Hunting neophyte question

[Islandboy]

We have wild hogs in certain places, shooting one should be no problem except they're quite onery, my question is wht do you do once you've bagged one?
I'm sure this would be a good tutorial for any big game animal, but lets start with the Pig. What comes first, type of knives best suited, gutting, skinning, ect.
Thanks,
Hankering for fresh pork.

[kingchip]

Personally, I drag them out in the brush(we call it pig skiing), and dump it. (Buzzards gotta eat, just like the worms", Josie Wales)The exception is if one weighs in under 50 pounds, then they are skinned and eaten.

I use a drop point knife for field dressing. I roll them over on their back, and carefully open them up. On first pass with the knife, CAREFULLY get the tip just under the skin. The stomach and all contents are directly under the skin. you want the contents to stay where they are.Open it up to the sternum, and pull out all the guts all the way to the trachea(sp), and down to the exit hole. Remove everything and hang it up to wash out and then dry.

I immediately go shower after that and change clothes to remove ticks and fleas.

[Islandboy]

Why only eat under 50lbs?
After dry what next,cutting up wise? Skin/fur?
Referigeration within how long?

[kingchip]

We have many feral hogs and they are very destructive. They tear up fences, watering trough valves, and eat anything they can get hold of, such as quail and turkey eggs, and deer fawns. because we have so many(we even trap them with a helo and remove them) I can be selective and the smaller ones are easier to deal with and fit on the grill.

I hang it by the back hocks and skin it out. A large one will have a VERY thick skin around the shoulders that's hard to peel. Get the skin down past the shoulders and cut the neck/hide/head off. I use a meat saw, but many use a sawzall for this part.

Next start butchering. Remove shoulders, then tenderloin by first slicing down from the hams to above the shoulders. You can see the muscle seperation at the shoulders. Grabbing the top of the tender, start pulling down and slicing the meat away from the spine/ribs. Once the tenders are removed, saw the ribs off to whatever size you prefer.
Now find the ball joint of the back legs and cut the tendons and meat ubtil the leg comes free, then do the other side the same way.

Now you should have two shoulders, two tenders, two hams, and ribs. Package, or grind for sausage or pork or whatever.

I have a friend that grinds 50/50 wild pig and venison to use for ground meat. Great stuff.

Good luck with it.

On the little ones I like, we just sawzall them right down the middle and throw on a pit over mesquite. Great Eat.

I tell you what. You get me into a multiple sail hook up and I'll come over and cut up your pig. DEAL???

[woolleyworm]

Originally Posted by Islandboy

Why only eat under 50lbs?

You think skunk smells bad, Just wait until you bag a bigger hog...... Larger feral hogs are foul smelling and foul tasting. It may seem a waste to some, but when they're tearing everything up and costing big bucks to deal with, it's got to be done. Yes, the buzzards need to eat too! Kinda like with salmon; the carcass doesn't go to waste. Personally, I'm ok with up to 100# depending on how rank they are.

about the worst damage hogs can do is to root big holes in the fields; can cause some major headaches on some awfully expensive farm equipment.

[Country101]

We have quite a few on the ranch i work at. We trap and shoot whenever possible. We have to hit them hard pretty quick, they are getting into the food plots we just planted. A sow or gilt is excellent up to 250 or so. I have eaten several and never got any better pork at the store. Throw the boars to the buzzards. Even if a boar doesn't smell, he wont be fit to eat, most of the time. I use a 6" deboning knife made by Forstner. Pretty good knife. A neighbor that is a butcher wont use anything else. Cheap knife surprisingly, but does a great job.

[Islandboy]

Deal Kingchip, once you explain "multiple sail hookup"??
Locals here have dogs trained to bite 'em from the rear, getting them to swing around, then they can shoot 'em. That fur around the chest is armoured.

[kingchip]

Originally Posted by Islandboy

Deal Kingchip, once you explain "multiple sail hookup"??
Locals here have dogs trained to bite 'em from the rear, getting them to swing around, then they can shoot 'em. That fur around the chest is armoured.

Your avatar looks like about a 32 center console. you speak of "Captain". I figured you fished the Florida coast. I like to billfish over here in Texas. A multiple hook-up would be multiple sailfish hooked in a single day.

[Islandboy]

Got you, nah, i'm a little further east offshore. 30ft Intrepid, 20 years old. Clean. My wife allowed Sweetheart.
I do a little fishing, but learned long ago,
"if you want fun, fish.
If you want fish,buy it"
Got friends who are fanatical, but I couldn't fund that fuel bill.
Mostly dolphin and tuna, but more conch and lobster, speardiving.
Water off of FLA is too dirty for me.

[kingchip]

That's why it looks familiar. My brother had a 28' Intrepid, after putting a floater through the hull of his Robalo, running in the dark.

[Islandboy]

That can hurt, Gotta watch for whales too. And Submarines.
Some years back one surfaced a 1/8 mile past us, running across our bow. Didn't see his wake until it was under us, that would sink most vessels if the skipper wasn't payin' attention. I coulda surfed it back to Fla.
Boat's got a half tower now, more shade, 14 ft of shade. Still open transom, but infinitely more comfortable.