How can I protect myself from wild boars without killing them?

Question

I´m currently working in a remote area where there are some streams and overgrown brambles all around... and wild boars too!

Yesterday evening one of these animals got really close to me, I guess we were invading its territory or something, I couldn't see the boar because of the dense undergrowth but it grunted loudly and it was no more than 30ft away from me. And I must say it wasn´t funny at all, especially considering I was unarmed and totally unable to run away because there were only nasty spiky bushes around me, not even a tree to climb to safety. I waited quietly for a few minutes and could hear it grunting again from time to time. It was pretty obvious it had no intention to go away so I finally managed to slowly retrace my steps back to an open area.

Next week I have to go there again and I don´t want to live a similar experience again, but if something happens I want to be prepared for it at least.

So how can I protect myself from these animals?

And the most important: WITHOUT KILLING THEM. If I wished to kill them I wouldn´t need to ask anybody for advice, I´d just buy a shotgun!

A friend told me about using a taser, but I find that idea pretty ridiculous... probably that won´t be effective against wild boards, and who knows if it could even start a fire in such a bushy area.

I think the key could be using some kind of smell to repel them, not sure.

Any ideas?

Answer 1

Share your computer with internet service you're using way out in the wilds there. Maybe they're just jealous.

Answer 2

Make alot of noise. It don't take much to make a hog feel cornered. When it does you DO need to be careful. If you want to trust your nerves to hit those little beady as close as 15 yards with a can of mace then be my guest. I've hunted and tracked hogs as well as worked in the woods and been out on the lease more days than not. The are aggressive it they feel threatened, and that's not too hard to do. Unfortunately, you'll either need to make sausage or noise.

Answer 3

In your case the best answer would be to use pepper spray in the hogs eyes. If it turns back bear, it should work on a hog.Mace should work also. The crossbow is not a good idea. It would be deadly on a hog standing broadside, but a frontal shot would be useless, and only serve to make the hog madder.

Answer 4

You had better buy or borrow a pistol or take a dog with you , a taser will just p**s it off especially if it has babies!*

Answer 5

G'day mate i don't think Mace will work.pig's have a very sensitive nose if they cant see you he can smell you and probably still attack you.the best thing is to wear after shave and hope the wind is in yr favour  to blow the cent around so he smells you and wont come near you.and also sprinkle some around the area yr working in so no matter the direction the wind is blowing in he will smell you and stay away.If that don't  work get a gun.and get yr wife to set up a spit roast we are having pork for dinner .cheers mate

Answer 6

This is the simple and obvious answer, you can't.  Hogs should be killed and there are even conservation agencies that request feral hogs be shot on sight.  The idea that you are going to use a taser or bear mace is ludicrous, and may get you injured.  The best defense against wild boars is to stay out of the woods.  Obviously that is not an option for you so you need to ask yourself, "what is my life worth?"  I hope you value your life more than the hog's life.  The odds are you are never going to be attacked by a boar, but why risk it?  Get the shotgun you have been trying to avoid, learn to shoot it, and use slugs or 00 buckshot.

Answer 7

Face the facts Jack!!!!..... Your in the brush with a wild animal..... You go in the brush with a rifle..... That's right - a Gun!!!.... Nobody says you have to shoot anything.... If an animal is coming to close then just fire the weapon in a safe direction away from the critter.... In 99% of most cases the hog will take off when you do that... And in the rare occasion he might charge you then you will have some form of protection....

This isn't bambi land or some animal cartoon... A pissed off boar will wreck you like theres no tomorrow. Only a brainless boob would be out in the brush without a firearm.... A 12 gauge shotgun would be just fine...

This model Mossberg 500 has a 20 inch barrel and is easy to use in a confined space... its a #50577

http://www.mossberg.com/images/Mossberg_...

http://www.mossberg.com/products/default...

