patterning hogs?

[goindeep]

Are hogs patternable? I have just recently started finding some hogs on some property We have access too. I know there have been pigs there for a long time but they always seemed extremely hard to find. I have been scouring the country side searching for trails leading in and out of the property. I hung a trail camera last weekend on a good looking trail and just checked it friday. In less than a weeks time I got a dozen or so shots of pigs, most of them were at night but I was suprised to see pics of pigs in the middle of the day! This also happened right about the peak of the full moon. I plan on leaving the camera there as well as hanging several more in differnt locations long to try and pick up on a time to be there. I am trying to narrow down a few places to build some ground blinds for bow hunting. I am just wondering if I am wasting my time with the cameras since I already know the pigs are there?

 

[easymoney]

IMHO, yes especially here in the west in the summer time. They must go to water daily and there are only so many waterholes...

 

[HOGHUNTER714]

GoinDeep...You are doing the right thing. When I had access to a small ranch in Parkfield (1100 acres). It took me sometime to figure out what waterholes and trails they were using. The property had limited water and the properties on adjacent ranches, seemed to have a little more. The hogs would travel from the north property, cut through the 1100 acre ranch and bed down in the thickets on the south property. Putting up a few trailcams the best thing I could of done. I would of never foigured that out without the pics/time. They "usually" took the same path as all the ranches got VERY little hunting pressure. Another key I found was watching the fenceline. I finally found where they liked to cross based on the hair they would scrap on the fence. When I found new hair, I would remove it and keep a close eye on that portion of fenceline. It seemed to work REAL well. Good luck and keep us posted...

HogHunter714

 

[boarhunter67]

I can help you pattern them pigs if you want. And I have a few game cams. I'll have to hunt with you to make sure I'm right though. LOL.

 

[RIFLEMAN]

goindeep,

In my opinion, the feral hog is the most patternable and predictable game species I can think of. They are creatures of habit like no other, using the same trails and visiting the same locations time and time again as long as their motivations (food, water, cover) for doing so don't change. In fact, it is not uncommon to find them at a specific location at the exact same time each day. As such, using the game cameras would be helpful in getting a better idea when each location is visited or when the hogs happen to use a particular trail.

About 15 years ago, I ran across a slob who had wounded a hog with a 20 gauge. Seeing my dogbox in my truck, he asked me to use my dogs to find it. While we were walking to where the dogs had the hog located, he told me that he shot the hog crossing the road the previous night and that they crossed this one particular spot at exactly 10pm each night. When we got the hog and dogs back to the road, he pointed out a hog trail that was carved into the hill and crossed the road. His method of "hunting" was to park at this particular spot at about 945 and then turn his headlights on at 10pm to shoot a hog. Being the braggart that he was, he just so happened to keep a photo album of his conquests with him at all times, and proceeded to show me countless hogs that he had killed in this manner. I later found out that this guy did not have permission to hunt any of the ranches that he said he did and was pretty much the most hated outlaw in the county, but it definitely drove the point home that hogs can certainly be patterned quite well.

 

[#1Predator]

I have to agree with Rifleman. IMHO, these are the easiest animals to pattern in California. Their patterns can be a bit seasonal but they are just about as predictable as the sunrise.

 

[weekender21]

They can be easy to pattern. I've had good luck finding hogs between a good food source and their beds in the summer.
Once the rain comes they can be hard to figure out if there is plenty for them to eat. If you're hunting an area with acres and acres of oaks then they can be hard to find when the acorns drop but if there are only a few areas where they can get acorns in the fall then thats a great place to start.
Lastly, I've personally had better luck trying to pattern sows and young boars. From my own experience it just seems like those old boars randomly roam the country and may never be in the same place twice, at least not during daylight!