Feral hogs (or Wild Hogs) continue to grow in numbers in Texas and elsewhere. Because of their destructive feeding habits and potential to spread disease, feral hogs are a substantial liability to agriculture and native wildlife in Texas. However, these animals are also sought for recreational hunting and commercial harvest. The resources provided here are intended to increase the understanding of feral hog biology, natural history, damage management, and control techniques.

Texas Feral Hog Abatement Pilot Project

Texas Department of Agriculture is funding a pilot project through the Texas Cooperative Extension to study and measure the economic impact of managing feral hogs within agricultural enterprises. The project is designed to cover three different ecoregions within Texas: Blackland Prairie, Postoak Savannah/Piney Woods, and Coastal Prairie. Within these ecoregions three sites have been chosen to run the study: Hill/Navarro Counties, Camp/Titus Counties and Matagorda County, respectively. Extension's Wildlife and Fisheries Unit and Wildlife Services are working together in this effort. In addition, assistance is provided from Extension's Agricultural Economics unit in developing an agricultural producer/landowner survey to determine the economic value of previous feral hog damage and evidence of change in that damage following the project's management efforts.

This is a pilot project to determine the economic effectiveness of feral hog management and not a feral hog eradication program. Cooperating producers/landowners will be selected by the respective local Extension personnel. There will not be a signup list to receive assistance in removing feral hogs from any and all properties within the study area.

Education is a primary function of this project. All landowners across the state will benefit from this project through the educational efforts keeping everyone informed of the project's progress and successful feral hog management procedures. Much of that information will be available on this website.