You're funny benny.

So because i dont know how a hunting ranch operates my thoughts on a right and wrong way to kill something are totally bogus? I realize hogs are a PITA and hate them myself, i just feel that ALL game are owed a some level of respect and as humane a death as possible.

I can tell this topic has you a little fired up, if i were a paying customer and said something about this while hunting with you would you act the same way? With all the passive agressiveness and self defense?

Its an opinion, its not like i am guarding a gate you want in and basing your entrance off of your actions, simmer down.

So people are lazy for not cleaning an animal they have no desire to eat? I guess I will clean the next one and still leave it laying in the field. Will I be considered lazy then? And you are correct I have shot dogs before but not for the fun of it. I love dogs. I have plenty of respect for life , just none for stupidity.

Hogs are not game. Hit them where you can and let mother nature sort out the rest.

Thank you sir, my exact sentiments.

Wow!

Saying someone who would shoot a hog and leave it has no respect for life and would probably do it to a dog is a bit of a leap isn’t it? That might be where the “holier than thou” thing came from.
I sometimes leave the hogs I shoot for the yotes and buzzards myself, so if you want to judge me for it, get after it. BTW, I’m far from lazy and I won’t make any excuses. I either want the meat from any given hog or I don’t. It’s that simple.
The owner of the land I hunt hogs on wants them dead, period. She is tired of dealing with the destruction these animals dish out. If my freezer is full and I don’t have anyone that wants the meat, they get dumped in the brush. Have you thought about what the hog population would be if people only killed them when they wanted to butcher them?
They’re a nuisance, plain and simple. The only way hunters can ever do anything to help the problem is to kill every one they can. This means lots of hogs are going to be fed to the other predators and scavengers. I don’t like intentionally gut shooting them, and I try to make a clean killing shot on every one I kill.

If they smell strong leave em lay, if not I clean em and quarter on ice, if freezer is stocked then have several folks who arent able to hunt that will take em.

We generally take the straps and hams off the smaller ones and sows. Tried to smoke a big boar once and almost never got the smell out of the pit.

That said, controlling an overpopulation is a necessary evil, so I have no issue with leaving a full grown boar dead in the field. I do want to know he's dead.

we leave all our hogs in the field. Maybe their comrads will get the hint!

While I can see how this got to this point, maybe we should step back. Do you put out poison for rats? Poison makes things suffer. Me? I'd rather shoot them with an air rifle, but that makes no real impact on populations. Farmers and ranchers see hogs like rats or even roaches. I do my best to not run things over in a car. Why? Because I'd rather shoot them. Does that make sense? Maybe not to you. I try not to make or let anything suffer, but I'd gut shoot a field rat if that's my only shot. My job, and yours, isn't to be holy or perfect, just to do our best.

I'm not above running them over.

Kill them however you possibly can. I tend to wait for the sows with piglets and shoot her. I'll shoot a sow before a boar. If the sows are gone what's the boar going to breed? Just my opinion.

The way I look at it, the wild hog is a resource. That said, it is something that needs to be thoroughly inspected prior to consumption. If you have evidence of swine pest, or trichinosis in your area, then you may want to consider leaving them or just disposing of the carcass by burial.

Even if people don't like wild meats, and I don't know why they wouldn't, you can possibly get them to a processor that works with a shelter to provide meat for their tables. A good hog can feed a lot of people; find the right cook and he can make a ton of pulled pork bbq.

I am hearing talk about managing wildlife and getting rid of predators and hunting from the air and mass hog populations, but I am not seeing any links to these hunting ranches. How about posting links so we can get in touch and book hunt, whether it be for hogs and varmints or one of the record deer you are breeding.

I don't believe in worrying about other folks' ethics. I just abide by the law.

Worrying about a "respect for life" being judged on whether the hog is killed and left versus killed and processed seems silly to me. However, if folks want to play logic and ethics games, any hog killed right now shows respect for life. By slowing the grow of the population, you are helping to sustain the population for a longer period of time before it outstrips all resources and kills off that many more native species. So every hog killed is environmentally responsible and if you let the hog feed nature, then nature can benefit as well.

