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  1. #1
    Registered User Kookork's Avatar
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    Default What do you do in a wild Boar attack?



    If you are hundred percent sure that you will never be attacked by a mother Wild boar protecting her piglets while on any trail then this thread has nothing for you but with increasing population of wild boars in many states of the USA someday it may happen to some hikers and I would be delighted to find out that reading this thread has helped somebody from an injury that could be quite serious in some cases.

    Years before when I was stitching up a badly injured farmer from a wild boar attack back home I ask him what happened and he said “ She just came out of nowhere with her piglets and attacked me”. I asked so why you did not make a move to get out of her way when she attacked you?

    He started to think for awhile and then nodded his head in despair and simply said: I don’t know.

    What do you do if you find a car is charging toward you ? do you standstill ?
    No you just jump left or right to give the car the space to pass. Do the same to a wild boar charging toward you. The difference is critical though.

    You can jump out of the way a car at any moment but with a raging wild boar it should be at last moment. Just like a Spanish matador which moves his flag at the last possible moment.

    I have seen a group of wild dogs avoided the wild boar Tusks for about an hour to catch some of her piglets and If you ask Wild boar hunters they do the same.

    The worst thing is keeping your ground. Mother Wild boar when charging very rarely changes her mind at the last moment. They normally attack once to break the situation but even if they turn back to another attack the rules are the same, empty the ground in the last safe possible moment.


    Please do not put yourself in a group that when asked why you did not move you nod your head and say: I just don’t know.

  2. #2
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    A Google search reveals the most common defense against a wild boar attack is to climb a tree. If you can't do that, hope you have a pig sticker knife and run it through like a bullfighter.

    Of course if you actually got into a fight with a wild boar on the trail and survived you'd end up with one hell of a trail name and probably receive special mention in the ATC Hall of Fame.


    Cheers!
    Last edited by Spokes; 10-25-2011 at 09:41.

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    Then start collecting lots of firewood & make a spit. Be real trai majic.

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    I saw some running along the AT in Smokies last month. The bears now seem a lot less dangerous.
    The mountains are calling and I must go.
    - John Muir

    http://postholer.com/revlee

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    There has never been a feral pig attack on the Appalachian Trail.
    The trouble I have with campfires are the folks that carry a bottle in one hand and a Bible in the other.
    You never know which one is talking.

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    There's a first time for everything

  7. #7
    Registered User Doc Mike's Avatar
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    Contrary to the common misconception, wild boar/feral hogs are not that maternal. I've hunted them many times and have frequently caught the young in an attempt to have the mother return. Out of the 20-30 try's never did the mother return no matter how loud the piglet sqeals. However when cornered or threatened they can be very dangerous and I've had several close calls that way.
    Lead, Follow, or get out of the way. I'm goin hikin.

  8. #8
    Registered User scope's Avatar
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    Default advice?

    OMG, seriously, KooKoo?!? This is "advice"?!?

    So, really, what you're saying is that we should indeed stand our ground and then only jump away at the last moment.... instead of turning and running right away? I'll just stand there and try to look big and tall and then go all Jan van Beveren on it right before it gets to me.

    And that's it, right? Then its over and I can go change my pants!?
    Last edited by scope; 10-25-2011 at 11:39. Reason: clarification
    "I wonder if anyone else has an ear so tuned and sharpened as I have, to detect the music, not of the spheres, but of earth, subtleties of major and minor chord that the wind strikes upon the tree branches. Have you ever heard the earth breathe... ?"
    - Kate Chopin

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    Quote Originally Posted by scope View Post
    OMG, seriously, KooKoo?!? This is "advice"?!?

    So, really, what you're saying is that we should indeed stand our ground and then only jump away at the last moment.... instead of turning and running right away? I'll just stand there and try to look big and tall and then go all Jan van Beveren on it right before it gets to me.

    And that's it, right? Then its over and I can go change my pants!?
    Wild boars do not attack from a distance. They just attack if they are cornered in close contacts so they very rarle give you a chance to turn back and run. If the distace between you and the boar is enough then they donot feel cornered so why should they attack.

