Extreme Hunting Stories
2009 Free Range Hog Hunt
First, I must say the photo's
are not for everyone. As for
Jack (6 yrs old) he is ok, he
has not suffered any nightmares
nor do I feel he will become an
axe murderer in his adult life
due to this experience. He has a
television in his room that may
help him along with that!
Drove all Thursday night with no
complications. We met our
outfitter (Gabe Fraire) at 6:30
AM as we pulled into town,
unfortunately he experienced the
complications due to h is dog
handler and dogs not showing up
for our hunt. What a bummer,
this could have easily been the
end of our hunt, luckily our
group came with great attitudes
as we made our mind up to have a
good time no matter what! Our
outfitter appreciated that and
went on to show us a great hunt.
Friday by 9:00 AM Dylan our
birthday boy(13 yrs) took the
first hog with jack in tow. Gabe
took the boys by four wheeler
with his one dog and pushed a
500 plus acre swampy horse weed
infested field with both=2 0boys
hanging on for dear life as they
followed the dog on his first
solo hunt. 20 minutes into the
hunt, we heard a shot. The first
pig was down a 180 lb sow. I
cant imagine a better birthday
gift. The first couple photo's
are of the boys hauling in
Dylan's pig.
It's now 8:30 AM and we are
feeling much more confident in
our situation. We reposition our
post this time Gabe took Greg
G. back to where they left off
and started to re push the
overgrown field. As luck would
have it, Jack and I watched from
a levee as this little black dog
chased and fought the pig that
would soon find himself in my
cross hairs. It was about an 80
yard shot (made simple by my
recent Cabela's purchase of a
Harris bi pod). The pig charged
our way after the shot, Jack
didn't find much humor in this,
but it was short lived as the
pig went down at the foot of the
levee.
The rest of the morning we found
ourselves wishing we had a fresh
dog, one dog can only do so much
and this one had reached its
limit. Gabe didn't give up so
easy though. He used his four
wheeler to push out another
field, but by this time, nearing
noon the pigs had moved to the
timber to escape the mid day
sun. This Friday the temp was a
comfortable 75 degrees, but
apparently to a mostly black pig
its a little warm. The hunt was
over for us shortly after noon
and everyone accept Jack was
ready to hit the sack. Gabe
assured us that he would have
fresh dogs and additional
handlers ready at 6:00 AM
Saturday.
Seasoned hunters, two pigs down.
After a good nights sleep minus
the awful snoring, we met Gabe
and two local gentlemen Paul and
Phillip. These guys were tough,
hardcore dog runnin' hog
hunters. They were working on an
hours rest because they had
hunted all night with their
buddies. Gabe had informed them
of our predicament and they
graciously came to our aid. They
brought with them a
Black and Tan hound,
Kers, Kats and a couple bad a$$
pit bulls.
Our Saturday hunt started at the
same levee and horse weed field
that we took the two pigs out of
the day before. This time we had
the necessary ingredient for a
true Texas style hog hunt
(Knives and Dogs). The dogs were
released and we waited for the
first bark to turn into a bay
(this is when a dog has a pig
stopped). It wasn't long and we
had two separate bays, so we
split up. Myself, Jack, Dylan
and Greg followed Paul into the
horse weeds and Heath went in
with Gabe and Phillip .. I had
to put Jack on my shoulders, not
because he wanted to , but
because I was afraid I would
loose him in the chaos that was
about to take place. I could
hear dogs and pigs running every
direction, in fact I can say
with confidence that I felt at
anytime we could be over come by
a rushing pig. I pulled my side
arm a 45 Colt revolver just in
case, not that I can hit
anything with it. Jack could
hear them coming our way also,
he was certainly spooked. I
think at one point he was ready
to head back to the truck and I
didn't think that was a bad idea
either, but we stuck it out.
Sure enough we had what looked
like a 300 lb pig pass within 30
yards in front of us and another
which we never saw pass as close
behind us. The rest of our group
which didn't have a kid on their
shoulders had caught up with one
of the dogs which had pinned a
shoat pig which is a little
bigger than a piglet, but not
yet a full size pig. This turned
into Jacks first pig harvest.
Paul asked Jack if he wanted to
stick this pig? Jack said yes
and before Paul could finish
telling Jack where and how the
pig had been stuck. I know it
sounds brutal and probably is,
but you wont find a bigger grin
on a kids face than at that
moment. Mean while on the other
end of this ridiculous field
Heath had taken a 250 lb boar
and a second shoat. I wasn't
there to witness the
dog fight , but Heath
assured me that it was worth the
trip. The dogs work as a team
each has its strong point. The
hounds use their nose to track
and their strong heart and legs
to run down an animal that can
in spurts reach nearly 40 mph,
then when they bay the fighters
are released to pin the pig down
and take the fight out of them.
The pit bulls hit the pig with a
blow equal to a pounding hit
from a linebacker. They are not
always successful as a large
boar has sharp tusk and can do
allot of damage with their tank
like bodies. Luckily we were not
on the losing end of any of the
battles. After they wear the pig
out a good dog will try and pull
the pig to the ground by biting
the ear and dropping to the
ground forcing the pig down.
Five pigs harvested, always look
for deer antlers and watch out
for snakes.
Little did we know our pig
harvesting was complete, but we
followed the dogs long enough
for me to find a shed antler
which was my first Texas shed
(cool bonus). We also had a
close encounter with a poisonous
snake (Cotton Mouth) I can tell
you why they are called Cotton
Mouths due to the proximity of
the snakes mouth and my leg.
When I saw the snake I thought
it was one of the many pink
flowers that were in bloom in
the area, but it seemed to be
pulsing back and forth ever so
gently. Pink as in cotton candy
pink with one hell of a bite.
All in all it was a great
experience and I cant wait to go
back. Gabe will tailor your hunt
to your preference, bow hut out
of a stand in the morning, run
dogs late morning to mid day,
cook you lunch on site, back to
the stand mid afternoon and spot
light when the sun goes down. I
highly recommend Extreme
Hog Hunting with Gabe
Fraire, you wont be
disappointed.
