Uhunt Mag Information

• Posted By : UHUNT APP - Jesse Farr
• Posted On : Feb 05, 2020
• Views : 2217
• Likes : 9
• Category : PIG DOGGING » STORIES
• Description : The wind was in our favor so the pigs hadn't sensed us yet.

Overview

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  By Bella & Nick 
  
  Over the last few weeks, Nick and I had been focusing our efforts on shooting foxes. However Nick has started seeing more sign and even more pigs on the station as he made the usual rounds doing jobs about the place. So this past weekend we decided to go for a walk around a big patch of saltbush surrounding one of the dams with one of our dogs, Rex, and the shotgun to see what we could find. Rex took himself off a few times but came back dry. We got to the dam, and once more Rex took off into the saltbush and this time we could hear he was on to something. As we tried to catch up to him a big spotty boar came barrelling past us through a clearing however Rex was not in tow! With no other dogs we let off two shots from the Miroku at about 60 meters but the boar was too fast and didn’t even look sideways at us before ploughing back into the scrub. We chased after it calling Rex, who caught up, but at that point the pig had outrun us. We walked back to the ute and drove it down to the dam in a last-ditch effort to find the run-away pig. No such luck, however it was the lucky day for a poor little shingle back lizard which we spied stuck in the mud on the bank of the dam.
  
  
  
   I plucked the lizard out of the mud which was thick and sticky, caked all over its body. It was right on sunset, and my experience with wildlife rehab combined with the fact that it is still cool weather meant I decided to bring it home to ensure the reptile’s survival. After a warm bath to get the clay-like mud off it, I set it up in its new temporary home where it will be kept safe, warm and given a chance to fatten up before I release it back where I found it in about a month when the weather has warmed up. I knew we would be going back to look for the spotty boar the next week. As planned, we did head out again the following weekend in pursuit of the one that got away. We approached the same patch of saltbush on foot, same as last time but we had a few extra dogs with us in an attempt to ensure he wouldn’t slip us again. Roughly 600 meters from where we had parked the ute the dogs got on to a bristly little sow who we guessed to weigh around 45 kilos. Although we were disappointed it wasn’t the boar we were after we were still stoked to have one on the scoreboard. Further walking through the scrub didn’t produce any more pigs, so we got back to the ute to check out a different paddock.
  
  We started down the fence line when to our surprise we spied a mob of about ten pigs out in the open not far from the cover of another patch of saltbush, but we were on the wrong side of the fence! Amongst them was what we could see was a sizeable black boar. The wind was in our favor so the pigs hadn’t sensed us yet, we were able to back away unnoticed to cross onto the better side. Nick was driving and absolutely hammered it down the track, in an attempt to get between the mob and their cover; it worked! 
  
  They didn’t see us until it was too late and they had nowhere to hide. We stopped fast and flung the doors open in the hope that the dogs may go for different pigs however, together they pursued a mid-sized boar that we reckon would have been around 40kg. As I followed hot on the dog’s heels I yelled at Nick to drive on and shoot the big pig. I heard the shots and shortly after I saw him making his way back in my direction. 
  
  
  
  Perfect timing, as the dogs had been bailing the little boar and decided to lug up but in my rush to keep pace I had left the knife with Nick! He came in and did the deed, then explained that he had shot the big boar in what he thought was a lethal spot but had lost sight of it as it reached the saltbush. We took the dogs to where the boar was last seen and not far away they got on to him. He was nearly expired but still had the last bit of fight in him so the dogs helped protect us as Nick sent him quickly on his way. 
  
  Looking at the pig, we observed that he was an old, healthy, broad bodied pig and he was covered in tusk rips from opponents. We tried to get him up on the winch to weigh him, but the oil has leaked out of the jack to the point it won’t lift, and we couldn’t get him off the ground any other way. Comparing him to the other boar we got a few weeks ago we estimated this pig to be about 80kg. He wasn’t the spotty boar we were chasing, but we were still pleased to have ended the sheep-terrorizing days of this warrior.
  
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