Wild Boar hunting

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maestrowork

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Or general hunting.

I have scene in which a group of people go boar hunting. Would someone help me figure out the logistics? For example:

- Do people team up and split off?

- Do they use specific signals (without using walkie talkies) for distress or calling for backup, etc?

- Do they spread out an area? And how big would that area be?

- Where do they look? Do they look for boar tracks?

- What kind of weapons?


Etc. etc. Any info would be helpful. Thanks.
 

smallthunder

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I don't know if wild boar hunting is the same the world over, but my husband has gone wild boar hunting in New Zealand ...

The most important thing to take with you when you go wild boar hunting has four legs: i.e. trained dogs. These dogs track, attack, and if necessary -- protect the hunter.

The experienced hunter that took my husband along prefers to use a knife rather than a gun, though he has used both.

I'll ask my husband for more details -- this is about all that I remember.
 

MadScientistMatt

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There's several different ways to hunt boars. Local hunters often use different methods in different areas. I've done dear hunting and know a few boar hunters, so I'll take a crack at this. First, Georgia hog hunting rules can be found halfway down this page:

http://georgiawildlife.dnr.state.ga.us/content/displaycontent.asp?txtDocument=300&txtPage=9

And the general hunting laws:

http://georgiawildlife.dnr.state.ga.us/content/displaycontent.asp?txtDocument=300&txtPage=7

Laws are likely to be pretty similar in other states.

- Do people team up and split off?

In some cases, yes. This usually isn't a team effort when splitting up, however, as much as a technique for covering more ground by hunting individually. When splitting off, safe hunters will discuss what routes they will follow so they will know where their buddies will be. Hog hunters must wear orange during dear or bear season, but do not have to wear it at other times, so knowing where your friends are is critical if you split up. Since boars can be dangerous creatures, more careful hunters work in pairs.

- Do they use specific signals (without using walkie talkies) for distress or calling for backup, etc?

Not necessarily, but it's smart to carry a whistle for emergencies.

- Do they spread out an area? And how big would that area be?

In a few cases, one hunter may sit still near a game trail and the other one will loop around in a trail maybe a mile long so that animals running away from the walking hunter will run past the sitting hunter. But there is no real fixed strategy for this.

A more common technique is to hunt boars with hounds that have been trained to chase hogs. I've never done this one before, but the hunters turn the dogs loose and follow after them.

- Where do they look? Do they look for boar tracks?

Tracks, yes. Other things to look for include signs that pigs have been rooting and to look for things that pigs eat. A good spot to sit and wait for hogs would be near a game trail that leads to a cluster of fruit trees or near the edge of a farmer's field.

- What kind of weapons?

Pretty much anything is legal, but something like a .22 would be a very bad idea. Hunters who use dogs are likely to use large caliber handguns since they will typically kill the hogs up close. The real crazies use large knives instead of pistols. Those who want to take down a hog at long range without dogs are more likely to use a high powered rifle like a .30-06 with iron sights instead of a telescope. Some people looking for an extra challenge may use a muzzle loader with black powder, a compound bow, or a crossbow.
 

katiemac

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People actually do this? And here I am thinking it's restricted to Lord of the Flies.
 

MacAllister

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Maestro--get ahold of Cary. :) She's been boar-hunting--you've still got her contact info, yes?
 

rich

I don't hunt but I do fish. So I'm thinking it may be the thrill of the hunt and the taste of really fresh spareribs.
 

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Alas, if only you were doing a medieval boar hunt--I can point you to lots of information, including pictures!

Boars are smart, really really smart. Also mean, and potentially dangerous. They're huge, they have tusks, and are low to the ground, making them hard to target. Plus, for short distances, they can really really move.

You smell them first, by the way. Not only do they have a strong odor, they have routines, set locations, and leave scent marks.
 

Liam Jackson

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We regulalry hunt wild boar in this area, Ray. You already had some answers to your questions. Need more input?
 

MacAllister

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Ray, I've found all kinds of places online where you can go do a guided boar hunt...for research, of course...some of them are even apparently legal!
 

maestrowork

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I think I have enough to chew on for now. I'm not writing a report on boar hunting, so I think I'm good as far as my scenes are concerned. It's not going to be a long scene. I just didn't want to sound like a complete idiot. Besides, I can always ask my dad.

I had made a lot of assumptions when I first wrote the scenes, and so far, they're pretty close to what you guys are telling me. I'm not too far off, so I'm lucky, I guess.
 

rtilryarms

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just getting on

Ray,

This is probably too late but I have not been on in a while. I have hunted hog many times in the everglades. Hogs are one of the few animals capable of hunting back. Down in South Florida we use handguns since sawgrass and other foliage is so thick rifles are difficult to maneuver when a hog charges. Usually you get a quick warning in the form of a GRUNT_GRUNT then CHARGE; Bang.

Once I went hunting with the game warden’s son. He would not let us go out with any firearm. We took only knives. He had two dogs that were trained to flush hogs back to us. He taught me how to climb a tree and hang upside down until the dogs would bring them to us. He then would let go with his legs, landing on top of one and slay it. Graphical description available via priv msg.

