At Hog Cutters, we take our responsibility to our clients and the land we strive to preserve very seriously. Each client is given the attention and care that befits this responsibility. A unique relationship with our clients means they are no longer simply a customer, but family. Please take a moment to view the images in this gallery and see some examples of the Hog Cutters family, our equipment, as well as a few of our successes.
A local farmer surveys his land, while Hog Cutters prepares to trap hogs on his property. We strive to protect the property and livelihood of those effected by the feral hog blight.
Hog Cutters Zeb at a late evening gate drop. We are slowly but surely giving this farmer back control of his property.
Bait and Switch- Hog Cutters has been trapping in areas that have seen heavy use of older trapping methods, creating many well educated hogs. To combat this problem, we are using a bait and switch program. While feeding hogs in an open area along their travel corridor, we place a Jager Pro Rigid System trap a short distance away. Using ICE cameras to keep watch, we adjust the feeding schedule and amount in the bait site to slowly decrease, while increasing the feed amounts and using attractant in the trap.
Mr Hughes is continuing to bring down the hog population. After trapping the 2 boars and sow shown, he employed great approach techniques – entering the trap vicinity from a distance. Using his Pulsar Thermal scope, he was located an estimated #300 sow outside the trap. Taking aim on the sow, high winds took his shot slightly off the mark, sending her fleeing into thick vegetation. He was able to pinpoint her location from the opposite direction and land another round. As Mr Hughes understands the importance of limiting disturbance of the hogs natural trails, he decided to wait until daylight hours to enter the area and remove the sow’s carcass. Great job !!
When you have given Georgia hunters the slip, it’s time to party! Apparently that entails convincing a local raccoon to attempt a break in of the Varmint Guard on an On-Time feeder. Sorry little lady, that spinner is well protected.
This night we were watching 2 boars, each at a separate bait site. Both have made multiple visits to the sites. We have placed additional scent-heavy feeds in the respective traps, hoping it will draw them in. Sara and the boys are on watch with Mr John, since Josey is hosting the Hog Cutters booth in Arkansas. When we say we are a family business, we mean it.
On December 18 2019, Hog Cutters delivered a full load of Jager Pro trap systems to a well established Georgia farmer. The farm has been fighting the wild hog problem for too long and chose to put their trust in us. In 26 days that included down time for the holidays, they went from trailer to trapping a total of 36 hogs. We could not be happier for you. Our entire Hog Cutters family will look forward to seeing many more pictures of your trapping success. Congratulations Heard family, and thank you for supporting our family business.
Hog trapping season is proceeding right along here in Georgia, and hogs are on the move. Another dedicated Georgia Hog Cutter puts his Jager Pro Rigid system through its paces. On Tuesday he was able to bait this boar and sow couple – effectively preventing them from breeding and adding to the wild hog problem. Good catch Mr Hughes
When wild hogs are wreaking havoc on your property, you must take a stand. This Georgia business owner did just that. After reaching out to Hog Cutters, we helped him implement a plan for taking action. By installing an On Time wildlife feeder and Jager Pro Rigid Trap System, he is now making steps to remove hogs from his property. He has taken the time to ask questions and implement the best strategies for success. Congratulations Sir! We are very happy to be a small part of that success. Thank you for your trust.
Hog Cutters family in Florida is getting the job done right! Now is the time to be keeping your feeders stocked and pulling them in. With very few crops to scavenge, wild hogs will respond to easy food sources.
Please help Hog Cutters in congratulating this Georgia farmer on the first success with his new Jager Pro trap! This makes 10 fewer hogs, and a good start in decreasing the feral hog damage on his property. We are very proud to welcome you to the Hog Cutters family.
We would like to congratulate Hog Cutters family member Mr John for adding another 10 hogs to the trapping record on his property. Thank you for allowing us to be part of your continued success.
Mr John, Zeb and Wyatt Cleaning up a good gate drop in South Georgia.
Farm hand Odie is inspecting the recent progress on Mr John’s property.
Georgia hogs seem to be very active this week. Another Hog Cutters family member brings in a tidy group of hogs.
Sharing this fantastic video sent in by a Hog Cutters Georgia family member. In our experience, we find it quite useful to enter a trap area using thermal imaging to search out stragglers. In this case, the boar was in the vicinity of a sounder already trapped. Patience and intelligent trapping pull in consistent numbers. Well done!
