I have raised hogs, bought hogs for slaughter, trapped and kept feral hogs for fattening (don't bother trying to do this), and killed some undeterminable number of wild (feral) hogs. I prefer the wild ones. I would only slaughter sows for my own use. The barrows would be sold and I only kept boars for breeding. Bought hogs had a "taste" to them, presumably from the feed they had been on. I would keep them on straight corn for about two weeks before I would butcher them. Feral hogs on feed gain so slowly that you're better off eating the corn yourself. A good head or spine shot and a quick bleed on an unexcited feral hog, especially if you've had a good acorn crop (down here at least) will give you some fine eating. I killed an "Acorn fat" boar once that was 400# if he was an ounce and I could not taste any wild or gamey flavor at all.
I won't bother with any hog that has been run by dogs. I've had some people tell me that they couldn't taste anything gamey in the meat but I can.
Alan
