Sometimes when your shooting lane is narrow and long, critters look bigger than they are.


Kate was already talking about a freezer full of jalapeno and cheese sausage when we were headed to collect her "nice sow", but that changed when we got closer. Then she got tickled....



We'll get some sausage soon enough, and at least she was happy with her shooting. 150gr W-W Deer Season XP .308 factory loads continue to be rough on stuff, but easy enough on the shooter's shoulder in the R25 GII.

Any dead hog (even if it's a piglet) is a good hog. Looks like tasty eating to me.

RS

Put that whole pig in a Cajun Microwave, it'll be great.

Congratulations on a great shot....the little ones are “harder to hit”! That one will make great sausage! Great to see sons and daughters out hunting! Congrats Again! memtb

Hell, that size are the best eats! Split it down the middle and toss it into the smoker! Pulled pork, yummy.

Dead pig is the best pig. It should eat well.

I remember your pics when your daughter was a little one. My nephew grew so much this last year one of the camp dogs who loves him took a bit of time to recognize him when they met again Saturday morning. Time flies!

They change so much, just going from one year to the next, you are certainly right about that. I'm just glad she still looks forward to hunting with me., as we've made a lot of good memories in the woods over the years.

Pigs are hard to judge size wise. I shot one once that was half the size of that. The small ones are tender tho.

Congrats !

Ain’t nuttin rong with dat. Grin.

Jerry

That looks fork tender right there. Good job young lady!👍😉

Nice pig and an even more attractive lady. Good for her and keep her at it.

Nice!!

Neither of you will ever be sorry for your time spent in the woods together

Well done young lady!!

That’s funny; I’ve been there. I feel like it’s particularly bad with black animals.

Still, as has been said, it’s dead. That’s good. And it’ll taste so good she won’t need to use it for sausage.

We've all suffered it. He'll look good in a lot of spaghetti!!

Congratulations to your daughter.

first hog my brother ever killed with his bow.... he came and got me because it had got dark and he wanted me to find it. i picked up the blood trail and found it about 30yds in the brush, i was able to pick it up with my thumb and index finger and carry it out. it weighed maybe 3lbs not much more than a new born.

he was proud of it though, hung it up skinned it and made two sandwiches out of the meat.

Years ago, I had a buddy (new to pig hunting) call me and ask me if I was heading by the game processor on my way home, and if I was, would I take a pig by there for him. He wanted chops, smoked sausage, and patty sausage. Of course when I came by and picked up his pig, it was about 30-40lbs, whole. The processor split it in half for him and said it was the best he could really do.

Congratulations to Kate. Did that one come from the river bottom?

From a creek drain that feeds into Finch. But the dang things are growing everywhere, it seems.

Super!!

I've never had wild hog. How is it? Need to stick with the little ones?

It's leaner than farm-raised pork, and the sows are fine eating, regardless of size. I prefer sows of 120lbs or more, simply because so much of the weight is in the skeleton, head, and midsection. A 120-150lb sow is perfect in my book, as we mostly like them for having smoked sausage made, and generally get 30-40lbs from a pig that size. Once we get enough sausage for the year, I'll generally keep another for pulled pork. Sometimes a big one might be more pork that you really need, but there are generally plenty of folks around who would like a sow to take to the butcher. We gave this one away two years ago, and the recipient was glad to get her. She was a bit over 270lbs with no piglets inside, which is pretty big for a sow around here.

Big pig!

JPro, Dad said they are coming up to the camp at night. Dog barking and he'll go out, shine a spot light, and run them off. That was last week. Happened 3 nights in a row.

Way to go Kate! Nothing wrong with a tender hoglet.
Man she sure looks like her Daddy.

I don't doubt that a bit. My dad shot several last season off his front porch, using a light atop a .308. He's got a few more yard hounds this year, so the pigs aren't quite so bold now.




She favors me from time to time, and we dang near wear the same size clothes these days. Her mom has a couple inches on me, so I'm not surprised there.

my last bowhunt for pigs i had 3 standing near me at around 20 yards 2 big black pigs and one smaller black pig ,i put the arrow thru the smaller pig and that little pig tasted alot better too ! to the young lady CONGRATS !

JPro, how are the 150 XPs holding up? I’ve only taken one midsize doe with that load from my large frame 308 and it was in the neck. Body shots doing well? Shoulders? I know they’re a quick expanding bullet but my friend is going to buy a 308 in the next week and I’d like it if he could just run to China-mart to pick up his ammo.

My wife calls the smaller ones Luau babies. Hasbeen

So far they are working well, and the cheap/available thing is what prompted me to give them a try. I haven't chronographed them yet, but I figured a 20" barrel likely wouldn't push them to failure in a .308win. I've gotten exits on everything I've shot, being a handful of deer and several pigs. One deer, shot at close range, retained the bullet jacket in the hide, but the core exited. I'd not want them for a "going away" shot at the rear of an animal, but they should be okay otherwise.

Exactly what I hoped you would say. I figured I needed one hunting rifle to use factory ammo exclusively just in case something happened and I couldn’t get some reloads done. Something did happen and I’m hoping I get cleared medically by rifle season to finally have fun.

I’ve encountered a lot of ground shrinkage in my hunting.

That pig is bigger then any American pig I ever shot.




(Which is none so far)

It is great that she could laugh about it. Some women would have gotten upset. I shot a hog and then went and got a buddy to help retrieve it. When I went back and walked up to the hog it was like never mind and I picked it up one handed and threw it over my shoulder. That's a lot of shrinkage.