Christmas brought new visitors to one of our South Georgia trap sites. We were able to count 11 youngsters on our Jager Pro MINE camera. The two red/brown hogs would likely not be from the same litter as the others, and it appeared there was not an adult sow with them. One photo showed what we think is a dark sow at the edge of the gate; unfortunately she was wary and did not enter. We will continue watching the trap in the hopes the group will return and the sow will feel comfortable enough to follow the bait trail in. Some may ask why we didn’t drop the gate on the youngsters? If the sow is already trap-shy, dropping the gate on the others will essentially educate her to stay away from traps and the scents that accompany human presence. This will make her even more difficult to trap and remove from the breeding and damage cycle. Questions? Give us a call anytime.
Way back on the 13th of December 2019, this small group of feral hogs visited one of our trap sites. It was a one time visit, so we decided to be patient and hope they would return with friends. After 2 weeks of no hog sightings in the area, the group returned and began to devour our bait at leisure. We watched and determined these 4 were likely traveling alone. Also owing to the fact of needing to re-stock our On Time feeder, we dropped the Jager Pro gate. Giving the hogs time to calm down and any stragglers time to return to the area, Zeb, Mr John, and Josey used thermal scopes and approached the trap from a distance on foot. The trapped hogs were in fact alone. They were quickly culled and packed on the trailer for transport back to the farm for smoking.
Hog Cutters wants to send out congratulations to one of our Georgia trappers! After watching this group of hogs become dependent on the On-Time Feeder for 2 weeks, they finally got the opportunity to drop their Jager Pro MINE gate. Great photos captured by the trapper show the entire process from feeding, gate drop to hauling the carcasses away.
The gentleman in this and many of our Georgia photos is Mr John. He has been working to eliminate feral hogs for a long time. While normally a man of hard work and quiet nature, he made the the morning for the Hog Cutters team. During our task of field dressing these hogs, completely out of the blue, Mr John made the distinct observation ” The varmints around here are sure gonna have a nice Christmas dinner with all this”.
Yes Sir Mr John. They sure will.
To find answers to our equipment mobility issues, we turned to the professionals we have been working with from our first John Deere tractor and Zeb’s first Gator, through the current John Deere equipment we own today. Our friends at the AgPro John Deere store in Dixie Georgia helped us to arrive at a viable solution. After finding a buyer for our larger 4-seat Gator, we are now in possession of a new, more compact single row, 3 seat unit.
Hog Cutters Zeb unloading several new trap systems for our inventory. We have added forks to our Dixie, AgPro John Deere to make the work go a lot quicker.
Hog Cutters Zeb and Wyatt adding feed and a sour corn bait to a local trap in South Georgia.
Hog Cutters Zeb digging a pit and adding a molasses based hog bait. We are seeking out new bait products to attract “educated” hogs to our bait sites and traps. Hogs can scent food sources 5 to 7 miles away and up to 25 feet below the surface, so strong and sweet attractants can be quite useful.
This Lady trapper from Alabama is working real hard to remove hogs from the land. Hog Cutters could not be more proud of the progress you are making. Even a single hog down, is one not adding to the problem for everyone involved in the fight. Congratulations Ma’am, glad to have you as part of the family. Keep up the fight!
A new Georgia Hog Cutters family has sent us great photos of their successful hog trapping. Photos from before the Jager Pro MINE gate drop, after, and packing up their harvest. Thank you for your contribution Sir.
Hog Cutters family member and colleague Mr John has been inundated with feral hogs since a local man-made lake was created near to his family farm. This capture of 4 additional hogs brings his trap total to an incredible 157. Also of note, one of the sows was also gravid and would have delivered 6 more hogs to perpetuate the problems.
(Left and Right) – This Hog Cutters lady is absolutely making impressive strides with her Jager Pro trap. Her Alabama property has hogs galore, but she is definitely putting a dent in their numbers.
We were watching two of these sows migrate from a bait only site, to this trap for several days. On this date the 3rd accompanied them and we made the decision to drop the MINE gate. From the appearance of the gravid females, it would not be long before they delivered their offspring. During the field dressing process we counted 16 hog young that would have dropped very soon and added to our population problem here in south Georgia.
Hog Cutters Headquarters in South Georgia.
Hog Cutters recently sold our 2 row, 4 seat John Deere to add this single row more compact model to our small fleet of equipment. Thanks to Dixie Georgia AgPro and Richard Bell for finding us this amazing deal. Now we will be much better equipped to navigate the densely wooded areas we trap in.
Hog Cutters very own Zeb with his own John Deere Gator from AgPro in Dixie Georgia, a long time ago.
