Post by bowtech on Feb 11, 2006 8:28:23 GMT -5
It should be noted there are several species of hogs and they have different characteristics and temperaments.
The Spanish descendent hogs found in Florida and south Texas are runners and not fighters for the most part and hunters have little to fear in the way of charges unless you are standing in their flight path.
They tend to be of smaller stature and body weights as well.
A 200 pounder is a big one and a 300 pounder is practically unheard of.
A true direct descendant pure Spanish hog may have what they call wattles, 2 fleshy flaps hanging under their jowls. I have only shot one of these.
The European hogs or Russians as some are called are larger and more aggressive and will chase you down and try and put a hurting on you.
These can grow into the 400 pound and up range.
I'm not sure where these live except I think they live in Tenn, Ark, maybe the Carolinas? I think they refer to these locally as Piney Woods rooters.
The 2 species besides size, are different in hair, snout length, ear shape, and tail shape.
The Spanish tend to also have a flat back line and the Europeans have a sloped back line with the haunches lower than the front shoulders.
Like a deer a hog can go from standing still to full speed running in about 3 steps.
I wouldn't call them blazing fast, but you are not going to outrun one. ;D
There are two very different type of hogs out there.
The first type is what I call "Herd Hogs".
These are younger hogs that always run in a pack.
The pack consists of 10-25 hogs generally and range from 20# to around 150#.
Generally the larger hogs will be Sows.
The second type of hogs are the dominant hogs.
These hogs will either run singular or will run in a very small group of 3-4 hogs.
These hogs are generally from 175# to the largest available.
The Singular hogs are generally aged hogs that have seen everything the world has to throw at them.
These are the true trophy's and require greater skill and determination to acquire as a trophy.
Be prepared to fail if you have set out to hunt a lone, aged boar hog!
These guys are sharp!
Herd Hogs:
These are the hogs people are talking about when you hear people say that hogs are dumb and blind.
NOT SO!!!
These hogs are in constant competition within the group and try and beat each other to a food source.
They are so busy competing that the word ceases to exist around them.
Kids can kill a herd hog.
These hogs rarely use their God given senses are are driven entirely by their desire to eat.
Gluttony is a perfect word used to describe a herd hog.
Dominant Hogs:
These hogs will pose a challenge as great as any trophy animal out there.
These dominant hogs don't have such a regimented daily routine such as the herd hogs.
The dominant hogs will rarely enter the shooting lane of an Archer without first scrutinizing the entire area.
These big hogs may circle repeatedly for hours trying to locate the source of danger that they know is there.
Herd pigs don't always run alone with just their little group.
As the Sows come into heat dominant Boars from around the area will stage up behind the herd hogs as they travel.
As hogs travel, they generally are led by the smallest to the largest, in that order.
If you are hunting bait, you will constantly see this happen.
In comes the little dumb one, followed by the teenagers, and then young adults.
Here's where the kicker comes in.
If ya have a sow in heat in the bunch, there is a good chance there is a dominant Boar and maybe some contenders there as well.
It takes these bruisers a little time to make sure all is clear and then they'll ease on in but they will always come in last.
You will rarely kill a dominant hog over a baited spot. Scent on the other hand will sometime allow you to coax the bruiser into an opening.
Here are some things to keep in mind:
Bedding areas:
The greatest majority of the bedding areas in the cool, damp environments just out of the river bottoms and around the high edges of pond banks.
Generally the bedding takes place along a ridge adjacent to a water source or wetland area where the pig can stay cool and still have the vantage of the best wind.
These ridges may be a 5' rise in elevation a 100 yards away from water or a ridge 10" from the water.
It doesn't have to be a big ridge, just a high point.
Of course, if you've got a 50' ridge running parallel to a creek and is in close proximity, I think you will find bedding sign along it.
The ridges that have an East facing direction will be your #1 choice in the entire area.
This is going to be especially true in the winter and in areas where cold weather is dominant.
Hogs generally feed at night and are quite cold by morning. They wish to lounge in the warmth of the rising, morning Sun.
Another type of bed is the dry dirt bed. I spoke a little about them earlier.
You'll find these type beds as well as the moist beds.
The dry beds are areas where the pigs are dusting themselves for parasites.
They look quite similar to the moist beds but will be a bit harder to spot.
Feeding areas:
This can be any natural or manmade food source including crops such as beens and corn.
Also in some regions the hogs will forage grasslands, The grasslands look like an unlikely spot to you and I but under the ground will hold tubers which hogs will root for and feed on.
Fruit and nut trees will also draw hogs.
The areas with one or two fruit trees are only going to be a Snack Bar along the route.
Hogs will hit them but with much less frequency than areas of greater food sources.
What you are looking for is an area with a vast support system of food. Something that will easily support a group of hogs and not one or two hogs.
This of course will also be a regional thing.
Water sources:
These are likely spots to ambust hogs but can vary in results depending on the amount a water available within the region.
If there is little water and it is far between, water is an amazing possibility in hunting hogs.
Sign posts:
Hogs leave sign posts everywhere the travel.
Once you've taught yourself what you are looking for you will find that hogs have been leaving you tidbits of information all over the place.
