, Mannyrock

I was watching one of those hunting programs on the Outdoor Channel...and a group was hunting hogs in south Texas. The program really emphasized the fact that the hogs down there are so desctructive that the land owners want people to come out and shoot them, the landowners were so desparate to be rid of these hogs that they were even providing guns & ammo, guides, and tree stands to hunters that will come out and shoot the hogs.
 
In the program the group was hunting on several farms for a week. They hunted from tree stands over feeders in the morning and evening; then they were using night equipment on rifles (provided by the landowner) to hunt the hogs at night. The night segments of the program weren't shown, because the video production crews didn't have the proper support equipment to capture the night video. So they told stories about the hunts and showed the results. By the end of the week the group looked like they were wiped after hunting hard all week and getting only a few hours of sleep each night; but they had harvested a lot of hogs.
 
During the program. the production crews interviewed several landowners...the landowner interviews were all very similar in their content; the hogs are destroying huge sections of their croplands; the hogs have had a huge negative impact on local game populations; be a hero and come to south Texas and kill as many hogs as you can...we will help you to be successful. It was an amazing program on hunting hogs and how destructive these animals have become in the last 20 years or so.
 
As these wild hog populations spread and become more invasive, I see this desperation becoming more and more widespread in the agricultural communities. The hunting ranches are geared towards providing hunts. But once these ranches start to loose native game populations to the increasing hog numbers and they become negatively impacted by these burgeoning hog populations, I predict that they will most likely begin promoting all inclusive hunting packages that include and emphasize hog hunts, or they may just tell their clients that if they see a hog...shoot it.  It would not surprise me to hear that these hunting businesses may even bring in professional trappers to control the hog populations on their hunting properties. Hog hunts may bring in a segment of the hunting community, but hunting native game species (whitetail, upland game, etc) are what provide the largest cut of the income pie to these businesses.
 
National Geographic did a segment on wild hogs in America and had a very interesting statistic...the program indicated that there is not enough ammo produced in the US at any one time to control the growing populations of wild hogs....interesting.

[myronman3]

the program indicated that there is not enough ammo produced in the US at any one time to control the growing populations of wild hogs

i dont believe that for a second.   you heard it on t.v.; so it must be true???  come on. 

[Rock Home Isle]

Believe it or not...it is being floated out there and touted as fact.   
 

[myronman3]

    there are lots of things floating around out there....and that doesnt make any of it true.   

[Land_Owner]

the program indicated that there is not enough ammo produced in the US at any one time to control the growing populations of wild hogs

Now THAT is a "Come on Man!" statement!  A wild and unprovable accusation.

I personally want to participate in that "experiment" to see if we COULD expend ALL of the produced ammo to eradicate a burgeoning hog population.  That would be FUN!  Melt some barrels down to be sure.

[mechanic]

There was a  time when most folks didn't pen pigs.  They just turned them out and hunted them down when time.  If they were not controllable, there would be far more of them than now.
 
When I was a boy, it was not uncommon to run up on a pig or two in the woods, but folks used them as a primary source of food, so they got killed and eaten.
 
It seems they are out of control in some areas now, but if enough people get hungry..............
 
Ben

[mdwest]

somehow we managed to hunt buffalo to a state of borderline extinction over 100 years ago, when our population was less than one third of what it is now... but we lack the ability to hunt hogs to extinction today?
 
the difference is most American families rely on grocery stores for their meats and produce these days.. and would prefer to buy their hams and pork chops as opposed to going out and harvesting them for themselves..
 
if the general public decided they didnt want to pay "Food City" for meat anymore and would prefer to go out to the woods and hunt it for themselves.. with our current population and consumptions rates, there wouldnt be a deer, pig, elk, moose, or a squirrel (or even a chipmunk for that matter) left in the woods in less than 20 years..
 
how many cartridges are manufactured in the US each year is a non issue..
 
 
 
 

[myronman3]

20 years?  i am thinking more like 20 weeks.   

[no guns here]

Problem is there is no product of monetary value on a hog comparable to the hide on a buffalo.  The meat COULD be used but isn't allowed to be sold.  If a guy could make good money on them, the hogs could be harvested into control much more quickly.  I only take a hog if I can use the meat NOW.  I don't have a big freezer, I can't afford to pay to have them butchered time after time to give away or donate.  I'd hunt much more and kill more hogs if I had something to do with them that wouldn't put me in the poor house.  I'm not going to kill them and just leave them...
 
ngh

[Land_Owner]

I'm not going to kill them and just leave them...
 
ngh

Well said...

[SHOOTALL]

Years ago people would let us hunt groundhogs. Advised us to kill-um-all. If we had we would not be hunting groundhogs today. Same with hogs no hog hunter that enjoys the sport will assist in killing them all.
 20 years ? , 20 weeks ? 20 days of hard hunting and it would be over. Ammo on hand would most likely sufice. Consider if everyone who owned a 30-30 had 40 rounds on hand , winchester owners alone would account for over 24 million rounds. What black gun guy is around with out several hundred rounds .
 
MY THOUGHT WOULD BE HOW MANY SHOOTERS WOULD DIE WITH THAT KIND OF HUNTING GOING ON ALL AT ONE TIME ?

[mcwoodduck]

I think Land owner has your answer as to why it cost so much to hunt.
1) if it were free everyone and their brother would be there and cause problems.
2) you have taxes to pay and if someone is willing to pay $400 to 1,000 to hunt a hog then that is what the market will bear and it helps pay the taxes.
3) in most cases you are going to have a guide.  If not to help to protect the place and keep you from doing something stupid on their land.  Driving off road, bothering livestock, thinking of turning your pig tank into a bovine tag (they taste just like beef  ) keep you from cutting fences, and to keep you on their land and out of the way of other hunters using the land.  The guide is going to cost $.  would you put up with some of us for a day, gut a hog, skinn it and help drag it out or to the truck for free, not to mention the mud and blood in your truck?  Oh and the insurance.  If one of these hunters hurt themselves you could be sued.  Remember NJ has the most toxic waste dumps and CA has the most lawyers.  Only cause NJ got first pick.  And those lawyers are looking to get paid.

[evidrine]

Most places down south are either leased or privately owned. Everything from farm land, marsh, logging lands, etc. You can either buy land (if you have the money), lease land (if your lucky enough to find a piece available), join a club ( again if availabe and affordable), or hunt public lands (witch arent as big as other states, not to mention dealing with the public). For some people paying to take a hog is the only option available. Less hassle, enjoyable time, and usually a guaranteed kill. Sure it costs money, but compared to club dues, lease fees, management upkeep, regular travel costs, its not much difference. Sometimes ever cheaper. Not to mention that its just plain convenient.