Pig Hunting Successes?

[MNHNTR]

Does anyone subscribe to California Hog Hunter news letter?...All the guides mentioned are also listed in the newsletter.  Lots of good articles on bullet types,calibers, placement etc....... $20.00 a year   @   P.O. Box 9007, San Bernadino, Ca. 92427

It's edited by Jim Matthews,,,,, 909-887-3444

 

[Bwht4x4]

Hook,

What's up with the long range bolt action rifles in the picture?  I only say this because of the pig chasing dog in the background with the radio collar on him.  Those scoped guns wouldn't do much good chasing down the dogs and having to shoot at the pigs the dogs found for you at <10 feet.  

And the other picture you show a picture of a pig trap in the background.  Now I would hope that a responsible pig hunter would know that trapping pigs in California is illegal.  Maybe the traps not yours and it was on the ranch where you hunted, that only says to me you picked the wrong guide.  Which supports what I've seen by your previous pig pict. of the dogs.  Look for a better guide next time, don't use dogs (lazy mans way of hunting and it's not fair chase) and pay attention when you take pictures.

 

[colby18]

4x4, I can vouge for hook on this one.  mustang guide service is a great place to hunt.  When I was there you could tell that that trap haden't been used for years.  Also the only time he releases his dogs is if you wound your pig and can't find it.  From the people that I've talked to, most of them use so type of dog when looking for their animals.

 

[Hook]

Well, Bwht4x4

Pictures are not always what they seem....
First of all, the dogs are used ONLY to go after a wounded boar in the brush, unless you would like to do go in after them yourself? And if you look CLOSE at the dog, you can tell that it is NOT a radio controlled collar around it's neck.

Secondly, That pic with the 4 hogs and the "trap" was taken off the ranch and I can't tell you what it might have been used for, but I'AM not one to jump to conclusions based upon seeing an old trap laying around in an place that is not within the hunting area.

Lastly, I, as a responsible and ethical hunter would not stand for any illegal and unethical activity from any guide that I hire. You are totally out of bounds insinuating that I am not a responsible or an ethical hunter. You don't know me and you don't know my background. So I would recommend to you Sir, that you reserve your judgement unless you know all the facts.  

 

[MAC]

I've hunted with mustang guide service as well. I would also hunt with them again. safety guidelines were laid out before the sun came up, there were two guides per hunter (at least on my trip), and these guys knew what the pigs were gonna do before the pigs did. we also had dogs along, but the driving through brush was done by the giudes, not the dogs.

everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but the two hunts i have been on when dogs were used (two different guide services) were conducted quite professionally. additionally, i see no difference using dogs on hogs or using dogs on mountain lions, bears, or deer in the southern swamps. however, i will concede that the brunt of the respect on those types of hunts does belong to the trainers.

 

[Bwht4x4]

Hook,
Sounds like Mustang Guide service doesn't use dogs for hunting, which is good because I have a problem with the use of dogs for pig hunting.  I wasn't making a judgement call just giving you some helpful advice.  I hang out with alot of really LAW abiding guys and had I shown them pictures like that they too would of picked them apart and gave me a hard time about the items in the photo.  Anyways good luck on all your up coming hunts.

 

[EVAN III]

I would have to agree. Most ranches that I've heard of and the one that I have visited use dogs to track wounded pigs. Also as for that trap in the background, it seems that there are a few good reasons for a hunting ranch to have have a trap. One being sick pigs that may infect the rest of the animals. Yea you could shoot them. but what if you want them alive, or don't know for sure if they are sick. What if the owner discovers a pregnent sow, and wants to hold her tell after she gives birth. O.K. I'm not to current on the laws of owning a hunting ranch, but there seems to be several logical and ethical reasons to have a trap.  I also don't like hunting pigs with dogs, but I also don't go around telling people how to hunt ,when what they are doing is legal, or if I don't even know the details. Just my .02 cents.

 

[Brian S]

  Speaking of ethical pig hunts does anybody know how I can get in on one of those naval chopper hunts . I want to fly in on em and open up with the minigun hanging out the window. I supose an m-60 would work but man think of the Chorizo you could make with 6000 .308's flying at those porkers.  

 

[Fubar]

Brian  Did you rent a Rambo video last night?    lol      Fubar

 

[Hogskin]

Hunting hogs with dogs may not be your bag (it sure isn't mine) but it is legal here in Kalifornia and as long as it is, I'm not going to give anybody a hard time that decides that's how they want to hunt.  The self-righteous b.s. gets a little old after awhile.  What's the saying, "We must hang together or surely we'll hang separately" or something like that?

