Feral hogs running wild, destroying Stuart neighborhood
August 5th, 2010 by TCPalm.com
Residents of the Woodridge community say feral hogs are getting more destructive. (Photo by WPTV)
STUART — Spiny tops are all that remain of the pineapples Micki Studor has been growing for a year.
Wild pigs ate the fruit for dinner Tuesday night.
The feral hogs were out looking for more food Wednesday night, dashing across the street in front of WPTV cameras.
Residents of the Woodridge community off Cove Road say the pigs appear to be getting bolder.
They’re also getting more destructive, tearing up yard after yard in search of food.
Homeowners believe the feral hogs are coming over from the Seabranch Preserve. They checked with the park ranger, who said there was nothing the state park could do about the animals coming into the neighborhood.
One homeowner paid someone to dig large pits behind the homes. The deep holes are covered with brush and tempting fruit.
The hogs don’t seem to be taking the bait, though.
“These are not dumb pigs,” says Studor.
Florida law allows homeowners to trap or shoot feral pigs on their property, as long as they follow local and state gun laws.
There are also licensed hog trappers across the state.
Wild pig meat can be consumed, but feral hogs can carry diseases so they must be handled carefully.
Tags: development, feral hogs
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August 5th, 2010 at 10:20 am
Just leave them alone! they were here before we were!!!!
August 5th, 2010 at 11:14 am
I will be up there this weekend with my bow. Any homeowners wanting me to pile up the bodies of those pigs in there front yard give me a call. Suuuuuiiieee!
August 5th, 2010 at 11:19 am
I smell dinner!
August 5th, 2010 at 12:17 pm
Lulu, most of these pigs are mixed breeds that were brought over from Europe hundreds of years ago. There are very few native wild pigs in the USA. The fact that they crossbreed so easily is why there is an epidemic of “feral pigs” in almost every state. They are not the same as alligators or birds or other natural wildlife.
August 5th, 2010 at 12:24 pm
Feral pigs “were not” here before us. They were brought here by early european settlers for food. Some escaped into the wild and became feral.Their population is exploding. They are doing $Billions$ in crop and wildlife damage every year. Their favorite food is “baby rabbits”. Look for a program on the Discovery Channel called “Pig Bomb”, it is very educational on this problem.
August 5th, 2010 at 12:34 pm
I’ve got 3 guys in my house that would love to go up and help these homeowners. Then I would have a big pig roast, afterwards.
August 5th, 2010 at 12:47 pm
Feed them to the muslim terrorist at gitmo!!!
August 5th, 2010 at 12:57 pm
Jeez people, FREE food, knock them off and fire up the grill, or donate to the homeless shelter..
Bad part is your local city ordnance likely not allow discharge of firearm to drop them on the spot.. so now you gots all kinds of endless property damage.
MMMMMMMMM, pork chops, pulled pork, smoked pork butt, bacon, cheeks.
August 5th, 2010 at 1:07 pm
Seriously, with everything thats going on in the world today you are worried/upset by some pigs?
I wish I had your problems…..
August 5th, 2010 at 1:09 pm
i can come get the pigs with my dogs we hunt them for a sport but we dont harm them we release them back in the wild far from communities where they belong!!!
August 5th, 2010 at 1:14 pm
Lulu is the only person here with a damned brain.
The idea of a pig’s favourite food being “baby rabbits” is the most idiotic thing I’ve read here in a while. Pigs are prey animals and scavengers. Given the option, they would never risk conflict for food.
August 5th, 2010 at 1:46 pm
yep. leave em alone. nothing to see. animals running around. pretty normal.
August 5th, 2010 at 2:04 pm
Feral hogs are extremely destructive to delicate ecosystems, crops, and to suburban landscaping. They are omnivores, just as “domestic” hogs are, and will eat anything convenient they find to their liking. Rabbits, and small pets out at night are not a confrontational kill, and groups of wild hogs are known to attack and kill dogs and attack livestock young: they will even eat their own offspring when stressed.
The primary problem with wild hogs, given their very destructive behaviors, is their exponential breeding capability (they often have very large litters of between 8 to 16). This, coupled with the fact they have virtually no remaining natural predators, has resulted in a crisis in many areas of the country, not just in Florida.
There is nothing “natural” about the current population of wild swine. It is a man-made crisis, and therefore requires human intervention to remedy the situation.
August 5th, 2010 at 2:16 pm
Just wait till one comes after you . I live in okee and see it all the time they are out of control an they need to be taken care of before all of that yard is rooted up.