Here is an example of the thickness of tissues covering a sow’s vital organs. It is incredibly dense and difficult to perforate.
Second image of dense skin and tissue covering a sow’s vital organs. In comparison, a boar has a much thicker and more dense tissue layer. This shield flesh is designed to protect the boar from serious damage from the cutters (tusks) of other boars.
Josey setting up to process a cooler full of wild hogs for smoking. The hogs are sectioned into pieces and smoked, and the remainder is taken to their farm to be eaten by carnivores and carrion animals.
Folks frequently ask us why we hate “pigs” so much. Well surprisingly we do not hate pigs. What we do hate is the enormous amount of destruction wild feral hogs inflict on the land and economy of the American farmer. In 2018 feral hogs cost over $2.5 billion dollars in damage in 39 states – that we are aware of. That is what we are hateful of.
While visiting a family pig farm in Northern Missouri some time ago, the Visnovske boys offered to share their feelings for the home grown variety of pig. Or maybe the little ones just taste like bacon?
The perfect start to a Sunday. We are so pleased to share this Hog Cutters family story with you. “Let my grandson take care of this one. He has been hanging outside the trap for a week . Finally went in last night”. Two of our most fundamental virtues are patience and imparting the value of conservation and preservation to the younger generations. Congratulations gentlemen.
As the seasons are changing, even here in the South, we have had to make some changes at Hog Cutters HQ. To preserve our equipment and the vehicles we use to deliver and trap hogs – a new building was added to the property.
Our patience has paid off. The look on Mr John’s face says it all. This sounder makes 153 feral hogs removed from his property. Although that may not seem like many for some large scale trappers, for this small family farm it is a lot. The hogs here have proven to be very intelligent. Hog Cutters is very proud to be able to help great folks like Mr John with preserving their land, and their livelihood.
This particular Georgia trapper is continually pulling in small groups of hogs. Chipping away at the infestation group by group is progress any day of the week.
How time flies! It seems like ages ago we began fighting the hog crisis on our own land. Our tools were basic, and experience minimal. An old tractor, a box trap on a trailer, and a lot of effort were our tools for culling the hog population. Now with a lot more experience, some impressive technology from Jager Pro, a heavy duty truck, and a rugged ATV on hand, we are helping a lot of folks manage their losses to hog infestation. The wee boys on the trailer are a bit more helpful these days too
Our Alabama Lady trapper is continuing to pull in large numbers or large hogs consistently.
This Georgia family member had success 2 days in a row. This is the cull from day 1……
……. and 24 hours later. Well done!
Received this photo of a Northern Missouri farmer showing support for the Hog Cutters family! Looks like it is a place of honor next to some real nice artwork. Thank you folks!
Catching the Big One for 2019
On November 14 2019 at 0234 this BIG boar arrived at one of our own trap sites with 4 other hogs. After watching for any stragglers, we decided to drop the M.I.N.E Control gate.
Our great friend and trapping client, Mr John, decided to join us as we went out to the trap. Mr John and Hog Cutters have successfully trapped 140 hogs on his property, and is dedicated to eradicating the feral hog menace as much as possible. Even if it means helping us on a different landowner’s property at 3 in the morning!
Squeezing the big boar onto the atv trailer with the rest of our equipment. We were so thankful for the ATV set-up this night. It would have been a ton of work dragging these hogs out.
Rolling the big boar off the trailer.
Lining the whole group up for processing.
This piece was retrieved from the boar during processing. (The key is shown only for size reference.) It is a single sub-sonic 22 round. This simple piece of lead was responsible for taking down a boar of great size. We often find folks questioning how large a caliber is necessary to kill a feral boar. Our answer? It is not the size of the bullet, as much as proper approach and placement. The most effective shots are taken calmly and quietly at night. Preferably behind the hog’s ear.
Our business card for size comparison to the large boar’s head and cutters.
Finally getting this chunk onto the rig for processing.
As you can see, the large boar has maxed out our scale at 325 pounds. Our best estimation is a weight of over 350 pounds.
After removing all of the unusable flesh, fat, bone and “extras”, we add the quarters to our smokehouse. No seasoning, just smoky heat. The meat is pulled from the bone and placed in a bin for weighing and vacuum sealing. Here you can see the small amount of meat we can glean from a #350 boar. Although it seems like a lot of effort for little return, it is our practice to appreciate and use what we are given from the animals we kill. The meat is packed with high protein and no medications or man-made ingredients. Did we mention the meat tastes pretty good too?
