subject: Hog Hunting in Texas – A Sport of Choice or Necessity? [print this page] Is hog hunting in Texas just another promotion for a state-wide hunting sport, or has it become a sport of necessity? It's a question that many Texas landowners have responded to with a resounding yes! It's both!
Hog Hunting in Texas is a sport that is being enthusiastically encouraged by ranchers, farmers and land owners all over the state. And it's part of their struggling attempt to bring some element of control to the rising feral hog population, and to the damage they cause to crops, personal property and livestock each year.
Crop Damage - $52 million annually
Automobile Damage - $36 million annually
Livestock Damage - $18 million annually
The problem has grown large enough that the Texas Wildlife Commission jumped on board to support landowners in their cause. In addition, the Texas Agrilife Extension Service is organizing seminars to help educate the public.
So what's the real problem, and why are feral hogs getting so much attention from land owners and state agencies?
The core of the problem lies in the density of the current hog population and their astonishing reproduction numbers.
According to a report from the Texas Cooperative Extension Service, Texas is currently home to about 2 million feral hogs, which represents about 50% of the entire population of feral hogs in the US.
Female hogs can produce a remarkable number of offspring per year. Breeding among females can begin as early as 6 months old, and they can produce a new litter of 4-13 piglets every 6 months. Hogs generally live 4-8 years.
With numbers like these it's easy to understand how feral hogs could double their population every 6 months. So the Texas Wildlife Commission stepped in to declare no closed season on feral hogs. Hunters can shoot hogs year round, and in unlimited numbers.
Land owners have begun to promote hog hunting in Texas as a way to offset some of the costs they incur from the growing hog population. Many participating land owners offer convenient over night accommodations for single hunters or groups, and some guaranty of a kill.