August 5th, 2010 at 2:25 pm
These defenseless animals should receive federal protection. I propose the Wild hog and Piglet act of 2010 to set aside vast tracts of land for these symbols of the old west to roam freely, propogate at will and cost the taxpayers at least $10 million a year. Make it a felony to harass one, and mandatory prison time of five years if you shoot one.I want to see great herds of free-roaming pigs, just like it was in the old west. Ask Lacey J. Dalton, she’ll back me up on this.
August 5th, 2010 at 2:28 pm
Ok. leave them alone where they multiply far worse than they are!?!? No real predators to help keep them in check!?!?! Sounds like an open season and large pig roast would help to me! Why not have a block party to celebrate!
August 5th, 2010 at 2:40 pm
And that probably would still not wipe them out due to how fast they multiply. They fall under an invasive species and just leaving them go would harm the other real native animals and populations.
August 5th, 2010 at 2:42 pm
Hey we could move them to john’s yard and see how he feels in 6 months.
August 5th, 2010 at 2:56 pm
This is to be expected when one lives in the boonies. Move in to town, problem solved. Plus, you will waste less gas on long trips, and get more exercise because you live close enough to walk to places you need on a regular basis.
August 5th, 2010 at 3:01 pm
All jokes aside, not only wil they destroy anything in sight they will also kill and eat humans. Grunt on that.
August 5th, 2010 at 3:11 pm
I’ve got a brand new bow, I can come up this weekend and do a whack and stack. Hmmmm, pulled pork samiches…
August 5th, 2010 at 3:19 pm
Release the Hounds…My Pitt Bulls need some excercise
August 5th, 2010 at 3:46 pm
as a wildlife biologist, I have to say, I agree with many of you, the pigs need to go–granted, you don’t often see them eating rabbits, but they will eat whatever the can find–one of the biggest problems on the coast is they raid sea turtle nests and eat the eggs–elsewhere, they destroy crops–they destroy food supplies that other wildlife depend on–and yes, they do multiply uncontrollably–No they are not native to North America–there are no native pigs/hogs in North America–the closest relative that is native, the Pecary, lives in the extreme southwestern US and into Central and South America–what we have here in the southeast, are decendents of domesticated hogs that either were released or escaped crossed with wild boar from Europe that were brought over for hunting in the old days–this is why you can see a “wild” boar with piglets that look like they should be on a farm, what roams around now are mostly hybrids between the two–sadly, we are not doing enough to control their populations, because there are not enough natural predators in the southeast and there are not enough hunters hunting hogs–as fast as they reproduce, it will be very difficult to have enough hunters to control the population.
August 5th, 2010 at 4:20 pm
Just put barbecue pit in the yard with a few bottles of hot sauce. They will stay way
August 5th, 2010 at 5:54 pm
Ya’ll go ahead and eat that rotten meat. I once killed a 300 pound sow, and after looking at a freshly cut hind quarted, I saw something moving…in the meat. I looked much closer and saw a mass of worms in the muscle. This was fresh cut from a hog that was dead only minutes.
I still hunt the pests, but won’t touch them without gloves. I usually just dig a hole and roll it in with a stick, but it better be a deep hole, because its kin will did them up and eat their brother, sister, son, daughter…
August 5th, 2010 at 7:19 pm
“Licensed Hog Trappers?” No such thing!
August 5th, 2010 at 8:37 pm
I LIKED THE IDEA OF SENDING THEM TO GITMO.OF COURSE WE WOULD HAVE TO CALL IT ZEBRA MEAL.
August 5th, 2010 at 9:33 pm
Shaggy, I feel I HAVE to respond to your comment about the 300lb pig… Yes, at 300 lbs, I might not like the meat either if it wasn’t carefully and properly prepared… But if it is – it can still be very tasty… as for the infestation with weevils (most likely) or whatever type of larval stage of whatever insect – this occurs in nearly ALL wildlife depending on the weather and the season – or time of year… For instance, I would never eat – and thus never kill (unless it was strictly a personal or property protection issue) any rabbits, deer, or many other types of wildlife after the weather in my location has been “summer warm” – or close to it – until after the first serious cold snap…at least without carefully examining the meat to see if I found anything such as you described… However, don’t just issue a blanket condemnation of wild hogs – they are actually a very tasty meat when taken at the right time of year for consumption and prepared properly…
August 5th, 2010 at 10:25 pm
1. Shave ‘em, put dresses or overalls on ‘em, and pimp ‘em out to horny old blind men or women in keeping with expressed identity.