Yes. This is the true weight of the meat we pulled from the roughly 350 pound boar. A 10% yield. With all 5 hogs processed from this trap the total amount is barely 100 pounds. Hard to believe, but true.
Fantastic news from our new Hog Cutters family in Alabama! New trap, first time dropping the Jager Pro gate, with a great catch of 12 feral hogs!! Congratulations and welcome. Thank you for sharing your success gentlemen.
A family member in Georgia shared some great results with us today. After setting up a trap site, and following a small groups movements with the MINE Camera system, the owner removed and re-arranged his panel and gate layout to accommodate their movements. Finally the hogs made their way in to the trap and he dropped the gate from his cell phone. Following guidance from Hog Cutters experienced trappers, he approached the trap on foot from a great distance. Using his Pulsar Thermal scope he was able to visualize a boar outside of the trap, and eliminate it with little difficulty. The remainder of the group was quickly and easily dispatched. Great Job Sir! Please enjoy the Video from the scope, and a surveillance photo from the Jager Pro MINE Camera.
When you have been trapping hogs consistently in the same vicinity for long periods of time, it may be necessary to change baiting strategy. Dried corn is Hog Cutters bait food of choice, with an occasional introduction of sour corn. Due to feral hog’s highly developed sense of smell, we are testing a new product from a molasses based deer baiting line. Here Zeb has cleared a small area, digging a shallow pit under the feeder in an active Jager Pro trap. Pouring the attractant in a pit on top of some of the feed corn with lengthen the amount of time hogs spend digging in the trap, and will also prevent run-off in case of wet weather. Obviously lengthening the time hogs spend in the trap can mean capturing more complete sounders. If you have had success with a particular type of bait for feral hogs, reach out and let us know. We love to discuss any tips or techniques that lead to eliminating higher numbers.
Veteran’s Day 2019 – Hog Cutters Zeb proudly stands by Josey’s side at his school’s assembly for those who have served in the United States Armed Forces. We are very proud to salute all of the Hog Cutters family members who have walked in service to the country.
Anatomy of a trap. Bringing you a look at the progression of a successful trap day. The following photos are from November 2, 2019 in South Georgia. You can see a photo from our Jager Pro ICE camera as the hogs approach the trap site, followed by photos from the MINE Control Camera in the site. We continued watching to confirm the total number of hogs in the sounder were securely within the trap boundary. A great view from the site comes to our cell phone app as we were finishing some work on our AgPro John Deere Tractor. The MINE camera also caught us with our long time client while pulling the hogs from the trap. Finally Mr John, Wyatt, and Zeb standing behind their success. This group makes a total of 140 aggressive and destructive hogs removed from Mr John’s property alone.
Good Morning Hog Cutters Family! While a lot of you have been having great success, we have been watching a particular trap site for quite some time with minimal results. As many of you know, we teach patience and strategy. Feral hogs are scientifically proven to be among the top 10 most intelligent species in the world. Often, trapping needs to be approached as a strategic exercise. This weekend we moved this trap from a less active area, to a position more in line with this sounder’s traffic patterns. We use a custom designed 5 x 8+ trailer, equipped to haul an entire trap with our ATV. This makes navigating densely grown areas much more possible. If you have questions, give us a call anytime. We are dedicated to making your fight against the feral hog crisis as accessible as possible.
A great 9 hog catch from our family in Arkansas last weekend. The landowners shared these fantastic photos with us, and we could not be more grateful. A family friend went along to assist with processing hogs at the trap site, and their lovely young daughter dropped her first feral hog . We are very proud to welcome Miss Faith Alberson to the Hog Cutters family! Look at that radiant smile. The story behind these photos demonstrates the values we hold dear; family, friendship, conservation and educating the next generation. We are sending Faith some Hog Cutters gear to welcome this special lady to the family.
As we prepare for the colder months when feral hogs begin their search for better food sources, Hog Cutters is working to make trapping supplies readily available to landowners in need. We recently left our headquarters in South Georgia and delivered a Jager Pro Rigid System to a new family member in Alabama, then continuing on to deliver several systems to our family representative Fred Choate in Arkansas. Turning northward we visited family in north and east Missouri, taking a break along the way to sit in God’s house to rest and reflect. Finally returning back to Georgia by way of the Jager Pro warehouse to restock equipment for our headquarters. Wishing all of our current and future Hog Cutters family members a successful and safe season.
A nice catch by some of our South Georgia family. Staying aggressive with feeding, watching, and dropping that Jager Pro gate is vital to the successful abatement of hogs from your property. With over 6 million hogs in only 39 states in the United States, constant vigilance is key.
