VA Groundhogs

Flyrod, what part of Spotys are you ? 3 hunters here from Spoty no wonder it isn't any hogs around or varmint to shoot at. I picked up a few new farms over in the valley this year I still like to hold off till the little 1's are able to live on their own . Just adds more shooting targets . I try not to be toooooo greedy
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Sounds like them Hornets are stacking them on top of each other.
 
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Wow. How often are you seeing those "hogs"? I new we had some on the eastern shore but had no idea they were in Spotys. Is there a huntable population?
 
Corey,
We actually ran out of pigs for almost six weeks! Then this sow shows up with her brood. I havn't made up my mind whether to wait a few weeks until the shoats get bigger and start shooting them, or try to trap them all. The pigs in the pic are totally wild....they broke down the horse fence near the woods and this is where I've been shooting them this winter!
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I think the pig situation is like the coyotes here. I don't think they belong and wish the damage they do could be erased. On the flip side, chasing them can be a blast. I'd say, if they're busting fence and causing rooting and wallows, shoot them at any size. A pig population is something we're not equipped to handle around here. Like the coyotes, you'll probably never see the end of them.
 
The pigs are absolutely here to stay. BRB and I have shot 40 pigs in the last 2 1/2 years......that's a lot of sausage!

I've been collecting blood samples for USDA and VADGIF for their swine borne disease studies for the last two years. Local farmers have lost tens of thousands of dollars in crop damage over the last few years, and most have stopped growing corn in areas where the pig population is highest.

What makes it so difficult to do meaningful control in this area, is all the smaller parcels of land that the pigs retreat to, that cannot be accessed for hunting. Add to that all the locals that just add hunting pressure without really taking any numbers of pigs, and that adds to the difficulty of killing a lot of pigs. Too many people just want to kill a pig for the "neato" factor, rather than truly helping with population control.
 
I did a boar hunt one time in North Carolina. Guide was telling me that wild hogs are a carrier for Tuberculosis. Their preserve had Russian boar that come in through Canada and had been immunized before being allowed into the country. Pigs can do some serious damage. Wait until they start wallowing in the golf courses and see how much they're hated. I hope you and BRB can stack them up and keep the spread to a minimum.
 
Flyrod please keep them in your part of the county havent seen or heard of any wild 1's in the western part. Now those 4 legged dogs looking things are starting to be seen hit on the road we have enough crop damage out this way as it is mostly from hunters and the yanks moving in.
 
Its just about that time of year to start hunting groundhogs again cant wait.Last year i killed 42 of them with my custom encore in 6BR.The 105 a-max bullets really do some damage on the little critters.I was wanting to know if anybody knows of any groundhog hunting compitions around we used to have them around here but i cant find them any more.
 
yes Piedmont Sportsman Clubs are starting up on the 21 st they have a seperate class for the br's and ppc's [beeep]. come on out .
 
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Jerry didn't notice you were in Ohio until after id clicked send I ASSUMED and i know what that meens. I wont hold that against you , just figured you were local since we were talking about VA groundhogs my mistake. Anyway have fun with the 6 br .PS Ohio's money spends down here to. Jerry i was up in Canton a year ago getting fitted by 1 of Ohio's best Dennis Devault he makes the Mach One trap gun .If memmory serves me right it was RT 70 on the way back east the land was full of Groundhogs .It's a guide over in Cleveland area that guaranttes you 40 - 50 Ghogs a day for a nice fee.Been thinking that VA money might do well up that way he seems to book solid every year with alot of repete customers. Good Luck safe Hunting & shooting
 
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Yeah i have alot of land to hunt around my neck of the woods i just wish that i could find a comp to get into but nobody around here does it any more.Oh well i guess i will have to be happy just shooting all that i can for fun.
 
You boys will want to kill those hogs just as fast as you can. Some people think they shouldn't kill too many, because they want to be able to hunt them later. Well,you may know this, but one sow can have three litters a year with around 10 piglets per litter. Those piglets will be able to reproduce within a year. You do the math, it don't take long for Them to Get out of control. The more pigs there are in an area, the more hunting pressure they get, and soon enough the big lumbering pigs that you see wandering around fields go nocturnal, and become very hard to find and kill, but continue to reproduce.
 
Originally Posted By: xCavalryxOooo Spotsy has hogs! They better not come on my swamp land here...unless they want to meet my smoker.
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There is no breeding population in Spotsylvania county. With the exception of one caught on a trail camera two years ago in the Wilderness/ LOW area, there probably aren't any pigs in Spotsy, YET!
We killed two tonight, but nowhere near Spotsyltucky
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Been seeing a few up here in Clarke.... short legged hole living variety not those longer legged ones you have down in Spotsy. I used to live down between Snell and Post Oak. Didnt varmint hunt down there but did a little bow hunting. I will be slipping down to F'burg soon to do a little shad fishing
 
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