Regards,
Paul

 

[Brian S]

  I second that Hogskin, lets bust balls only after someone admits to doing something wrong. Hook was and is very familiar with the law and as a former deputy I'm sure most of his buddies are law abiding as well.  I want a pig hunt where they will run em dizzy enough, so I can go up to it and stick it with a Ka-bar like on survivor.
Brian

 

[Hogskin]

Laughed out loud at the thought of that, Brian!  As I said, hunting with dogs isn't my first choice but I've done it and the pucker factor was high.  The dogs will chase those hogs into some nasty stuff and the hunter is required to go in after them.  It's a crazy scene, dogs barking and running everywhere, hog snorting and popping, climbing through some nasty cover.... I'll tell you, when it comes time to pull the trigger, I think that hunting behind dogs is harder than flinging lead at one that is standing out in a barley field.  JMHO.

Regards,
Paul

 

[Hook]

I once tied my K-Bar to a long tree limb and jumped down off a tree from above and killed a 350 lb bore with it.......or was that in a movie I saw?ullshades:

Hey Brian S, I like the idea of a M-60 from a the door of a UH-60 Blackhawk.  

(Edited by Hook at 2:59 pm on Jan. 9, 2002)

 

[Hogskin]

Hook,

Have you been watching my home movies again?  

Regards,
Paul

 

[Brian S]

Isn't that the "final solution"  for our island pigs, set forth by the conservationists wanting to protect their native plants.
Brian  

 

[Hook]

Hogskin, we both have the same taste in movies...

I guess I CAN live like a caveman, if I had to. :hittin-stick:

Animal rights, Plant rights, fish rights, seal rights.

How about peoples RIGHTS? Where is my chopper???

(Edited by Hook at 9:50 pm on Jan. 9, 2002)

 

[Bill W]

I've hunted pig over dogs and I've done spot and stalk.  I found the dog hunt to be a hell of a lot more difficult.  We were humping it as fast as we could over hill and dale for over a mile to keep up with the pack which was on the trail of a big boar.  Once we finally got to them I had to slide on my butt down a hill into a 20 foot wide ravine with a .44 mag handgun and blast the pig while the dogs and hog were going nuts.  The spot and stalk was a piece of cake.  Walk up a road for 45 minutes glassing frequently. Spot the right one and trot around the other side of hill to get in position. Take the pig at 175 yards on a quartering away/broadside shot.

I KNOW which one was fair chase.


Bill

 

[Speckmisser]

Bill,

Some might argue, but I'd say they were both fair chase... as far as that goes.  

Personally, my hogs with dogs experience was similar to yours, right up to the kill.  But that's where it fell apart.  The guide had one shoulder on the dog, and one on the pig... basically holding it down for me.  Now I'm sure he wouldn't have done that with a big tusker, but this was just a meat sow.  It was real disappointing to me.

On the other hand, spot and stalk, at least on public land, has never been a cakewalk.  I worked just as hard as I did chasing the dogs, covered twice as much ground, and never even saw a whisker.  When I take a hog that way, I have no doubt that I'll value that hunt ten times as much as I valued the dog hunt.  

But that's a personal choice, and I've said that so many times it's probably a little redundant.  Some folks may be comfortable casting judgement on other hunters.... but for my part, I draw my own lines and then color within them with my own crayons.

 

[Hogskin]

Spec,

I'm curious who you were hunting with?  That's a guy that wouldn't get my repeat business.  Might as well run up and down a hill for an hour and then shoot one that's been hogtied.  I'll bet you paid some decent money for it, too.

Regards,
Paul

 

[Speckmisser]

Hogskin,

Check your email.  I hate to badmouth the fellas on the board, because they really went over backwards to take care of us.  The part with holding down the pigs, though, really ruined it for me.  Fact is, though, if they hadn't got between the dogs and the pigs, the dogs would've killed them anyway.  When those sows couldn't run, they pretty much gave up.  

There won't be any repeat business from me... for him or any other operation using dogs.  Apparently it's not too unusual for the dogs to catch the smaller pigs, and walking up and popping a cap in the animal's ear just isn't what I want to do.  Granted, I'm sure it's exciting as hell to see a big tusker at bay, and the hounds leaping in and out...   kinda like the video the guy showed us when we booked.  But talking with the guide afterward, it's pretty clear that those scenes are not the "everyday" occurrence.  I should've asked more about it beforehand.

At any rate, anyone else is welcome to do it if they want to.  I just don't think it's my cup of tea.