Answer 8

In Wyo. I once crossed paths with a Badger while rock hounding, first time in my life I was ever threatened by any wild life except for a rattle snake, that old badger hunkered down I knew if I took another step he would be right on me fortunately had my little Beretta .22 on me, pop-ed a round in the air and the old badger took off, don't believe in killing any thing except mice & rats for no real reason.  Would suggest you carrie a pistol, rifle is not handy if your working and handling other tools a pistol can be carried right on you while your doing other things.    

Answer 9

The best advice if you don't want to arm yourself is don't be where they are

Hogs are means as h**l and unpredictable and capable of giving you a life changing injury in seconds

buy the shotgun

Just because you have it doesn't mean that you will automatically turn into a hog killing fiend

I don't know what your issue with firearms is but that is your best option you can still avoid confrontation

A crossbow will be effective only of you can take careful aim and get off the shot  if you take that much time and miss you are screwed because there will be no follow up

In order for the bow to be remotely effective you will have to carry it charged which will be infinitely more unsafe that carrying a loaded shot gun or holstered handgun

As far as the taser idea

Pain compliance devices only work on animals that acknowledge pain

Answer 10

Hey look, that stuff about wild boars not attacking people isn't true. Sure, they won't every time, but they do and will go after you if they feel you are encroaching on their territory. If they make a charge and see you can't protect yourself they will smell blood and become emboldened. When one boar attacks you could have 10 on you, especially if they hurt you, then you are done and all they will find is bones when they come to look for you.

I can understand your not wanting to kill them, that is up to you, but it could come down to you or them. In heavy brush you can't do much. You could make noise, but that might make them mad and bring them to you. You could blow pepper spray all over to keep them out, but that would get to you too. Maybe a tape of dogs barking, but you can never tell what will make them run as opposed to setting them off. These are very smart animals, smarter than dogs in their own habitat, probably smarter than you and me in their own area of practice (meaning what they deal with day to day).

The best thing you could do is go in with help, take a couple of guys with you. I'd have them armed one with shot gun and at least one with a good heavy game stopping round or another shotgun with slugs which are probably the best (no stinking scoped deer rifles which would be about useless in the bushes with boars), but that's up to you. You can have weapons and not use them unless you have to. It's better to have them and not need them, but you will feel really regretful if you needed them and didn't have them, trust me, no matter how much you love animals it's hard to love them when they are ripping you a new one. Sheer numbers will make them back down, but the guys better have weapons of at least some kind if only thick staffs. It wouldn't hurt to wear some really thick protective clothes either.

Now don't get me wrong, you will probably have no trouble with them at all. If you go in someones yard with their territorial dog it probably won't attack you either, but do you want to bet on it? Every pig is different, and some are just downright nasty and mean like some dogs. Better to be ready for the worst, because it could be that it occurs, probably not, but it's better to be safe than stupid.

Answer 11

Climb a tree

Buy some bear mace

Other then that, you have no choice but to kill them, they won't think twice about killing you and eating you.

Answer 12

Aside from wounded hogs, about the only time a hog attacks is if they are suprised or cornered (especially with piglets). Hogs don't charge just to charge and the danger they pose is grossly overstated.

Because it's so thick the hogs are going to have a hard time seeing you and it's very likely that the grunting noise being made was just him going about his daily business.

I would just use the same tactic that people in bear country use

1. Talk to yourself outloud

2. Carry a hiking stick with bell on it

But I still don't think you are in much danger.

Answer 13

since hogs have a great sense of smell you just need to attack their sense of smell. telephone company people working in remote areas use moth balls.just spread them in the outer areas around where you will be working. they will then not come anywhere near you.

-----------retired texas deputy sheriff-----------

Answer 14

Climbing a tree is pretty much your only option in such a situation. Bear mace isnt going to be very effective if your in heavy overgrowth.

Why are you so worried about "not killing them"? They are feral hogs.. they dont belong in our wilderness anyways. They destroy habitat, fresh water and compete directly with native species for food. Shoot the suckers.. or risk getting stuck by some tusks.

Feral hogs have tusks that rub together as the hog chews. They rub together in such a way as to always keep them razor sharp and I personally have been stuck so badly before that I had to be stitched up.