You must adjust yourself to start reading the sign. Hogs bed generally in one direction.
Here you can see which way the have been facing so that you may approach the bed properly next time.
This is especially true of dominant, lone boars. Hogs scratch on trees and make sign posts.
You can tell how tall the hogs are and what direction they are traveling by watching the bases of the trees and seeing which side they've been rubbed on.
Hogs leave mud here and will sometime polish trees to a glossy sheen if they are used often.
Feces will also tell you the direction of a hogs travel and how long its been since he was there.
If the feces is still moist and warm, Id say you are relatively close to a hog! ;D
Breeding:
This is the least of your worries when hog hunting.
It happens at all times of the year and never ends.
There is no way that I know of to pattern hogs around breeding.
Consider this a secondary issue when hog hunting.
When to hunt pigs:
The best time to hunt pigs is when you have the time.
There is such a wide array of methods available that you literally can hunt hogs 24 hours a day in most states in the US.
They also are not considered a game animal in any state that I know of.
The fact that they are not considered a game animal means that you may legally employ just about any method to take a hog.
The absolute best time to find a hog is in the late evening and into the night.
Hogs are mostly nocturnal by nature but are also opportunists and will feed, water, or breed just about any time the desire hits them.
My personal favorite time to hunt hogs is between dusk and around 11:00pm.
The pigs tend to move best on moonlit nights with a slight breeze, between the hours of 7-10:00pm best.
This may vary by region.
Use lights on feeders for great results but the results are generally short lived and the hogs get wise.
Hunt by moonlight.
Beware, your shooting will change when shooting at night. Practice a lot in the dark before going afield.
I tend to shoot much tighter groups in the dark but the shots tend to be a bit high.
Practice, practice, practice.
For about 8 or so nights a month the moon produces very shootable light.
The use of pop-up blinds creates a brighter shooting environment as well.
You are sitting in the dark looking out into the light.
Your eyes adjust much better if using an enclosure.
Although your eyes may adjust just fine, your heart never will.
Nothing, absolutely nothing sends a jolt of adrenaline surging harder or faster than to be sitting in the dark with all around you silent when all of a sudden a boar hog breaks the silence in close proximity with a shrill squeel.
The night time rush is unrivaled.
Morning hunting:
Mosty unproductive for hogs unless you catch some late runners on a return trip to the bedding ridges.
The fact of the matter is that you and I have been taught since we were young boys to get up very early and sneek quietly through the wood in route to slay a mythological monster.
This is a rich tradition that is truly ingrained within us since we were young.
You are supposed to hunt in the morning right?... so get out there and enjoy the time and shoot a pig later in the moonlight! 
The Spanish descendent hogs found in Florida and south Texas are runners and not fighters for the most part and hunters have little to fear in the way of charges unless you are standing in their flight path.
They tend to be of smaller stature and body weights as well.
A 200 pounder is a big one and a 300 pounder is practically unheard of.
A true direct descendant pure Spanish hog may have what they call wattles, 2 fleshy flaps hanging under their jowls. I have only shot one of these.
The European hogs or Russians as some are called are larger and more aggressive and will chase you down and try and put a hurting on you.
These can grow into the 400 pound and up range.
I'm not sure where these live except I think they live in Tenn, Ark, maybe the Carolinas? I think they refer to these locally as Piney Woods rooters.
The 2 species besides size, are different in hair, snout length, ear shape, and tail shape.
The Spanish tend to also have a flat back line and the Europeans have a sloped back line with the haunches lower than the front shoulders.
Like a deer a hog can go from standing still to full speed running in about 3 steps.
I wouldn't call them blazing fast, but you are not going to outrun one. ;D
There are two very different type of hogs out there.
The first type is what I call "Herd Hogs".
These are younger hogs that always run in a pack.
The pack consists of 10-25 hogs generally and range from 20# to around 150#.
Generally the larger hogs will be Sows.
The second type of hogs are the dominant hogs.
These hogs will either run singular or will run in a very small group of 3-4 hogs.
These hogs are generally from 175# to the largest available.
The Singular hogs are generally aged hogs that have seen everything the world has to throw at them.
These are the true trophy's and require greater skill and determination to acquire as a trophy.
Be prepared to fail if you have set out to hunt a lone, aged boar hog!
These guys are sharp!
Herd Hogs:
These are the hogs people are talking about when you hear people say that hogs are dumb and blind.
NOT SO!!!
These hogs are in constant competition within the group and try and beat each other to a food source.
They are so busy competing that the word ceases to exist around them.
Kids can kill a herd hog.
These hogs rarely use their God given senses are are driven entirely by their desire to eat.
Gluttony is a perfect word used to describe a herd hog.
Dominant Hogs:
These hogs will pose a challenge as great as any trophy animal out there.
These dominant hogs don't have such a regimented daily routine such as the herd hogs.
The dominant hogs will rarely enter the shooting lane of an Archer without first scrutinizing the entire area.
These big hogs may circle repeatedly for hours trying to locate the source of danger that they know is there.
Herd pigs don't always run alone with just their little group.
As the Sows come into heat dominant Boars from around the area will stage up behind the herd hogs as they travel.
