Feral hog, coyote control measures detailed

By MONETTE TAYLOR | South Central Texas Edition

Randy Farrar, of the Travis County Extension office, listens to a question posed during the Central Texas Ag Conference. Farrar addressed wildlife management and damage control measures. -- Staff photo by Taylor

Dec. 2, 2004 - With deer-hunting season upon us, producers and hunters are looking forward to a good year in the fields. What they are not eager to find are feral hog or coyotes. At the recent Central Texas Ag Conference in Elgin, Randy Farrar of the Travis County Extension office, talked to the audience about wildlife management and damage control.

Perhaps the largest problem producers have had in recent years is controlling feral hogs. According to information offered by the Texas Cooperative Extension at Texas A&M University (TAMU), the adult hogs weigh between 100 to 400 pounds and the average height is around three feet. Their color varies from solid black, brown, blond, white or red to spotted or even belted.

Since their feet are similar to deer tracks, hunters need to look for toes that are "more round or have a blunt tip." Farrar noted the gestation period is only 115 days, and litter size can be from four to eight, but sometimes as many as 13. Sows usually farrow two litters a year, and at various times throughout the year.

Strangely enough, the sows travel in a "family" type structure, with two sows and the young staying together. The boars usually join the group only to breed. Since this breed of hogs is omnivorous, they eat anything from grain to carrion. They will also eat roots, centipedes, leeches, earthworms and crayfish, according to TAMU.

Feral hogs are actually domestic hogs which have been released or escaped from a producer and become "free-range" feeders. Signs of wild hogs on farms and ranches include finding hair on fences, since they (hogs) usually slide under fences. Other signs include tracks and "hog wallows," said Farrar. When the weather is hot, you'll usually find the hogs trying to keep cool in the wallows, he added.

A common type of damage to the crops comes when the hogs root the ground, not only messing up the fields, but trampling crops not consumed.

The Texas Animal Health Commission noted that a major concern of theirs is the fact that the hogs carry several major diseases including brucellosis, a bacterial disease; pseudo rabies, a virus; tuberculosis; bubonic plague and anthrax, to mention a few. These diseases can be passed on to other animals or humans. The handling of slaughtered animals demands careful precautions, in order to avoid "potential exposure to swine brucellosis or other diseases," explained Farrar. Meat from these hogs can be eaten as long as it is thoroughly cooked.

Several control methods were presented to the attendees, including snares, live traps, shooting or hunting with trained dogs. Grain or "domestic livestock carcasses" are best used as bait, according to TAMU. Restriction questions can be addressed to the nearest office of the Texas Cooperative Extension-Wildlife Services.

Coyotes create another problem for producers, and their tracks are similar to dogs, so a careful study of the tracks may be necessary. Another way to identify a problem with coyotes is by the droppings ... also called "scat." These droppings contain animal hair and bone fragments, are black, but turn gray or white as they age.

These animals weigh between 25 and 45 pounds, once fully grown, and they have one litter a year ... usually between five to seven pups ... in either March, April, or May. The pups are born in a den, and the mated pair stays together, with the pups starting to move in the fall following their birth. Coyotes prey on livestock as well as crops and can transmit diseases such as rabies.

Snares are considered the best device to catch coyotes, since little equipment is needed. Experts say the snares work best when placed in holes "through or under net wire fences where coyotes are entering and leaving a pasture." Again, signs of problems may include hair found on the fencing.

One of the latest types of control involves the use of a small plane or helicopter for aerial hunting. This is said to work best in the winter, after the brush is dormant and the animals ... especially the hogs ... can be spotted more easily, noted Farrar.

"You (producer) have a toolbox of methods to use ... depending upon the situation," he added.