There is a fine line between ethics and abiding by the law. Regardless, we should never try to force our "way of doing things" on others.

With that said, I do kill predators without eating them. But, I do not kill edible game animals and leave to rot. I had 50 hogs come up to me a couple weeks ago and I just killed 2 of them. I could have killed 5 easily, but 3 would have went to waste. I just couldn't bring myself to waste them. If the weather would have been cooler and if I would have been going home that same day, I would have taken more and called up friends to come get them. I always have a list of friends that want dead hogs for meat. Just as I am on their list of people to call if they get an extra hog.

I would offer this suggestion to the ones that kill lots of hogs and leave them lay. Create a list of people that want the meat if you get a hog. When you shoot one, you can send a text to several people at a time. First person to text back with they want it and can pick it up soon, gets it. I understand this doesn't work all the time. Just like it wasn't an option for me on my last hunt. I see lots of posts on this forum and other sites with people that want "extra" deer or hog meat. It would be nice to have a section on this site for people that want meat, but I know it could become a "security" issue with leaving phone numbers and such.

I don't have a problem leaving them lay every now and then, but I hate wasting edible meat. I also had to smell a big old boar that my BIL shot and left to rot in the sun, over a weekend during deer season. You want a fun hunt? Try sitting in a blind 100 yds from a rotting pig carcass in 90 degree+ weather.
Not going to get in the middle of this whole argument, but I think it's funny how we all talk about deer deserving a quick, clean death, and no one ever intentionally gut shoots any other animals, even coyotes that you can't even eat, but most folks have no regrets over shooting a pig in the guts, butt, leg, snout, or wherever and letting it run off to die because it's not a "game" animal. IMO, there's a diference in swatting a fly and pulling his wings off and burning him to death with a magnifying glass...I'll keep killing 'em quick and clean. FWIW, trapping makes a much larger dent in the population than shooting them anyway.

The only problem is that when the sows have piglets, unless you shoot them all, they can mate at 6 months of age and mate more frequently without the sow there to protect them against males and to show them how to survive winter

Thanks blackcoal, the posts above seem to be making a ton of sense and you are correct, we as land owners see hogs like others see rats and pest in their homes. Today my BIL is having his ranch flown for yotes and hogs. This is a state sanctioned process and clients are not involved because of the liability aspect of it. Keeping in mind that it has already been determined that the helicopter approach can in no way put an end to the growing hog populations, only reduce their numbers for periods of time. I truly believe we are at the point of no return in eradicating hogs.

Sympathizers for hogs need to get out in the world and really see whats going on to realize the devastating effect they have on our enviornment instead of worring about wheather or not they are dieing an agonizing death. Or better yet maybe the sympathizers can come up with a logical plan.

Blackcoal our outfitters email is firstshothunts@aol.com

I'd rather see them laying in than rooting in my pasture. Just don't leave it near the house.

Surviving the winter in Germany is a lot different than survivng the winter in Texas. They do fine on their own here...

Roll the hide down as you skin it, never letting the outside touch the meat. You should be good to go. As always, thoroughly cook pork. Though the disease can be transmitted to humans, the chances are very low. This gets overblown by the media and others at times.

No I'm pretty sure we reached that point 10 to 20 years or more ago. They are here to stay. Might as well just learn to accept that.

Here is an idea! To me it sounds like hogs are more of a convenience to you than the nuisance you claim since you state that you sell hunts as part of your livelihood. Without these hogs I would think your livelihood would suffer. But since they are such a nuisance to you why don't you open up your ranch and allow responsible hunters to come help you eradicate your place free of charge You can have a hunter check in and registration prior to their arrival so you will know who they are and who is on your land.

I'd be willing to bet (just a guess...no hard facts) that you would more than double or even triple the numbers of hunters helping you reduce your hog numbers.

Guys, ethics is just that. Everyone has their own set. In reality all of, "God's creatures" are just as alive as the next and none are (in a vacuum) more valuable than others. Different circumstances may give some animals a greater value to some individuals (trophy animal, game animal, endangered animal) but as long as you're following the law, you're entitled to your own ethical choices. However even if they are true, statements on a public forum encouraging shots designed to increase an animals suffering should be avoided lest the antis use them against us.