    And this jumping on a tree, How many trees around the trail practically are suitable for climbig them in less than a second? It is doable in some short trees canopies and not so much in other stertches.

    So, If you have time and there as a easily climbable tree then go for it but in sudden encounters just god help you to find a tree or time to escape.

  10. #10

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    I've seen hundreds of pigs over the years and got "mocked charged" once after scattering a group atop a high foggy bald---the rest ran off and the leader circled back and charged but stopped a few feet in front of me. We grunted at about the same time and he took off. Another time I scared up a group and they charged past while I stood behind a tree. As usual with the outdoors, people highlight certain risks way beyond normal and instill fear which seems to be an American pastime. It's always about rattlesnakes or bears or pigs but never about the real dangers---cold rain induced hypothermia, or falling trees/tree limbs, or falling while wearing a heavy pack, or random lightning strikes. These are the things backpackers should be concerned with. Forget the pigs. But then we wouldn't have the long threads on which handgun is the best for bear attacks or pig snarlings. You can't exactly drool over a weapon in a lightning storm and shoot out the sky, ergo the conversation soon turns to personal defense, a very boring topic.

  11. #11
    Registered User Kookork's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Doc Mike View Post
    Contrary to the common misconception, wild boar/feral hogs are not that maternal. I've hunted them many times and have frequently caught the young in an attempt to have the mother return. Out of the 20-30 try's never did the mother return no matter how loud the piglet sqeals. However when cornered or threatened they can be very dangerous and I've had several close calls that way.
    You had a gone in your hand and an intention to hunt her. She is not stupid to risk her life for just one piglet. Contrary to general believe I found wild boars very intelligent and I expect them to feel and understand the differences between a hunter and a hiker in a short period of time after moving to a new area which has both hunters and hikers.

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    I think Tipi Walter hit the nail on the head. Time to close the thread...

  13. #13
    Registered User Kookork's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Tipi Walter View Post
    I've seen hundreds of pigs over the years and got "mocked charged" once after scattering a group atop a high foggy bald---the rest ran off and the leader circled back and charged but stopped a few feet in front of me. We grunted at about the same time and he took off. Another time I scared up a group and they charged past while I stood behind a tree. As usual with the outdoors, people highlight certain risks way beyond normal and instill fear which seems to be an American pastime. It's always about rattlesnakes or bears or pigs but never about the real dangers---cold rain induced hypothermia, or falling trees/tree limbs, or falling while wearing a heavy pack, or random lightning strikes. These are the things backpackers should be concerned with. Forget the pigs. But then we wouldn't have the long threads on which handgun is the best for bear attacks or pig snarlings. You can't exactly drool over a weapon in a lightning storm and shoot out the sky, ergo the conversation soon turns to personal defense, a very boring topic.
    You are right. The real danger is statistically somewhere else. I know something about wild boars and share. You've had some experiences about Lightning strike for example and share. That is the way I donot need to have my own experinces to know what to do in lightning strikes.

  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by Kookork View Post
    You are right. The real danger is statistically somewhere else. I know something about wild boars and share. You've had some experiences about Lightning strike for example and share. That is the way I donot need to have my own experinces to know what to do in lightning strikes.
    You must be troll !! Otherwise I can not myself contain. Two of you have mighty fine experiences, no?!!
    "I wonder if anyone else has an ear so tuned and sharpened as I have, to detect the music, not of the spheres, but of earth, subtleties of major and minor chord that the wind strikes upon the tree branches. Have you ever heard the earth breathe... ?"
    - Kate Chopin

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    flame thrower is best. kills and BBQs em at the same time.(make sure boar is within a fire ring).

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    I can only speak for Georgia wild pigs, but we have a bunch of them down here. I hunt them and I know dozens of hunters that are either in the woods hunting them or in the woods with them frequently. I have never heard of anyone being charged, attacked, cut, or had any kind of encounter with a wild pig in which they did not run away. I know people that hunt them with dogs that have been injured when trying to stab or tie up a pig that has been bayed by dogs but that is a different matter.

