Finishing hog w/out gun?

R

Rusty Toyota

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May 26, 2007
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I was at my favorite trail for the first time in a few months yesterday and saw my first couple of pigs.

I saw the first from afar at the bottom of a dry stream bed, upon closing in on it, it's hind legs were broken. My friend guessed that it had fallen from the steep sides.


I didn't know what I could do and left it. I am 18 so I can't have a firearm.


Is there anyway I could cleanly finish a pig if I see another?

I only ask this because when leaving I saw an older carcass of another pig at the same stream bed. I'm not sure how often things of this nature occur.
 
Bow and arrow. Do like the Aussies do. Dogs and a knife!:eek:
 
jll346 said:
Bow and arrow. Do like the Aussies do. Dogs and a knife!:eek:
Click to expand...

I hunt em with bow, but most of the old timers around my area hunt with dogs and knife.

Meant to add that a sharp knife of decent length would cleanly dispatch the hog you described. Simply reach in and stick the pig just above the breast bone and into the heart.
 
Stick it in the throat with a sharp knife and let it bleed out. If you're not sure where to stick it then cutting it's throat will work also.

Pretty quick actually.
 
A knife inserted into a main artery or vein on either side of the brisket is a common method. The brisket, to me, is the lump that sticks out below the throat. The knife does not have to penetrate far at all to be fatal, but I prefer to get it in as far as possible to ensure that things happen quickly. When I've had a short knife I've even pushed the handle into the hole to ensure maximum penetration.

Now to stick a pig like I've described you are working at the dangerous end of the animal. If you can roll it on to its back and work close under the head so it cant turn and bite you, or rip you with a tusk, you should be alright.

A safer method might be to insert your knife between the ribs behind the front leg. Angle the knife in toward the front a bit, and if you get the opportunity wriggle it up and down to cause maximum damage. You need a reasonably long knife for this, but for a medium hog four inches of blade should do the trick. There is a lot to be damaged by a knife in the area forward of the diaphragm, but if you go for the lower half you are more likely to slice some important tubes or maybe the heart.

If you can fit your knife securely to a stick you have a spear which gives you a bit of distance for safety.

If the pig is small enough to be held by a leg and tipped over, then sticking it shouldn't be too much trouble....but you still have to be careful of the mouth end.

A totally different approach was taken by an acquaintance of mine. He spotted a wild pig asleep in the sun. He picked up something like a wooden fencepost, snuck up on it, and clubbed it. Pigs are really tough though...so I wouldn't count on a club working every time.
 
Check your hunting laws before "dispatching" a piggie. You might need a license first. Pigs can be dangerous, so I would be sure to keep a distance on them even though there is always the idea to kill them with a knife.

What state does not allow 18 years to have firearms?
 
Here's a pic:

hog-vitals.jpg



When we stuck the hogs on our hog hunt, we went in right behind the front leg, low and straight in, then lifted up to create a wound channel.

:thumbup:
 
Change your carry knife to a bushman and use a walking stick with a tapered end. I have killed plenty of hogs, and I would not want to try to kill a hog over 100 pounds with a 4" knife with no dogs by myself, broken leg or no. Chris
 
Use a knife, as mentioned above, or a hatchet/axe. I don't think a bow and arrow is a very sensible (though effective) suggestion. Most people don't carry a bow and a quiver or hunting arrows with them on their hikes. If finding injured pigs is a very common thing, maybe look into a humane killer, like slaughter houses used to use. I think some still do. It looks a bit like a gun, but fires a large, heavy metal spike hard enough to penetrate the brain case of cattle, and I think it's essentially legal for anyone to buy and have on them.
 
It's the heart and major blood vessels going up from the heart that you want to cut .In slaughtering the pig is knocked out , put on it's back ,a knife inserted ,edge down under the edge of the breastbone. Then rotate your hand so the blade moves about 90 degrees , cutting through the blood vessels...When you find an injured animal remember that it may may have been there a while and because of the injuries have a fever, infection etc and might not be suitable to eat...A spear might be better than a knife for safety !
 
TemplarKnight21c said:
Use a knife, as mentioned above, or a hatchet/axe. I don't think a bow and arrow is a very sensible (though effective) suggestion. Most people don't carry a bow and a quiver or hunting arrows with them on their hikes. If finding injured pigs is a very common thing, maybe look into a humane killer, like slaughter houses used to use. I think some still do. It looks a bit like a gun, but fires a large, heavy metal spike hard enough to penetrate the brain case of cattle, and I think it's essentially legal for anyone to buy and have on them.
Click to expand...

I am pretty sure that device is pneumatic and runs on a compressor with an air hose hooked to it. Chris
 
runningboar said:
I am pretty sure that device is pneumatic and runs on a compressor with an air hose hooked to it. Chris
Click to expand...

There are also portable ones wich use blank cartridges to drive the spike. We used to kill pigs with this on my grandfathers farm.
 
If all you want to do is euthanise an injured pig, find a stout branch to use as a club and aim for the back of the head near the neck. It will help you keep your distance and it is fast and sure. Trying to approach a wounded animal with a knife is best left to the (very) experienced IMO.
 
Scottman said:
Cold Steel Bushman knife on a stick= spear. :)

bow and arrow
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+1, This is what I would advise my nephew to carry if a bow and arrow is not going to alarm people where you hike. If it is private land, you could improve your skills with some judo points and shooting at old stumps, etc. The walking stick would also be useful for wild (or semi wild) dogs which I have run upon a time or two while hunting. If you have never been shown how to do it, I would not get within arms reach of a hog, lots of things could happen. A deer broke my uncles leg once and I hear hogs can get kinda cantankerous.
 
I have slaughtered many hogs over the years. If you find a hog injured as you described, don't let it go to waste.

Aproach the pig, be calm and don't startle the pig. Then grab the hind legs and in one motion lift and turn the pig over onto its back and sit down on him. Restrain the pig and let it calm down. Slit the pig's throat, cut deep ear to ear, and sever the wind pipe. Get up and let the animal bleed out. I prefer slitting the throat for the quick bleedout time and since the head is going to be removed from the carcass anyways.

After it has bled out simply cut off the head, as this makes makes the animal lighter and easier to move around. Then dress it out as you choose. I usually hang the animal from the hind legs and skin them out before gutting. Or you could use the scald and scrape method if you choose.

I usually hang the carcass for 3-5 days before butchering them up. Then fire up the BBQ and enjoy.
 
How big was the hog? Could you get close to it?

If not large, up to 20 lbs. or so, you can simply stand with your full weight on its ribcage and it will smother. This is faster than you might think.

If larger, then the bleed out methods mentioned above will work.

Andy

Rusty Toyota said:
I was at my favorite trail for the first time in a few months yesterday and saw my first couple of pigs.

I saw the first from afar at the bottom of a dry stream bed, upon closing in on it, it's hind legs were broken. My friend guessed that it had fallen from the steep sides.


I didn't know what I could do and left it. I am 18 so I can't have a firearm.


Is there anyway I could cleanly finish a pig if I see another?

I only ask this because when leaving I saw an older carcass of another pig at the same stream bed. I'm not sure how often things of this nature occur.
Click to expand...
 
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