Free hogs for your freezer...GRAPHIC IMAGES

Kerry & Kathy

Kerry & Kathy

Member #007
Location
Fredericktown, Farmington and Viburnum MO
First Name
Kerry
Last Name
Owen
This week we killed 8 feral hogs on our property. I was able to give five away and had to waste three of them.
These were 80 lbs each and the ideal size for eating.

I will likely have another trailer load available this coming Tuesday and more likely... in the next weeks to come.
The MO Conservation Dept. estimates that we have 300+ hogs on our property based on the observed field damage and game cam pics.

If you would like a hog for your freezer...pleae let me know so I can reserve one or more for you.

The requirements are:

- you must drive to Viburnum MO to pick it up the same day they are killed...usually a weekday morning.
- you must field dress it yourself.

For those who don't want to butcher the hog yourself...Mary's Valley Meat Processing on Hwy 8 near Steelville is accepting Feral Hogs for processing. But they must first be gutted.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Marys-Valley-Meat-Processing-Plant/227882967277790

For those who would butcher yourselves...this is by far ther easiest, cleanest and quickest method and does NOT require gutting:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DgbtPDHIUw

We have to eliminate these hogs yet really don't want to waste them when the pork is just as good as any you find in a grocery store.
Just be sure to wear good rubber gloves when cleaning.

Harbor freight makes a very durable glove that I have used.

https://www.harborfreight.com/9-mil-nitrile-powder-free-gloves-50-pc-x-large-68512.html

I would ONLY recommend the XL as they run small.

A hook style skinning knife is highly recommended.

This is what I use:

https://www.raptorazor.com/collecti...game-skinner-mako-combo-mothers-day-exclusive

There is a current 25% off coupon of "Easter25" that reduces the price to $37.50 + shipping.

Be sure to cook the meat to a minimum temp of 165 deg.

Respond in this thread if you could use a hog...

Kerry

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I understand one of the biggest issues in controlling them is that they reproduce so fast? Can have 2 litters a year with up to a dozen piglets each??
 
mplunk said:
I understand one of the biggest issues in controlling them is that they reproduce so fast? Can have 2 litters a year with up to a dozen piglets each??
Click to expand...

Yes...a young sow can be bred at only 6 months and can have two litters of 6 to10 piglets per litter and breeding can occur at any time of the year.

So if a female pig is born in January...she can have an average of eight piglets in June resulting in a total of nine pigs after six months.
If four of those eight piglets are female...by December those four sows can have another average of eight piglets each for a total of 32 new piglets after only one year.

What started as one female born in January is now an average of 41 hogs at the end of the first year and 169 hogs at the end of the first 18 months.

After two years...not counting attrition from disease or predation...that one sow has been responsible for a potential of 781 new hogs into the hog population...In ONLY two years...!

The numbers from there continue to grow exponentially.

That...is the problem.
That is why they are devastating farm crops in many Southern and Midwestern states.
They are also competing with other wildlife such as deer and turkeys for food.
They are natural predators of both turkeys and fawns.
The deer and turkey populations decline when hogs move into an area.

You can't kill enough to slow their reproductive rate.

That is specifically why the state does not classify feral hogs as game animals...but rather as an invasive species where normal hunting regulations do not apply.
It is the only species of animal where a landowner can use any method...including night vision or thermal scopes, to hunt day or night, year-round, with no limit on the numbers killed.

Five years ago we had zero feral hogs on our property. Now...we are overrun with them.
 
The USDA Wildlife Services reports there are more than six million feral swine in at least 35 states.
These hogs cause an estimated $190 million in damage each year.

They report that trapping and hunting are not adequate means of controlling the hog population because studies show at least 70 percent of the feral swine population would have to be removed each year to prevent population growth.

That would require killing 4.2 MILLION hogs...EACH year...just to keep the hog population from growing...and that is not physically possible using current methods.

As hogs move into more densely populated areas, they are becoming a concern for everyone, not just farmers, and ranchers.
 
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After two failed attempts earlier this week where the trap did not trip... with hogs inside...we finally killed 10 more this morning.

Three were too small to dress out.

The other seven from 60-125 lbs were snatched up by friends and family.

