No, I’m not talking about the movie. I’m talking about feral pigs.
In Southeast Texas, where I grew up, we call them javelinas. In much of the south, they’re called razorbacks. They were popular among hunters because the quality of the meat as well as the fact that they could be pretty dangerous in a fight.
Whatever you call them, I can now say with some certainty that they’re living in my back yard. I was working from home today (had an eye doctor appointment), and I stepped outside this morning with a cup of coffee to enjoy the view. The view is not much; calling it a “yard” is a bit imprecise. It’s actually a gully filled with live oaks and tangled bushes. And something was snorting down at the bottom.
At first, I assumed that it was a deer in rut; it’s that time of year, and the young bucks won’t leave the does alone. But as I peered through the bushes towards the bottom of the hill, I saw the unmistakable shapes of two large, hairy, black pigs. They were approximately four feet long from snout to tail, and maybe 100-150 lbs (very rough guess). They were also pretty skittish; as soon as I moved, they noticed me and departed with great rapidity.
Anyone for bacon?
1 response so far ↓
1 Mike Hutchison // Jan 27, 2008 at 11:34 am
I discovered some Hogs in much the same manner where I work in a semi-rural area just outside the Houston city limits. I spotted an animal moving in the brush, at first thinking it was a large dog. As I moved closer for a better look he took off taking 5 others with him. The first one was the biggest,probably a male, 3 slightly smaller and 2 cute little piglets. I have seen them several time since. I would like to take 1 or 2 of these guys home to put on the smoker. Considering the location, trapping is probably my best bet, but I have heard you don’t want to get any Hog blood on the trap if you plan on using it again. Anyone know if wild game processors accept live animals?
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