2. Requisite ingredient for monthly BBQ lottery.
3. Give to prison inmates.
4. Feed to alligators.
5. Shoot from canons.
6. Federal law requiring all balls be made of genuine feral skin.
7. Federally subsidized drum and banjo lessons.
August 5th, 2010 at 10:27 pm
@shaggy and ron
we don’t have cold snap in HI and eat feral pig year round
August 6th, 2010 at 6:41 am
Let me clarify why there would be so many parasites in wild hog meat. They eat ANYTHING – garbage, dead for days animals, sewage, fecal matter…you get the picture now. ANY animal IS what THEY eat and picks up all those nasty buggers from that omnivourous diet. Now, other animals, except for maybe dogs and vultures, don’t do that. Yes, they do have parasites, just like YOU do, but they are mostly limited to specific times of the year or parts of the body, like those wulves that infest squirrels in summer. In other words, the bad part can be cut away. Not that way with wild hogs. The ONLY ones that are worth eating are the ones that spend their lives in remote places, like North Carolina mountains, where it is unlikely that their main diet will be rotten road kill, garbage, etc… Those hogs in those remote places are most likely to subsist on roots, vegetation, and tree nuts.
As far as your cool climate argument goes, many, and the biggest, wild hogs are in the southern states, where it doesn’t get too cold for very long, so what do they do, go an get into some air conditioning until the parasites are gone, maybe a wild hog spa???
Ya’ll go right ahead and eat that mess, while you dream of free pulled pork barbecue. Just remember, you are getting more protein than you bargained for.
These critters are an invasive species that should be eradicated, but I will just stick with good old farm raised for cooking, unless all of the sudden, these hogs found themselves in hog heaven, with nuts, berries, and roots to eat exclusively.
Bon Appetit!
August 6th, 2010 at 9:00 am
What’s with the stupidity of some of you people? They’re pigs. Eat them. The whole “they were here before us” BS is made by uneducated hippies. Shut up. Do some push ups. Helps the blood circulate around the brain…. I wish they were tearing up my neighborhood…. That would be awesome to have pigs running around. I would hardly have to go to the meat market.
August 6th, 2010 at 9:25 am
Well you tree hugging bone heads don’t want anything hunted and then you always seem to be the first to whine when a little pig roots up your yard, garden and crops. Sorry people you can’t have it both ways…..Either shoot them or live with them. Stupidly simple and your choice.
August 6th, 2010 at 9:52 am
Aren’t wild pigs dangerous? I have heard that pigs can get pretty mean. I think it is scary to have them in a neighborhood. What if they hurt a child or something? If they were in my yard I think my husband would be out there with his 44. Let the rabbits stay, but wild pigs?
August 6th, 2010 at 9:54 pm
I’d love to come down there and give a hand getting rid of those things. I’ve been wanting to do some hog hunting anyway, supposed to be pretty good game.
Had to believe that some people actually want to protect these things. Just goes to show you how stupid they are. Ignorance is one thing but willing ignorance is stupidity.
Simply look it up on the internet, all the information you could want on them. They’re dangerous, an economic disaster, a pest, and NON-NATIVE. I suppose the same idiots wanting to protect them want to protect the non-native pythons in the glades too??
They need to post a way of contacting these people so we can help them out.
August 7th, 2010 at 10:44 am
Whose the idiot who said that pigs were here before we were?
Pigs were “brought here from Europe by early settlers. Pigs are “NOT” native to North America. Idiot!!
August 7th, 2010 at 10:53 am
They can’t outsmart a .30-30 open a hunting season on pigs or put up a bounty on them and use ‘em for dog food. Destruction of property by allowing this to continue is stupid.
August 7th, 2010 at 1:21 pm
Incorrect, Lulu. The hogs were brought to Florida by Spaniards, who wished to raise them for “free-range” pork (which the Spanish of the 15th-17th centuries favoured). With free-range farming, some animals inevitably escape and go wild (check the definition of “feral”–it means “domesticated but gone wild” generally), which happened–and the result is that there are feral hogs.
Same also happened with horses in western parts (AZ, NM, western TX) of US–these are descended from horses brought for Spaniard cavalry, whose riders’ numbers expired (but where the horses’ numbers didn’t) in battle.
August 7th, 2010 at 9:35 pm
So what!
They are destroying the state! That is our goal. If these feral hogs destroy everything it is more reason for us of the religion of big government to blame Christians and their real God. Support The Democrat party! We’ll protect these pigs from extremist Right Wingers, while we destroy your community and your country. You intolerant, Right Wing Extremists! Seik Heil!
Al Gore
PS Buy my carbon credits, I need another dozen mansions, exempt from Carbon taxes. I am Al Gore!
August 8th, 2010 at 2:46 pm
No 7. David
That is what the Philippine Government did about 100 years ago. About 50 Muslim terrorists started some trouble in the capital city. The government around them up. Took them out to a large pit and shot 49 of them. They then threw into the pit about a dozen carcass of pigs. Then they covered everything up.
The youngest, a teenager was told go back to the leader and tell him what was done. Never had any more trouble, until recently.
