Wildlife biologists are desperately searching for ways to control the spiraling numbers of feral hogs. They are prolific breeders that have become a serious and pervasive threat to the Lone Star State.
But there is a growing market for feral hog meat that could help reduce their numbers. Hog stations across the state serve as holding pens for the hogs before they are sent to processing companies like Southern Wild Game.
James Bond operates a hog station just west of Snyder. He said, on a good week, 100 pigs move through his holding pens.
“We buy live hogs from all over the state of Texas,” Southern Wild Game plant manager Rusty Spannagel told the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal in a phone interview. “…I think it’s a way that we can take a product that is actually a problem for farmers and ranchers and make it into something that’s constructive instead of destructive.”
Processing plants like this are similar to those in a domestic pork plant. Pigs wait in holding pens, then enter a standardized, assembly line-style slaughter and processing system.
They process between 250 and 400 pigs on a typical day.
Spannagel said hog parts not fit for human consumption can have some purpose. He said hides, feet, ears and bones go to factories that make dog chews. Hearts are harvested for a company that uses the valves for human hearts.
“We try to use every part of the animal. There’s very little of the animal that we don’t use in some productive way,” Spannagel said.
Texas has a unique feral hog arrangement, according to Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service Wildlife Specialist Billy Higginbotham.
He noted it’s better to eat hogs trapped in colder months because there are fewer parasites. He also recommends eating younger hogs under 200 pounds, because the meat is tougher in older hogs.
Spannagel said Southern Wild Game is subject to the same USDA standards and inspections as at livestock plants.
“We use USDA-approved methods and follow human handling practices,” Spannagel said.
If you trap a wild hog yourself, there are safety measures to take before eating the meat.
Wash your hands, disinfect knives and keep uncooked meat cold. Also wear latex or rubber gloves and safety glasses, in case you’re splashed with bodily fluids. Higginbotham advises euthanizing and burying hogs if you notice any unusual behavior.
“People shouldn’t be afraid to eat wild pigs. They’re very lean. The meat’s very good, but you have to take precautions just to be safe,” Higginbotham said.
The article fails to note that 28% of the hogs tested positive for brucellosis in TPWD’s statewide sampling.
Too funny.
I’ve watched hog numbers grow exponentially while land owners limit hog hunters, allow brush to thrive, and cater to fly by night deer hunters.
Hogs will thrive as long as land holders continue on their path.
Tim Taylor
Kerrville, Texas
If they did not charge so much to hunt the hogs they would have a lower population
They are turning it into high profits so they can just deal with it!
let me get this straight, published number of hogs is around 3million which is probably a low number, there the most prolific hoofed animal alive and have no natural enemies or predators, and you think you can meat process 300 to 400 hogs a day and everything is going to work out, guess what – you need to eradicate 70 to 80% to have NO increase in the hog numbers, for you math wizards that’s over 2million hogs every year to keep 3 million hogs, lot of luck with that. WAKE UP.
Hunting Hogs or anything is a business. I am a land owner, I trap hogs, but there seems to be this misunderstanding that hunting is the solution. Hunting can actually make it worse and harder to trap. I used to think hunting was a solution but in reality its just another market for landowners to profit off their land but I dont think I will ever have paid hunters or unpaid hunters that I do not have a relationship with on my land. The liability is high and you just never know if you are going to get a bozo who has money to burn. You think hog hunts are expensive, you should try maintaining a couple of feeders year round and then loose your wheat field over night.
We have a deer lease outside of Abilene. We’ve been hunting them for years, you can’t win hunting them. The new traps with Cellphone connections maybe the way to go, but you’ve got to catch all of them, or they will learn. Maybe a surcharge on hunting licenses, I’d pay more to put a bounty on their heads. trapping them though, no hunting,, hunting will not solve the problem,, it’s fun though!
On our place we do a combination of trapping and hunting to keep the numbers down. I only take friends and never charge a dime. Luckily, I work at a college and have a line of friends ready to go shoot on the weekends. It’s a standing rule on our place that every hog seen is at least shot at by the hunter. It’s a task keeping up with the hogs but we do okay. At the moment their numbers are on an uptick so we will be at them this weekend. I will say that I agree that many landowners are hurting the situation by charging so much money to kill one hog.
I’m sure you have guys that are always ready to hunt hogs. I’m out in Cali and it will cost you 700-800 minimum per hog. Some of the big ranches will charge you 1500-2000 for one hog on a weekend hunt. Cool that you take your friends. If more guys did that we could all have pork in the freezer.
Hog hunting in Texas doesn’t cost that much. $500 will get you an all day hunt as many hogs as you can harvest in that days time.
Go figure. The state pays me $5. per boar tail. not much incentive to do it part time. heck I have get 200 boars a day to make a living. I’m missing some thing here?
Some places that pay for carcasses will have to pay out more than .30 per lb if they want the business.