We caught two 30-35lb wild hogs in our trap recently. By we, I mean the boys BJ, Donnie and Patrick actually did the heavy lifting. Both hogs are female, and a bit on the surly side!
They are finally picking up the fact that yes, those two legged animals will feed me! At first they had no idea what they were getting, they are so used to foraging and food in a container was a totally new concept. Feeding them hog feed and table scraps will go a long way in getting rid of the wild or gamey taste wild hogs are known for. I'll get some new photos this weekend, they are getting Buddha bellies!
They are being housed in what was our original hog trap, until we can finish building them a roomier abode.
The Moose stopped by our local Tractor Supply store and picked up a watering nipple. After it was installed, he got their attention, pushed on the lever and had water run out. That's all it took. They are already using it. Hogs are very smart, you think they aren't watching, but they are.... Show them something once or twice, and they'll learn from it.
The guys spent most of this past Saturday clearing out a large section for them. Some sun, some shade, high and low ground areas.
We all believe, that even though they'll end up as food, we are their stewards until that time. They should be properly cared for. Plans are to raise them out, butcher one and keep the other to continue with future generations. Now, we'll need a smoke house! Any suggestions? This is just so much fun!
That is really something. As far as I know we don't have any feral hogs around here or I would have tried trapping a few myself. You can't do any better than free livestock.
ReplyDeleteWe've been trying for a couple of years now, but haven't been focused on it until just recently. W/the help from our Compound friends, who know way more than we do, we finally got lucky. And free is always good!
DeleteWow. Just wow. I am impressed. Bring a link of that sausage to Jax when you come.
ReplyDeleteWill do, we SOOOO need to get together again. I know I keep saying it and it seems we head into JAX and then race right back out! I'll be in touch.
DeleteIzzy,
ReplyDeleteI can imagine you'll have visitors from the other wild pigs at night.
Good catch, nice freezer food :-)
We're planning on it. We will be building another trap near their new enclosure, eventually... Yes, nice freezer food. Just need to build a smoke house and we'll be set.
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