As hogs travel, they generally are led by the smallest to the largest, in that order.
If you are hunting bait, you will constantly see this happen.
In comes the little dumb one, followed by the teenagers, and then young adults.
Here's where the kicker comes in.
If ya have a sow in heat in the bunch, there is a good chance there is a dominant Boar and maybe some contenders there as well.
It takes these bruisers a little time to make sure all is clear and then they'll ease on in but they will always come in last.
You will rarely kill a dominant hog over a baited spot. Scent on the other hand will sometime allow you to coax the bruiser into an opening.
Here are some things to keep in mind:
Bedding areas:
The greatest majority of the bedding areas in the cool, damp environments just out of the river bottoms and around the high edges of pond banks.
Generally the bedding takes place along a ridge adjacent to a water source or wetland area where the pig can stay cool and still have the vantage of the best wind.
These ridges may be a 5' rise in elevation a 100 yards away from water or a ridge 10" from the water.
It doesn't have to be a big ridge, just a high point.
Of course, if you've got a 50' ridge running parallel to a creek and is in close proximity, I think you will find bedding sign along it.
The ridges that have an East facing direction will be your #1 choice in the entire area.
This is going to be especially true in the winter and in areas where cold weather is dominant.
Hogs generally feed at night and are quite cold by morning. They wish to lounge in the warmth of the rising, morning Sun.
Another type of bed is the dry dirt bed. I spoke a little about them earlier.
You'll find these type beds as well as the moist beds.
The dry beds are areas where the pigs are dusting themselves for parasites.
They look quite similar to the moist beds but will be a bit harder to spot.
Feeding areas:
This can be any natural or manmade food source including crops such as beens and corn.
Also in some regions the hogs will forage grasslands, The grasslands look like an unlikely spot to you and I but under the ground will hold tubers which hogs will root for and feed on.
Fruit and nut trees will also draw hogs.
The areas with one or two fruit trees are only going to be a Snack Bar along the route.
Hogs will hit them but with much less frequency than areas of greater food sources.
What you are looking for is an area with a vast support system of food. Something that will easily support a group of hogs and not one or two hogs.
This of course will also be a regional thing.
Water sources:
These are likely spots to ambust hogs but can vary in results depending on the amount a water available within the region.
If there is little water and it is far between, water is an amazing possibility in hunting hogs.
Sign posts:
Hogs leave sign posts everywhere the travel.
Once you've taught yourself what you are looking for you will find that hogs have been leaving you tidbits of information all over the place.
You must adjust yourself to start reading the sign. Hogs bed generally in one direction.
Here you can see which way the have been facing so that you may approach the bed properly next time.
This is especially true of dominant, lone boars. Hogs scratch on trees and make sign posts.
You can tell how tall the hogs are and what direction they are traveling by watching the bases of the trees and seeing which side they've been rubbed on.
Hogs leave mud here and will sometime polish trees to a glossy sheen if they are used often.
Feces will also tell you the direction of a hogs travel and how long its been since he was there.
If the feces is still moist and warm, Id say you are relatively close to a hog! ;D
Breeding:
This is the least of your worries when hog hunting.
It happens at all times of the year and never ends.
There is no way that I know of to pattern hogs around breeding.
Consider this a secondary issue when hog hunting.
When to hunt pigs:
The best time to hunt pigs is when you have the time.
There is such a wide array of methods available that you literally can hunt hogs 24 hours a day in most states in the US.
They also are not considered a game animal in any state that I know of.
The fact that they are not considered a game animal means that you may legally employ just about any method to take a hog.
The absolute best time to find a hog is in the late evening and into the night.
Hogs are mostly nocturnal by nature but are also opportunists and will feed, water, or breed just about any time the desire hits them.
My personal favorite time to hunt hogs is between dusk and around 11:00pm.
The pigs tend to move best on moonlit nights with a slight breeze, between the hours of 7-10:00pm best.
This may vary by region.
Use lights on feeders for great results but the results are generally short lived and the hogs get wise.
Hunt by moonlight.
Beware, your shooting will change when shooting at night. Practice a lot in the dark before going afield.
I tend to shoot much tighter groups in the dark but the shots tend to be a bit high.
Practice, practice, practice.
For about 8 or so nights a month the moon produces very shootable light.
The use of pop-up blinds creates a brighter shooting environment as well.
You are sitting in the dark looking out into the light.
Your eyes adjust much better if using an enclosure.
Although your eyes may adjust just fine, your heart never will.
Nothing, absolutely nothing sends a jolt of adrenaline surging harder or faster than to be sitting in the dark with all around you silent when all of a sudden a boar hog breaks the silence in close proximity with a shrill squeel.
The night time rush is unrivaled.
Morning hunting:
Mosty unproductive for hogs unless you catch some late runners on a return trip to the bedding ridges.
The fact of the matter is that you and I have been taught since we were young boys to get up very early and sneek quietly through the wood in route to slay a mythological monster.
This is a rich tradition that is truly ingrained within us since we were young.
You are supposed to hunt in the morning right?
... so get out there and enjoy the time and shoot a pig later in the moonlight! 
