By Julie Tomascik
Editor

Feral hog control in Texas has gained a new tool that’s shown in a research study to effectively reduce the population.

Kaput Feral Hog Bait, produced by Scimetrics Laboratory, was registered for use by licensed pesticide applicators in Texas on Feb. 1.

“It’s taken the better part of a decade to make this product available to licensed applicators,” Texas Farm Bureau (TFB) President Russell Boening said. “We are encouraged by this new addition to the toolbox. Traps and hunting don’t always fit the situation when you’re trying to remove feral hogs and protect your crops, livestock and farm and ranch lands.”

Texas has the largest feral hog population in the U.S., and they’ve been found in nearly every county.

U.S. Department of Agriculture surveys show Texas landowners lose more than $200 million annually in crop damages and livestock production losses due to feral pigs.

And the population will continue to grow unless 70% of feral hogs or more are removed each year.

“Feral hogs reproduce rapidly, can thrive in various environments and lack any natural predators,” Boening said. “Farmers and ranchers have been working on this problem with tools and strategies for decades. We hope this pesticide will help better control the feral hog population to protect livestock, crops and natural resources in our state.”

Experts at Texas A&M AgriLife Extension were tasked by the 87th Texas Legislature to determine the effectiveness of warfarin-based toxicant on feral hogs.

The two-year study showed researchers were able to reduce feral hog numbers with diligent application of the product.

Application takes about three weeks of conditioning the pigs to eat feed and placebo bait from the approved feeders that are specifically designed to prevent access by non-target species.

Once the pigs are conditioned to the feeder and the toxicant is added, feral hogs can consume lethal doses within five days of consistent access to the bait.

Pigs that consume Kaput Feral Hog Bait are easily identified. The bait is manufactured with a fast-acting blue dye that colors a pig’s fat tissue blue. The vivid blue color gets more intense over time and as pigs consume more bait. Researchers at Texas Tech University showed blue fat in pigs just three hours after eating Kaput.

Researchers noted the bait is not considered acutely toxic to non-target animals if they do gain limited access to the bait. The concentration of warfarin is extremely low at only one fifth the active ingredient level of warfarin baits for rodent control in homes.

“Feral hogs, wild pigs—whatever you call them, they are one of the most destructive invasive species in Texas and the U.S. today,” Boening said. “The environmental damage they cause is staggering, and disease risks to humans and other animals are very real. This toxicant is another way to try to get control of the fast-growing population and limit the damage they can do.”

Feral hogs aren’t only an issue for agriculture, though. They also root up cemeteries, golf courses and landscaping around businesses and homes.

“The feral hog problem has exploded into a crisis,” Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller said. “All but one of 254 counties across the state have endured damage, not just to farm and ranch land, but to urban areas, too. I welcome any product available to help farmers and ranchers, and Kaput gives farmers, ranchers, homeowners and businesses another tool to use in fighting the devastating feral hog presence in Texas.”

Licensed applicators will be able to feed the bait once it becomes available later this spring.