Coyote Lake Harvey Bear RanchFeral Pigs |
Feral Pigs at Coyote Lake Harvey Bear Ranch County Park in California. Published by Santa Clara County Parks.
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RESOURCES:
Department of Fish and Game
(707) 944-5531
For hunting, trapping and general advice contact:
www.dfg.ca.gov
FERAL PIGS
County of Santa Clara
(408) 355-2200
For county property damage and maintenance contact:
www.sccgov.org/portal/site/parks/
City of San Jose –Parks Dept.
(408) 535-3570
For city property damage and maintenance contact:
wwww.sjparks.org/
City of San Jose – Animal Care & Services (408) 578-7297
For injured or sick animals contact:
www.sanjoseanimals.com
Little Blue Society
(650) 365-8623
For human-animal conflict resolution contact:
mary@littlebluesociety.org
Order Artiodactyla : Family Suidae :
Sus scrofa Linnaeus
Animal Care & Services
2750 Monterey Road
San Jose, CA 95111
www.sanjoseanimals.com
408/ 578-PAWS (7297)
Description: Feral pigs in California are
descended from introductions of European
wild hogs for sporting purposes, and from
escaped domestic swine that have
established feral populations. They are
brown to blackish brown color, with
grizzled guard hairs, a mane of hair (8-16
cm long) running along the back from the
neck to the rump, a straight heavily tufted
tail, and ears covered with hair.
Characteristics of feral hogs are varied,
depending upon the breed of the ancestral
stock.
Habitat and food: Wooded areas close to
water, and diverse forests with some
openings, hills and mountainsides. The
presence of a good litter layer to support
soil invertebrates and/or the presence of
ground vegetation affording green forage,
roots, and tubers is desirable. Hogs are
also fond of marsh.
Feral pigs eat a variety of items, including
fruits, roots, acorns, mushrooms, and
invertebrates, depending on the season.
Feral pigs can have detectable influences
on wildlife and plant communities as well
as domestic crops and livestock. Extensive
disturbance of vegetation and soil occurs
as a result of their rooting habits.
Foraging occurs both during the day and
night, but is most intense at night,
especially during the summer. The tusks
which may be used as dangerous
weapons, function primarily in finding and
harvesting food.
Feral pigs generally breed year
round; litters range from one to
seven. Their sense of sight is rather
poor but their senses of hearing and
smell are extremely acute.
Wild hogs are typically not
aggressive and will retreat if
approached. However, when
cornered, wounded, or defending
young, they may charge and are
capable of inflicting serious wounds
with their razor sharp tusks.
Predators: Young pigs are taken
by a number of different predators,
including, hawks, owls, eagles,
foxes, coyote and bobcats. Adults
are rarely taken because of their
large size, but mountain lions
occasionally kill and consume wild
hogs.
Why should I be concerned?
Property
that is near open space, foothills, or
water is particularly vulnerable to
pig damage. Primarily, pig damage
consists of the destruction of grass
lawns. Because of their size and
strength, pigs can also cause
damage to fencing and irrigation
systems.
What can I do?
The one certain
method that will protect your lawn is
low, sturdy fencing. If this is not a
practical or preferred solution, you
may want to try the following:
•
•
•
•
Why can’t we just get rid of them?
Many thousands of pigs live in the
foothills to the south and east of
San Jose. It is difficult and costly to
have a lasting impact on the pig
populations in this area through
trapping or hunting. It is illegal to
relocate pigs to another area. It is
dangerous to the community to hunt
pigs that are in or near city areas. It
would cost hundreds of thousands
of dollars to fence all of the areas
exposed to the pig habitat (it would
not be very attractive either).
•
Use a biological or chemical
application on your lawn that
will reduce the number of
invertebrates (snails, grubs,
larvae) living under your
grass. ~ The pigs aren’t
interested in your grass they
are interested in what is
under your grass.
Consider a landscape that
contains little or no grass.
Water your lawn less,
particularly during the
summer and fall. This makes
your lawn less attractive to
the invertebrates, which
makes your lawn less
attractive to the pigs.
Drought tolerant grasses are
recommended.
Use motion sensitive devises
that will detect the pig’s
movement. These devices
can be used to produce
bright light, or even a water
stream that will frighten the
pigs.
Hire a trapper. The
Department of Fish and
Game can advise you who
the licensed pig trappers are
in the area.
DO NOT EVER PHYSICALLY
CONFRONT A FERAL PIG