    As far as walking along, pig charges...I can pretty much say it never happens around here and we have a lot of pigs.

    I can confidently say it it did happen to me I would hop onto a tree or tree branch and pull my legs up out of the pigs reach.

    I did have one chase my 18lb dog (terrier mix) after he ran across a field after a mother with piglets. My dog wasn't sure what that was but he wanted to go check it out, maybe chase it maybe play with it. Once he got down there he decided he wanted anything to do with it. The mother stood her ground, my dog tried to go check them out and she chased him maybe 200 yards in one direction then back 100 yards the other direction. I took a shot at the pig but hit behind her (250 yards running, I was hesitant to aim too far ahead because my dog was up in front). I missed but the sound scared her back into the woods and my dog ran back to me with wide eyes and a new respect for sticking close to his Dad at the hunting land, I think.

  17. #17
    Registered User Kookork's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by TyTy View Post
    I can only speak for Georgia wild pigs, but we have a bunch of them down here. I hunt them and I know dozens of hunters that are either in the woods hunting them or in the woods with them frequently. I have never heard of anyone being charged, attacked, cut, or had any kind of encounter with a wild pig in which they did not run away. I know people that hunt them with dogs that have been injured when trying to stab or tie up a pig that has been bayed by dogs but that is a different matter.

    As far as walking along, pig charges...I can pretty much say it never happens around here and we have a lot of pigs.

    I can confidently say it it did happen to me I would hop onto a tree or tree branch and pull my legs up out of the pigs reach.

    I did have one chase my 18lb dog (terrier mix) after he ran across a field after a mother with piglets. My dog wasn't sure what that was but he wanted to go check it out, maybe chase it maybe play with it. Once he got down there he decided he wanted anything to do with it. The mother stood her ground, my dog tried to go check them out and she chased him maybe 200 yards in one direction then back 100 yards the other direction. I took a shot at the pig but hit behind her (250 yards running, I was hesitant to aim too far ahead because my dog was up in front). I missed but the sound scared her back into the woods and my dog ran back to me with wide eyes and a new respect for sticking close to his Dad at the hunting land, I think.
    Is it fair if I say in a sentence : Iranian dogs big or small never bite ust because they are Iranian.

    By almost the same Token It is hard for me to accept what you said about Georgian wild boars. I give you that an attack to hiker would be extremly rare by a mother wild boar but their defence mechanism about their piglets is an instinc deep inside their Genome and it is the same all over the world so your statement that:
    "As far as walking along, pig charges...I can pretty much say it never happens around here and we have a lot of pigs." is not accurate. Wild boars rarely attch humans but they certainly do in some occasionsand statistic shows it happens all over the world. Here is mostly hunting accidents and it is a good sign to not to be worried that much.

  18. #18
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    Quote Originally Posted by Kookork View Post
    You had a gone in your hand and an intention to hunt her. She is not stupid to risk her life for just one piglet. Contrary to general believe I found wild boars very intelligent and I expect them to feel and understand the differences between a hunter and a hiker in a short period of time after moving to a new area which has both hunters and hikers.
    Based on that logic of the "thinking pig" from what you are saying all one would have to do is carry a stick and rub a little gun powder on your clothes and all pigs would stay away from you. Really??? I think your trail/thread handle should be THINKING PIG.
    "You have brains in your head/You have feet in your shoes/You can steer yourself in any direction you choose." - Dr. Seuss

  19. #19
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  20. #20
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    Quote Originally Posted by 4Bears View Post
    Based on that logic of the "thinking pig" from what you are saying all one would have to do is carry a stick and rub a little gun powder on your clothes and all pigs would stay away from you. Really??? I think your trail/thread handle should be THINKING PIG.
    If you act like a real hunter and not like a scared person who knows he has a gunpowdered stick and not a gun they might really be scared of you. Chances are, some are going to crap in thier pants which may dominates the smell of gunpowder.

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