Pig pen fundamentals

For those private landowners industrious enough to want to try trapping wild hogs in pens, there are some essential basics to learn in the placement and construction of hog traps. Additionally, there are considerations on how you plan to dispose of the trapped pigs.

First and probably foremost, do not try this at home without some pre-planning. I highly recommend you secure the document A Landowner’s Guide for Wild Pig Management-Practical Methods for Wild Pig Control, available from the Mississippi State University Extension Service through your local county extension agent’s office. This booklet outlines the basics of hog management and trapping plans.

Types of traps

Remember that some things are easier said than done. Trapping hogs is not just a matter of throwing up some steel wire or constructing a wood box. Primary planning considerations include picking the right trap location, prebaiting the traps, selecting the best baits, setting the trap and then dealing with captured hogs.

There are three basic types of hog trap designs that seem to work best: box traps, cage traps and corral traps. The form of these traps can vary, and can be built from wood or steel in either a rectangular or circle shape.

“The round pens seem to work best for us, because the pigs figure out how to bust the corners loose on the square ones,” said Jimmy Gouras. “Of course, you can build any hog trap like Fort Knox, depending on what you are willing to spend. We use steel posts and steel hog wire panels to keep them in.”

Keep this in mind if you decide to build hog traps.

Also take these considerations into account when designing your hog traps: the relative sizes of the pigs on your property, the affordability of the pens, weight and ease of moving to relocate, and the presence of other wildlife species on your property that might potentially get ensnared in the traps.

Next a trap builder has to devise a trap-door system, as well as a triggering method for the door.

In the final analysis it might be a good idea to investigate some of the commercially manufactured hog traps available from a variety of outlets.