What is your opinion about trapping?

[Gregolian]

Barely on topic but: Are hogs really that big of a nuisance out that way? I've seen videos of baited TNT to take out a dozen or more at once and heard of helicopter hunts, etc. For clarification, not judging anyone preserving their livelihood and I know hogs can cause absolute havoc. I just never thought about their numbers exploding (no pun intended) on developed properties like that.

My great-uncle would tell me about trapping to help his family in the depression. I think he knew I was (still am) a bit too soft for it. He was doing it before his balls dropped (although they may have just gotten stuck from being to @$#%ing huge.)

http://www.livescience.com/28560-feral-pigs-running-wild.html

2013 but some numbers

A recent study by Texas A&M University found that the number of feral pigs is likely to triple in five years in the state of Texas if serious efforts aren't made to reduce feral-pig populations, according to the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal.

From the article.

 

[TheRash]

Barely on topic but: Are hogs really that big of a nuisance out that way? I've seen videos of baited TNT to take out a dozen or more at once and heard of helicopter hunts, etc. For clarification, not judging anyone preserving their livelihood and I know hogs can cause absolute havoc. I just never thought about their numbers exploding (no pun intended) on developed properties like that.

My great-uncle would tell me about trapping to help his family in the depression. I think he knew I was (still am) a bit too soft for it. He was doing it before his balls dropped (although they may have just gotten stuck from being to @$#%ing huge.)

No it's not the feral hogs out here that pose a problem, there just isn't much of a population west of the Pecos River. The landscape is just so much desert and mountains that they really haven't established a threatening population. In fact a lot of times they are hard to hunt for because the feral hog population just isn't that impressive.

The main problems for the ranching industry is the predator population, coyotes, Bobcats, badgers, rac****s, fox, and Mountain Lion (there are black bear in the high country but again they don't do too much damage since the population is low). Goats and lambs are born quite small, and with the AVERAGE ranch out here being 30K acres, it's easy for a rancher to lose a majority of his yearling stock without protecting his pasture fence with snares. Running a snare line is a full time duty for most ranchers I know out here, plus the Government trappers that keep up on their own trap lines.

 

[Irish_Car_Bomb]

I use to trap every year while in my teens. Even using my Conibear traps, which are considered humane by many in the trapping community, they still didn't get immediate kills all that often. I've found animals that have died pretty quick from a broken neck in them before sure, but also found a lot of ones still alive, or ones that might have been alive but were eaten by predators. I find now that I am older, I've gotten soft and don't have the stomach for it anymore. I still hunt and fish plenty, but trapping isn't in my blood anymore. That said, beaver meat is actually half way decent.

 

[Badger67]

If you're not going to eat them or skin them, don't trap them.

This basically. I haven't trapped in about 10 years because i don't have the time nor am i close to good areas, but if you don't intend on eating them (or using them as bait for another hunt) or skinning them and keeping their castors for selling, don't bother. It's a big hassle for shits and giggles if you don't enjoy it and make good use of it. And it isn't too humane really, many times i've happened upon starved animals or alive ones and had to put them down; god knows how long they've been there.

 

[IdahoCBR]

Personally, I woudnt do it but trapping is very effective for controlling the populations of certain fur bearers. For instance, you cant really efficiently hunt Bobcat like you can big game. As long as the trappers do it legally and humanely as possible, im fine with it.