The Day We Realized That Wild Boars Are Dangerous, The Hard Way

[Major Khan]

Poton, I have taken a number of feral hogs, one of which weighed 430 lbs. But as was said previously the average hog is much smaller. I had one good looking boar mounted that weighed 240 lbs. After one particularly successful weekend hunt my oldest son and I took 1,140 lbs. of primal cut pork to a butcher for processing.

With 300 pounds being scary enough , l would hesitate to even think of how dangerous a 430 pound feral hog may be , Shootist43. I do have one small question. Do your American varieties have tusks as well ? Also , what is your preferred calibre of choice ?

 

[crs]

This is not a boar, but a large feral Duroc sow shot on a hog hunting preserve in OK.
I had hunted this place for 15 years and never seen this sow, partly because the hunting hounds were trained to chase only boars. The larger boars on this property are 300+ pounders and the hunting keeps them from becoming much larger.


Too large for the scales, but the land owner estimated 500-600 pounds.

 

[Major Khan]

This is not a boar, but a large feral Duroc sow shot on a hog hunting preserve in OK.
I had hunted this place for 15 years and never seen this sow, partly because the hunting hounds were trained to chase only boars. The larger boars on this property are 300+ pounders and the hunting keeps them from becoming much larger.


Too large for the scales, but the land owner estimated 500-600 pounds.

The sheer size of this sow is marvelous. I would hesitate to shoot a creature this heavy with a 16 calibre spherical ball which l was using on these 300 pound boars.

 

[WAB]

Major Khan,
We are hunting feral hogs as opposed to a wild species of forest hog which I believe you were hunting. They do have tusks, and they have hurt folks, but I suspect that the hogs you were dealing with were much more aggressive and dangerous than what we are shooting.

 

[WAB]

This is not a boar, but a large feral Duroc sow shot on a hog hunting preserve in OK.
I had hunted this place for 15 years and never seen this sow, partly because the hunting hounds were trained to chase only boars. The larger boars on this property are 300+ pounders and the hunting keeps them from becoming much larger.


Too large for the scales, but the land owner estimated 500-600 pounds.

That’s a seriously big pig crs! If we were shooting pigs that size I would rethink my choice of caliber!!!!

 

[Major Khan]

Major Khan,
We are hunting feral hogs as opposed to a wild species of forest hog which I believe you were hunting. They do have tusks, and they have hurt folks, but I suspect that the hogs you were dealing with were much more aggressive and dangerous than what we are shooting.

Please forgive me for the miscommunication on my part , WAB. I was under the impression that feral hogs and wild boars are similar. I did a search on the internet and l stand corrected. There are differences.

 

[Shootist43]

Poton, I have used a number of different caliber rifles on hogs. The smallest is my beloved 6.5 x 55 Swedish Mauser up to the largest being a 35 Whelen. In between were a 270, 308, 30-06 and a 35 Remington. I prefer to shoot hogs both 2" behind and lower than the ear. That shot generally hits the spine and drops the animal instantly. My largest hog and the one I have mounted was taken with a sporterized Springfield '03 in 30-06. All of the rifles used with the exception of the 35 Remington ( a lever actioned Marlin 336) were scoped. In the States we recognize three types of wild hogs. Boars, feral hogs and crosses between those two sometimes called razorbacks.

 

[gillettehunter]

That was a huge group of hogs. Turned into a real shootout. Thanks for sharing.
Bruce

 

[jeff]

Thanks once again for peek into old India!!! Appreciate it.

 

[gillettehunter]

That was a huge group of hogs. Turned into a real shootout. Thanks for sharing.
Bruce

 

[Major Khan]

Thanks once again for peek into old India!!! Appreciate it.

Thank you so much for your kind words and appreciation.

 

[Major Khan]

That was a huge group of hogs. Turned into a real shootout. Thanks for sharing.
Bruce

These brutes certainly mandate extreme caution around them. Thank you for enjoying.

 

[crs]

WAB said "That’s a seriously big pig crs! If we were shooting pigs that size I would rethink my choice of caliber!!!!"
Yes, it is the largest that I have taken and it's size was the reason for shooting it with my .308; I just saw it feeding in a field and had to have it. It was all made into breakfast sausage except for the tender loin and backstraps which were grilled..
I have seen larger ones taken in the Red River breaks north of Burkburnett, TX . They were living in the river bottom and feeding at night on farmers fields.
Speaking of big, I once saw a picture of a wild boar shot in Siberia and it was reported to weigh over 1,000 pounds. The hunters were hunting from a military 1/2 track.

 

[Dr Ray]

It was rather terrifying at the time . I understand that feral boars are also an invasive species in America , in current times ? Do culling programs exist for these brutes , Newboomer ?

Australia has a major problem with the feral pigs too. Personally I’ve had two charge me when I’ve been hunting them. One boar i shot as he ran over an earth dam bank charged me when I ran over the bank.
Mind you where I shot him with a 243 using 90 grain Bullets as he ran away from me would bring out the worst in anyone

 

[mark-hunter]

Is the indian boar, same species as european boar? Euroasian boar?

 

[Major Khan]

Is the indian boar, same species as european boar? Euroasian boar?

Could you provide me with some photographs or details of an European boar , please ? Perhaps l could answer you correctly , then.

 

[Opposite Pole]

In Poland there are several people cut by wild boar every year, occasionally a person gets killed. These are not always hunting accidents either, about a year ago a lady got killed on her way to the store. Below is a picture of few tusks I’ve taken out of wild bore this year along with a 416 Rem Mag cartridge for size comparison. Some of these tusks are so sharp they slice through paper. You really don’t want to be cut by one these animals.

 

[mark-hunter]

Could you provide me with some photographs or details of an European boar , please ? Perhaps l could answer you correctly , then.

Dear Major Khan
Here are som photos of euro boars from internet. Saws, piglets, boars, to help you identify the species if possible.

 

[Major Khan]

In Poland there are several people cut by wild boar every year, occasionally a person gets killed. These are not always hunting accidents either, about a year ago a lady got killed on her way to the store. Below is a picture of few tusks I’ve taken out of wild bore this year along with a 416 Rem Mag cartridge for size comparison. Some of these tusks are so sharp they slice through paper. You really don’t want to be cut by one these animals. View attachment 317236

Oh , yes . Those tusks look very similar to the ones of Indian bush boars . Imagine getting gored by one of these things . A friend of mine recently gave such a boar a " Hakka shot " between the shoulder blades with an LG cartridge of 12 calibre ( 8 pellets to the 2.75 inch cartridge ) . The brute fell only to rise up and try fleeing. The shooter had to give it 3 more shots to end it's life.

 

[Major Khan]

Dear Major Khan
Here are som photos of euro boars from internet. Saws, piglets, boars, to help you identify the species if possible.
View attachment 317304 View attachment 317305 View attachment 317306 View attachment 317307

Oh , yes. I do see a great deal of similarities . Our local varieties , however have more hair along the spinal column . Do your European varieties ever reach up to 300 pounds weight ?