New to Texas hunting, Hog etiquette

All,

I grew up hunting in Washington and then in Montana when I joined the military. I have lived in Texas for about 5 years now with a recent move to San Angelo. I have never hunted hogs and I am confused a little. Maybe some of you experienced Texas hunters can help.

I am confused about the difference between hunting hogs and shooting the wild feral hogs. Is there a difference? I have been reading on here about both, I see that there are outfitters for hog hunts, but I have been told that the hogs are ruining farm land, upland game bird hunting, and even turkey hunting. I have read that they are decimating the population of birds that lay eggs on the ground.

I guess where I need clarification is what exactly is the classification of these hogs? I grew up in the farmlands of Washington and farmers loved for us to come out with .22's to hunt the prairie dog/ground squirrels that destroyed their fields. I was also taught as a young hunter to respect the kill, eat what you kill or catch and mind the laws of hunting to preserve this beautiful past time for generations to come.

So another question is this, is the population of hogs and the destruction that they cause mean they can be treated as a sport to try to control the population so they don't ruin the land and continue to hurt the upland game bird population. I guess what I am asking is if it is right to just shoot them and leave them? I enjoyed shooting the ground squirrels as a kid and I am ok if it helps preserve the livelihood of farmers.

I would be lying if I didn't say that I would like shoot the feral hogs, it is better practice than shooting paper targets, plus you have to work at it so it is more sporting than just a day at the range. I am just trying to get some information to form my own opinion and decide how to proceed.

I have thought about actually hunting hogs during season because I have heard how much fun it can be, sounds like an amazing animal to hunt. I appreciate any information and the opinions of the experienced hunters and sportsmen.

Thank you in advance,
Rodney

to answer your question,, how does ground squirrel taste?

Squirrel in general tastes fine if it is cooked right, but that is the thing I have no problem with sport shooting an animal that destroys a farmers crops and land. I have never and I still don't consider shooting ground squirrels or prairie dogs as hunting. So maybe that is my disconnect, you can go hog hunting, or you can go shoot feral hogs, it would not be the same thing.

Feral hog is classified as mixture of domestic pig with russian boar. Due to population numbers it's considered non game animal with no season. I should really say hog season is 24/7 365 a year. Yes feral hogs destroy land and land owner want to gt rid of em. There are however several problems....land owners got burned and do not trust strangers any more or want to charge for hunts. Free hunts are hard to come by.
It may be unethical to kill animal and do not eat it but with vast numbers it's ok to leave it or donate it to hungry.
A&M has done study that to keep population in control 8 out of 10 new born piglets should be killed with in first 6 months before they start giving birth.

big-tex,

That was another question that I had, I have read through the Texas Hunting Laws and to "hunt" hogs as in going hunting with the intention of keeping what you kill I read that you have to have a license, but if you are "shooting" hogs that are considered nuisances and not keeping them then you don't need a license. That sounds like it could be up to a Game Wardens interpretation of what you are actually doing. I am really trying to understand this, maybe it is best if I just stick to hunting game animals and not worry about sport shooting feral hogs...lol. Thank you for the information though, I appreciate it.

Rodney

That would theoretical. If I were you I would not risk it and get licence.

That is what I figured, I would rather err on the side of caution. Besides I don't mind support the state when it comes to the licenses.

On public land, the game warden can decide that leaving a Hog is
waste of meat/animal, which can be a ticket. If you are on public and meet the local Warden you can ask them how they are currently handling that situation.

I have been under the impression that there isn't much public land in Texas. I read that somewhere on here in fact. I am used to the Pacific Northwest where very little hunting I ever did was on private land, mostly state land and national forest, so I am getting used to Texas still, but thank you for the information, every little bit helps.

This isn't exactly right. Being feral has nothing to do with the ancestry of the animal and it should be pointed out that the domestic hog, feral hog, and "Russian" or Eurasian wild boar are all three the same species. There is really little that can be done do accurately identify a feral hog from a wild hog or hybrid between the two with any consistency based on morphological features. http://agrilife.org/texnatwildlife/feral-hogs/distinguishing-feral-hogs-from-introduced-wild-boar/

Feral hogs are classified as an exotic species by the State of Texas.
http://www.texashuntingforum.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/265666/all/FERAL_HOG_INFORMATION_THREAD

Being feral is a condition of the animals having been brought here as domestics, gotten loose, and surviving on their own. This has developed into their own free-ranging population. For a feral hog to be a cross between a domestic hog and a Russian boar, there would have to be a large population of Russian boars, and there is not. If the first domestic hogs brought over by European explorers in the 1500s and settlers in the 1600s that were turned loose or escaped and managed to survive, they would have been considered feral hogs despite have absolutely no Russian boars with which to mate.

I have read through that Thread and there is a lot of information to process, but as time permits I guess I will just continue to do research in trying to form my opinion. I am getting a lot of great information and appreciate the responses.

As far as the distinction of shooting or hunting the game warden we spoke to in Borden County says that if your in the field shooting any wild animal you need a hunting license. So to protect yourself from a citation go ahead and buy the license.
I totally agree with Double Naught Spy about the feral hogs, there are a few in Texas that are indeed crossed (somewhere back down the line) with the Eurasian wild boar. But most all in Texas are descendants of escaped or released domestic hogs.

For example: No license is required if - you live outside the city and shoot hogs rooting in your vegetable garden and then drag them to your your kill pit. Same if you kill them messing up your 320 acre wheat field (or cow pasture) and then drag them of to the pile.

However if you drag them to the barn for processing, you're hunting and need a license.

Avoid trouble a buy a license.

Buying a license was something that I have always planned on doing, if I remember right even shooting ground squirrels in Montana required some sort of conservation tag with a license, so I will still but a license, again better safe than sorry.