HOUSTON — Feral hogs are a big problem across Texas mostly in rural areas but increasingly in cities and suburbs too, according to the USDA.
More than half the country’s feral hogs, 2.6 million, live in Texas, USDA data said.
The hogs mostly tear up yards and fences averaging about $200 of damage per hog per year, according to Texas A&M AgriLife Extension research published online.
Killing people is rare, according to the USDA. Since the 1880s fewer than 10 people have been killed by feral hogs. Three of those deaths happened to people hunting.
A new Texas law no longer requires hunters to have hunting licenses to kill hogs on private property.
Last year, Rosenberg hired trappers to squash packs hounding homeowners in their city.
Fort Bend County has a feral hog coalition dedicated to getting rid of the animals.
In Sugar Land, there are enough hogs around for the city to create a page dedicated to feral hogs basic information on the city’s website.
In Chambers County where hogs killed a woman Monday, Sheriff Brian Hawthorne said even with helicopter hunting happening there hog problems remain.
“The hog population is not going down,” he said. “So, therefore, it is getting worse as time goes by.”
Texas Parks and Wildlife has a booklet explaining how to deal with hogs if you encounter them.