August 8th, 2010 at 6:38 pm
If you are in need of direct professional help with this issue give us a call at 954-304-5300 or visit our website at http://www.wildhogcontrol.com
This is what we do. Goodluck!
August 17th, 2010 at 5:03 am
Took me time to read all of the comments, but I really loved the article. It proved to be Really useful to me and I’m sure to all of the commenters right here! It’s always nice whenever you cannot only be informed, but also entertained! I’m certain you had enjoyable writing this post.
September 29th, 2010 at 10:01 am
kill em all
October 14th, 2010 at 7:48 pm
Now For Some Good News
Florida wild hog hunting is extremely popular these days with hunters from all over the country seeking out advice from people like me and land like yours to hunt on. They are also paying as much as $300 + per wild hog.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission considers wild hogs to be a “nuisance animal” since they destroy property, eat crops, sea turtle eggs, and in some cases spread disease.
I used to be a police officer here in Florida. I received all sorts of calls to remove wild animals from people’s houses and property. I began to enjoy those calls, and would volunteer for them when ever they came up.
Now that the real estate business has gone down the drain, I figured out that using my background in real estate, law enforcement, and hunting to help land owners make money from their land and the wild hogs who try to destroy it.
I started a hunting guide business that specializes in wild hog hunts on private property. Land owners like you can finally make money from their property again without doing any of the work or worrying about legal issues. I am also an NRA Certified Firearms Instructor, so safety rules are strictly enforced on all my hunts.
Florida wild hog hunters can hunt hogs year round on private land, without spending a ton of money. Hog hunting is so big that there are even magazines and television shows devoted to it.
Want More Information?
If you’re a land owner or Florida wild hog hunter, and would like to have your property evaluated for free, or if you’re a hunter and want to book a hunt…
November 6th, 2010 at 2:50 pm
I agree that we should trap them and put them in John’s yard. Alternatively, they can be great eatin’ when barbecued; even better when smoked and pulled.
January 10th, 2011 at 9:14 pm
I’m a Fla native and Feral Hogs have been around for generations. They are no different than farm pigs. Infact, many people trap them and raise them in pens until they butcher and sell them. The Pigs in Fla. are generaly free of disease, other than those of domestic pigs.
They are out of control as far as population, but as far as table fare, PORK is PORK. In fact, I just took 2 yesterday, and my freezer is full.
February 3rd, 2011 at 6:18 pm
ok anybody who trys to defend hogs i got something to tell you. number 1 they do eat meat and other animals and number two if you think there so innocent corner one and see what it does to you i hunt them with dogs and are problem with wild hogs damaging property is so bad you dont need anykind of permits to hunt them legally in florida unless your in a WMA HUNTING THEM! and to the people who have dogs that love to hunt them i say let them do it its not cruelty to animals people dont understnad for us who have dogs that love to get on some big hogs that are dogs arent forced to do it they love doing it its just like if you like doing something nobody has to tell you to do it you just do. if the dogs thought we were being cruel making them hunt then they wouldnt do it. so anybody who thinks otherwise about anything i have said go look up some of the things hogs do to everyday pets that are let outside and has never even seen a hog before. hogs are disgusting and violent creatures END OF STORY!
March 3rd, 2011 at 2:46 pm
If you are having serious problems with hogs in your property, please give me a call and I will kill them at no cost, even if no guns can be used . I will use bows, so please email or call 305-525-3559
September 14th, 2011 at 4:38 pm
hey there i will be moving to the brandon area soon and would love to have some pvt. properties to bow hunt hogs i am a 60 yr old man that has hunted my whole life call or email me Mikzwolf@yahoo.com or 740 372 2321 513 680 0952
December 3rd, 2011 at 3:08 pm
if any one needs help with wild hog problems give me a txt i live in central fl in the bithlo cristmas area i have traps and a bow i can clean the hogs and split the meat my number is 4073536166 thank you for your time hope i can be of service.
December 5th, 2011 at 11:11 pm
***FREE*** for farmers. PEST (HOG) removal from your farm lands. Tired of losing $$$ on damaged crops? Prior Military and current Law Enforcement hunters only. NO DOGS that ruin your fields, just serious hunters with high powered hunting rifles, shotguns, and or bows.
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March 30th, 2012 at 11:31 am
Excellent idea, rare in contemporary coptual “art”. However, it is obviously self absorbed as half of LA is cut out, centered on WeHo. As usual in the artsy set, its all about Wilshire to Ventura corridor, no one else matters. In other words, white LA. North of the 101, east of the 710, and south of the 105 are gone, and those few “colored” areas on the periphery.As usual with the Contempt set, selfish idea and bad execution.