Wild hog damage is not limited to peanut and corn fields. This group has done significant damage to a South Georgia farmer’s acres of blueberry crop. As always, Hog Cutters loves to see younger generations getting involved in the conservation and preservation of land and products. Welcome to the family young man!
Fantastic news from a new Florida Hog Cutters family member! Very successful first gate drop, especially considering the heat is still burning the area.
More excitement for our new Florida based family member. Here a curious boar takes advantage of the feeder.
After observing and confirming this boar was feeding alone, a quick command from his cell phone and the Jager Pro responds decisively. Securing the hog inside. Hog Cutters is very proud to have had a small part in this success.
South Georgia, September 26, 3:57 pm Contrary to popular belief, hogs do feed during the day and in hot weather. Patience is the key.
South Georgia, September 26, 10:05 pm Jager Pro for the WIN! Dropping the gate on these hogs while Wyatt is taking part in his 2nd pastime – baseball. Watched and dropped the gate from the bleachers.
South Georgia, September 27 1:00 am – The hogs we pictured coming in during the daylight during the 111* degree heat, came back after dark. We watched and waited for the older sow to come in and we dropped the gate.
Working with Farmer John to eliminate a whopping 133 hogs from his property. The intelligence and behaviors of wild hogs makes trapping an ongoing necessity. Patience and perseverance do pay off. The fight continues.
Several South Georgia boars removed from an active farm.
A South Georgia farmer continues trapping in hot weather, but wisely uses his tractor for the heavy lifting.
Putting the long weekend to good use by moving a Jager Pro Rigid Trap system to a new location on a farmer’s property. The Hog Cutters train (our set-up of truck, ATV and trailers) make for quick and efficient work. Experienced trappers will tell you, patience and flexibility are key components of successfully removing hogs.
Today Hog Cutters recorded our inspection of a Jager Pro trap that was dropped on a South Georgia farmer’s property. Hog Cutters does not recommend responding to trapped hogs during daylight hours, as the hogs prove to be calmer in the dark. However we wanted to give viewers a good look at this particular group. This highly intelligent sow has been extremely wary of our trap sites, and has been remotely viewed many times over several weeks approaching the trap, yet not entering. You notice how her efforts to ram the trap to escape are focused only on the gate itself. She is well aware of the gate being her means of ingress. The sow is also seen scenting the air for our team members location. Although the rigid system is designed to be easily portable, as you can tell this trap has been placed and allowed to be naturally camouflaged by live foliage. Today’s trapping brings the total feral hogs removed from this farmer’s property to 129!
Another Georgia customer having success with summer trapping.
A fantastic summer trapping success from a Hog Cutters family member in Alabama.
Hog Cutters young Wyatt has been showing some great capacity for photography lately. He caught his father and brother sharing a quiet moment during a recent morning of trapping.
Watching and waiting patiently provides great results for the Hog Cutters team and their Central Florida client. After remotely dropping the MINE gate on a group of hogs, Zeb knew very well to approach the trap quietly. Hearing a lone hog nearby, he located and surprised a good size boar and took another feral swine out of the harmful equation. Both Zeb and Wyatt using the knowledge and dedication they learned from their parents to preserve land and wildlife. If you take a good look at the close-up image of a smaller boar from inside the trap, you will notice his destructive cutters (tusks) and rough hide. In fact, if one has ever wondered where our company name is derived from, it is in reference to the dangerous “tusk” structures known throughout hog country as cutters.
While our feeders provide bait for hogs, other creatures take interest in a free meal. Small prey animals like mice, vole, squirrels, etc.will wander bait area, and are a perfect meal for large birds. Here a hawk was frequently using our M.I.N.E. Camera for a perch to scout for food, which eventually led to a shifting of the camera position. As you can see by the photos on the right, we were left with a less than ideal camera angle. A bit of ingenuity shown in the photo on the left shows our solution. On a side note, the technology used in our systems is definitely durable. The temps shown in the photos show accurate temperatures on 117* and 118* F.
Trapping hogs successfully takes time and patience. After routine baiting, a small group visited this site and did not return. Our experience has proven that you should never be too quick to drop a gate. This fact proven by the group returning with greater numbers.
This South Georgia farmer used to plant this field in peanuts or cotton. The hogs were so destructive with those crops he has now planted the field in pine trees. The feral hogs are continuing to destroy the pine saplings with rutting and other natural behaviors.