The coyotes only got the three small ones this time.

18 down...282+ to go....

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For those who think field dressing a hog exceeds their abilities....here are a couple videos that illustrate how quick and simple the process actually is:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=226&v=m-BmX-3Qqa4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DgbtPDHIUw&t=127s

Note that NO gutting is necessary...or desirable.

All you need is a SHARP skinning knife...a large cooler, two bags of Ice, a box of table salt...and a source of water.

The net result is 30-50 lbs of fresh pork for your freezer for very little effort and nearly zero cost.
 
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Hey Kerry. Apologies for performing some thread necromancy. We cleared out some of our freezer last winter. Will you to culling any wild hogs this year? Just curious... thanks.
 
We will later in the year.
Right now the hogs have moved and we have not seen sign of them since March. But I will be going down to mow and cut up a fallen tree this Monday and may have new sign to report.
When they return we will begin trapping and killing them again.

The problem for providing hogs to anyone in STL is one of timing and distance.

Once we kill...usually between 9 am and 11 am on a weekday morning...the hogs have to be washed, field dressed and the meat placed in an Ice /salt slurry within 3 hours of death so that the meat does not develop bacteria and then spoil.
For families near the farm...that has not been an issue. But for anyone that is 1-2 hrs away, that poses a logistical challenge.

Plus...we know when we are going to the farm to kill hogs...but often the trap will have been tripped by deer and we end up empty-handed. So there are numerous false alarm trips making the logistics that much more challenging.

If you are able to drive from St. Louis on a weekday morning to Viburnum... with often less than 1 hr notice... with field dressing knives and a cooler with Ice and salt...then we can make that work for you.

Having a small trailer that you can take through a car wash to clean off the mud and blood is really helpful. But then you need a location where you can gut the hog...usually on forestry land where the coyotes and vultures can clean up the gut pile.
Then you will either deliver the carcass to a meat processing plant such as Mary's Valley on Hwy 8 East of Steelville or hang and process it yourself.

ALL this needs to be done within 3 hrs of the kill.
That is a challenge even for some of the families living near Viburnum.
But if your game...I can keep you advised of any upcoming kills.

If you have never dressed a hog before...it is much different than field dressing a deer.
Refer to this link posted earlier for field dressing without gutting.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DgbtPDHIUw

Most people do not process the entire carcass. Most will just remove the back straps and four quarters. Then leave the rest.
Keep in mind that feral hogs do not have much fat on their underbelly which does not provide any bacon. The only parts worth saving will be the back straps, front shoulders, and rear hams.
 
Talked to my brother and we're having some issues with these things on the deer lease. About a dozen or so that we need to get rid of quickly. In trying not to scare off the deer on the property, besides trapping, any other thoughts on hunting these maybe at night? Mind you there are bears on the property too. Thoughts?
 
Purple Venom said:
Talked to my brother and we're having some issues with these things on the deer lease. About a dozen or so that we need to get rid of quickly. In trying not to scare off the deer on the property, besides trapping, any other thoughts on hunting these maybe at night? Mind you there are bears on the property too. Thoughts?
Click to expand...

Current MO law requires that the ONLY person that can kill feral hogs on private property is the land owner of record. However...some Conservation agents have told some landowners that they can designate, in writing, a specific person to kill hogs in their place. The fact that you have a lease would not qualify you in the eyes of the state as you would be killing hogs... in exchange for a lease rental.

But... I would discuss it with the local conservation agent and the landowner. You might be able to work something out.

As far as hunting hogs...your best opportunity will be at night using a Thermal scope. However any usable thermal will run you at least $2,000. The most common effective models are $3,000 to $5500 Pulsar units. All Thermal will be hard to get right now as they are in high demand...just like ammo.

Again...you would have to advise the local Conservation agent before hand of the night(s) you intend to hunt and gain their permission to use thermal.
Otherwise you would likely get reported to him for suspicion of spot lighting deer.

You would also need to hunt over a baited site. Fermented corn mixed with liter bottles of sweet soda seems to work the best. All of this you cannot do during deer season.

All of this suggests....that you are a couple months behind...if your intent was to get all this done before deer season.
 
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