Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire A Big Hog!

https://www.chron.com/neighborhood/...g-500-pounds-trappingexpert-15070694.php

All it took was one shot for Joel Dudley and his friend Mike Huckabay, of Tarkington, Texas, to take down a nearly 500-pound feral hog in Liberty County Saturday.

Dudley, 47, frequently hunts feral hogs on ranches, farms and in Liberty County subdivisions through his business, Nuisance Wildlife Removal. His latest hog hunting excursion near the Trinity River in central Liberty County resulted in the capture of a 488-pound feral hog, a record for Dudley, who is an experienced, professional trapping expert.

"We knew this one was big but we couldn’t tell exactly how big," Dudley said. "I've been doing this my whole life [and] by far this is the biggest pig that I have literally seen myself."

Huckabay, who Dudley said is a veteran and marksman, made the one-shot kill. The pair uses thermal imaging to hunt the hogs at night, a time when their senses are at a disadvantage.

"With a thermal scope, you can actually get up to five yards (away from) them at night time," Dudley said. "Pigs have a poor sense of hearing and poor eyesight...the only thing they have is a sense of smell, so you have to kind of work the wind. If you work the wind right, you can walk right up to them."

The pig was so massive the pair had to bring in a tractor the next day to tow it off. That night Dudley and Huckabay shot six other pigs, each weighing a minimum of 200 pounds. Dudley said he sometimes offers the pigs he catches to families in need or arranges for other organizations to come and pick up the animals.

Feral hogs are considered an invasive species in Texas and have been significantly increasing in population around the state. The plague of these pigs can be seen across Houston's suburbs, where area residents report they cause severe damage to property, dig up lawns and frighten the elderly and children. In one rare case from last year, a 59-year-old Anahuac woman was killed by hogs outside a home along State Highway 61 in rural Chambers County, the Houston Chronicle reported.

Dudley said similar to what other Houston-area suburbs are experiencing right now, the massive pigs he hunts in Liberty County also wreak havoc on area residents and their property. It is estimated feral hogs cause $52 million in agricultural damages every year in Texas, according to the Texas A&M Natural Resources Institute.

"You are never going to make a dent in the population," Dudley said. "As soon as you shoot them, the next day or two you are going to have another 15 or 20 [pigs] on the ground... The population is just getting out of hand."

Dudley credits suburban development as the driving force behind the pigs encroaching on residents.

"The farther you move out into the country, you are actually pushing these animals from their natural environment," Dudley said.

A hunting license is required to hunt feral hogs, according to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Dudley said anyone that decides to hunt the pigs themselves should "go for it," but warns they can be dangerous.

Dudley, along with his personal friend and country singer Jason Allen, also runs the Wicked Water Warrior Project. The organization helps arrange dream hunting trips and outdoor adventures for veterans and children battling life-threatening conditions. Dudley said Hurricane Harvey put the organization's operations on hold for the last two years, but plans are in the works to get it up and running again.

"Dirty hogs, done dirt cheap"

Near 2,000 lbs in one night that is a lotta hog...

Nice

The trinity River runs through the middle of Liberty county. The river bottom land is perfect for feral hogs. Probably some bigger ones in there.

Hard to tell from the article, did he trap it before he shot it?

Heck of a hog!

don't have to have a license to kill them anymore.

I saw one on the Pecos River out of Mentone north of Pecos one time that upset and scared me. I could have shot the Volkswagen looking thing with big piglets but was afraid the 223 wasnt enough gun.

Should have earholed that big mofo Jag. She’d of dropped like a ton of bricks.

She was moving too fast in 4 ft high thick brush with her back sometimes a foot higher than it. Like I said, Volkswagon.

It’s a lot of fun to trap pigs!!

That is big. I would have never guessed they would get to that size. Thanks for posting

This pig was killed in Madison county ( close to Liberty county) a couple of years ago. It pegged a 600 lb scale. I know this man, he is 6 foot tall.

I've walked up on two in the 500lb range while turkey hunting, about 30 yards from them, eery feeling when all you got are turkey loads.

You would make them mad!

I don't know if the blonde dude is joking or not.....pic three in link posted

Guy on the right looks like safariman!

we've killed a couple a lot smaller with turkey loads, the last one was about 200lbs, 20yard shot to the ribcage, found it takes the air out of them and you can walk up for a head shot. Had about a 300 lb about trample us in the turkey blind, he's haulin butt across the powerline straight towards us and didn't change direction until the last second. It was just a black blur, they can be really fast.

standing on a pond bank in some thick stuff duck hunting, buddy all of a sudden started running out in to the water scared to death, he had one he says whose back was up to his waist step out 10ft to his right. So thick and still pretty dark I couldn't see it, next thing you know I could hear it breathing directly behind me. Fun stuff. I have yet to be chased though.

Son in law just sent this, don’t know any particulars

We had a guy on our place kill a hog and send us a picture just like that one. We later found out the hog was about 140lbs and the dude did some serious photo-staging with regards to his distance behind the pig and the pig's distance in front of the camera.