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Animal Freaks: The Feral Pig

If you've followed our work here at the Prophet's Place, you know that we're animal lovers. In particular, I'm a dog guy but I love most animals and even ones that I don't have a personal affinity for are appreciated for their overall role in nature's grand scheme. For that reason, an animal must reach a high level of evil and/or loathsomeness to be profiled as one of our "animal freaks".

And perhaps no other animal worldwide is as evil, loathsome and free of redeeming characteristics than the feral pig. The feral pig (sus scrofa) is the wild ancestor (or in some cases the inbred descendant of) the domestic pig. It is native to the forests of Europe, and was brought to the US, Australia and other countries back during colonization as a food source. Many escaped or were released into the wild, where their population quickly grew. Along the way they bred with domestic pigs and indigenous wild boars, and basically all hell broke loose. Despite the fact that most states in the US allow feral pigs to be hunted without restrictions to number or method taken, their population is on the increase.

Our enemy the feral pig is no joke.  Adult males have been verified to weigh as much as 440 pounds, which unconfirmed reports of heavier individual hogs on record.  They're very aggressive when provoked, and have an extremely nasty weapon at their disposal in the form of razor sharp tusks that reach up to a foot in length. A wild hog nicknamed "Hogzilla" was thankfully killed in Georgia several years ago and was the subject of study by scientists.  They estimated that "Hogzilla" was between 7.5 and 8 feet long, weighed over 800 pounds and had tusks in excess of 18" long.  More recently, another hunter in south Georgia bravely shot an even larger menace.  This hog--dubbed by many as "Son of Hogzilla" has been claimed to weigh in excess of 1100 lbs.  With the number and size of feral pigs in the south Georgia area, the Federal government should divert some homeland security resources their way to help subsidize the gun, ammo and beef jerky purchases of the local hunters as they try to maintain a proverbial "line in the sand" against this porcine threat.

Fortunately, most wildlife and conservation organizations recognized the danger to both the environment and the personal safety of Americans posed by the feral pig.  Virtually every state allows them to be hunted as the pest that they are, defining them as "invasive species" or "exotic, non-native wild animals posing a significant threat".  Even environmental groups like the Nature Conservancy all but say they should be executed on sight.  From an environmental standpoint, they have a negative impact on the habitats of numerous native wildlife species.  They foul water sources and contribute to soil erosion.  They also prey on other animals who don't have a defense for a freakish animal that shouldn't be there in the first place including birds, reptiles, frogs and small mammals  There's been incidents of feral pigs eating household pets like cats and smaller dogs, and Australia has a significant problem with pigs eating newborn lambs.  The fact that there's not many creatures cuter than a newborn lamb should underscore just how evil our enemy the feral pig actually is.  There have also been unconfirmed reports of feral pigs carrying off and eating small children who have been left unattended.  Even without confirmation, this risk can't be underestimated and it certainly is something that feral pigs are capable of.

Unlike our previous featured animal freak, the Asian Swamp Eel, the feral pig can be eaten though they're frequently carriers of parasites and bacterial diseases like trichinosis.  Still, properly prepared wild boar meat is a very tasty delicacy.

Many boar hunters use dogs to assist them in their on-going campaign against the feral pig.  While many breeds of brave canines are suited to this task, the pig hunting dog of choice is the Catahoula, a handsome and powerful dog about the size of a boxer with a build similar to a bull terrier.  The fact that Catahoulas are also known as "Catahoula Leopard Dogs" and are also used for hunting several species of bear should give testimony to the toughness of the breed.  The Catahoula is the state dog of Louisiana, and since they're bred more for ability than appearance you'll find a wide variety of colors, markings and even size and shapes.  They're also used for herding cattle and sheep.

At least this story ends with something of a happy ending.  Unlike the Asian Swamp Eel, where bureaucrats and scientists are sitting idly by while these evil creatures infest our streams and tributaries, most relevant stakeholders recognize the threat posed by the feral pig.  More significantly, average Americans are being protected by the efforts of the many sportsmen their brave canine companions who fight this menace on its own turf.

I was conversing with a friend of mine recently, and we were talking about hunting.  I noted that while I have no issue with hunting as a sport, I couldn't personally kill most animals unless it was in defense of myself or my dogs.  The exception--and the only one that immediately came to mind--was the feral pig.  We must keep up our offensive against the feral pig, not only for our own safety and the safety of our dogs, cats and children but also for the protection of our very environment and our way of life.

Wild Boar USA - magazine devoted to tips and tactics for hunters of feral pigs

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