My favorite way to hunt anything these days is with a camera. The theory is that if I can sight it in a camera, I can sight it in the crosshairs. I am a crack shot and never miss. At least with a camera I have proof that I had one in my sights. Not like the tall tales my bro-in-laws tell me.

Let me know if you want more. Cary, the Huntress /Godress will vouch for me.

 

maestrowork

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Mike, thanks! Grunt, grunt, charge! That's really cool. Thanks for the tips about the rifle vs. handgun. Something to think about. Wow, hand slaying with a knife? That sounds really dangerous, especially if the hog is over 2 or 300 pounds.
 

smallthunder

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Yes, more than you want to know ...

Hello, again --

I know you wrote that you have enough to "chew on" (ahem -- pork ribs, anyone?), but my husband did finally get around to answering your questions, so ... in his own words:

Here's what I can relate based on my experience
participating in a wild boar hunt in New Zealand:

> - Do people team up and split off?
It would depend on how many people there are in the
hunt and how many dogs they have. In my case, the
hunter (a young 17-year-old lad named Brad) brought
only three dogs. So, no matter how many people were
with him on the hunt--I was the only one in this
instance--they would have stayed together pretty much
(give and take a few feet). The whole idea was to
follow the dogs and run with the dogs because when the
dogs picked up the scent of a pig (or pigs) they would
chase it, bring it down, and the humans had to follow
the dogs very closely so that they could jump on the
boar and kill it fast. The dogs could not be left
alone with the boar for too long as they would risk
being gored to death or hurt by the pig, which once
cornered by three or more dogs would fight for its
survival. The dogs could corner and hold down a pig
but they could not kill it. The humans (or a human)
would have to climb on top of the pig and slit its
throat with a knife.

- Do they use specific signals (without using walkie
> talkies) for distress or calling for backup, etc?
The signals used were just wolf whistles (to call the
dogs). As I was the only other person with him, he
didn't have a walkie talkie or cell phone! It is
possible that if we had a bigger group, walkie talkies
would have been used.

HOWEVER, one of the dogs had a tracking device planted
on its collar. Besides a .303 Mauser rifle, its
master carried a tube-shaped bag slung over his
shoulder which, when opened, revealed a 2-foot-long
strip of device with unfolding antennae. This was a
beeping tracker which told us approximately in which
direction and how far away the dogs. Granted, the
tracker was on one dog only, but since dogs are pack
animals, there was little risk that the dog with the
tracker would be separated from the others.

> - Do they spread out an area? And how big would that
> area be?
The area we hunted in was only about the size of one
New York City cross-street block by three uptown
blocks. The area was small but it was a hill. So all
the while we were walking uphill (for what seemed like
2-3 miles) up along a dirt track which was lined on
both sides by dense forest. In the thick brush, you
could see no more than 5-10 feet away. The dogs sort
of "accompanied" us on the uphill track. They more
accurately "led" us (they were hungry for the chase!)
and while we humans stayed on the dirt track, they
wandered off into the forest. All the while we kept
listening to the dogs' barking and baying to see where
they were leading us, and whether they had found their
quarry. Apparently, they did. We heard what sounded
like a good-sized boar running towards us in the thick
forest, with the dogs in chase (their barking had also
subsided by this time). Then, as the boar was about 15
feet away in the brush, it appeared to veer off and
run in a different direction. So we missed it. Now, in
this instance, Brad had his rifle ready and would have
shot the pig if it had come out charging at us
(instead of using his knife). This is because the dogs
had not managed to corner it or pull it down. So it
meant it would have been one pig coming at us, with
the dogs too far away to provide support. In such a
scenario, the smart thing for the human to do was to
shoot as the situation was not ideal for knifing.

- Where do they look? Do they look for boar tracks?
As stated above, it is the dogs that would lead the
hunters to the prey. However, Brad also knew how to
look for boar tracks. He pointed some out to me and
even showed me how the boar tracks differed from the
deer tracks.

> - What kind of weapons?
A hunting knife (the type with a short wide blade,
about the length of a typical standard-issue military
bayonet) and a big-caliber rifle (5.56 mm, .223, 7.62
mm). He did not countenance the use of handguns (not
even for self-protection) as he thought having
handguns would endanger the lives of the humans
involved (accidental shooting, death by friendly
fire). If a boar ever charged at you, you were
supposed to run and climb up a tree.
 

rtilryarms

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knife/handguns and some friendly everglades advice

I use an M6 bayonet razor sharpened only on one side because it is also my favorite throwing knife and I don't like fingers flinging with the knife.

My brush handgun is a 41 Magnum S & W. In tall sawgrass i guarantee you will not have time to swing around fast enough if you happen upon a hog waiting in the slough.

Advice: never try to return to camp with a hog or especially a deer crossed over your shoulders. Other hunters see antlers (deer) and unload on it (you).
After a few beers the hunters don't even think it's strange to see a flopping hoghead 6 feet up.

Can you say si amigo bang?
 
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