Got any firecrackers? That MIGHT work!

Answer 15

What is your problem with shooting them?  Just curious...   Feral hogs are nasty rotten animals that are non-native, carry all kinds of diseases, damage the environment, kill lots of other game species and damage crops.  A taser is a silly idea.  Bear spray may work.  Most pigs will leave you alone.  I'm sorry, if you are going to work where hogs live you'd better be prepared to shoot.

A Crossbow?!  (roll eyes) Look, why not just learn to use a shotgun - sure, they go bang and are sorta scary but an irritable boar with 3" tusks or a sow with piglets is a lot more scary.

Answer 16

they sell cans of bear mace.. large cannisters that shoot mace to about 15 ft.  That will get them away from you without killing them.

any gun shop will sell em. might need an Firearm ID card to purchase it though!  

Answer 17

First let me say I do know what you mean and how you felt. Been there done that! Had to help my grandfather run a barb wire fence through dense foliage in the Ozarks in the 60’s. Had hogs about and I was scared spit less! But none attacked us, however my uncle had 130 stitches in his leg from one that did. Here is what their jaw looks like;

http://www.noble.org/Ag/Wildlife/FeralHo...

Here is a good read about them;(deer hunter killed)

http://newagnews.tamu.edu/stories/WFSC/J...

I can tell you from first hand experience that hogs seldom attack humans unless they are cornered, near their young or injured. But they have attacked and killed however this is VERY rare. I would carry a handgun at least a .357 revolver, a .44 magnum better. But bear spray has worked for hogs here is a site that sells bear spray, you will note that one customer used their product on a hog with good results;

http://www.udap.com/othertestimonials.ht...

So if a gun is out of the question use bear spray.

They can be incredibly fast so carry the can in a holster on your belt not in your pocket.

Note; A cross bow may kill it but wont stop it and is very slow to reload. You don’t want an angry hog with an arrow or bolt in it chasing you. A shotgun with slugs or buck shot would be far better.

I have used bear spray on big mean brown bears and it worked as long as you hit the face. Wind and heavy rain can prevent bear spray from working well otherwise it works great.

Answer 18

Feral hogs should be killed.  They are not native to North America and do a lot of damage to cropland and wildlife habitat.  That's why many states have no closed season or bag limits on them.  Stop being so sensitive and get a gun.  I suggest a .30-06 or a .308 rifle.  I've never eaten wild hog but I'll bet its much better than domestic pork.

Answer 19

Keep this thought in mind, I can tell you are obviously against hunting, but wild hogs are considered vermin in most places and will do serious damage to the area they are in. Perhaps if you like the area you are in you should consider thinning them out a little bit. I would never go into an area wtih animals that could be agressive and attack are known to be without a firearm. Be pretty crappy to be onthe downwind side of your pepper spray stream or no trees around. Im not so sure a taser would go into a hogs hide far enough to even do more than tick it off. It might but do ya really want to chance it?

Man arrows kill by hemorhaging, not shock like a bullet, therefore unless you hit the spinal cord or brain you will still get mauled before the animal dies. If you want effectice protection you need a gun, id suggest a large bore revolver at the least. 44 mag and up.

Answer 20

Forget it. The boars won't charge if you leave them alone. What you heard was a hog feeding, and he didn't pay you any attention. If one snaps his tusks at you, that's a challenge, and you can simply back away slowly (without turning around). The ones you have to worry about are the sows, and they'll only go after you if you threaten their pigs. Boars sometimes eat their children, so sows have to be pretty aggressive in protecting their babies. That's unlikely in the extreme, and a tree is your only effective passive defense, but it's so unlikely that there's no reason to get paranoid about it.

A bow won't do. I hunt with a bow, but it isn't non-lethal as your question asked about, and it isn't fast enough in the kill to be protective.

Answer 21

Well if i was you i would carry a hand gun my preference 357 mag and fire warning shots. that way if you are put in a perdicament where that does not work atleast you will be able to protect yer self. Them boars got some 3 in razors under their lips.

Better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it.