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Wild Pigs Doing $50-Million in Damage in Autauga County

By Hamilton Richardson

Elmore/Autauga News

On Thursday, September 29 at 4 p.m., the Autauga County Extension Office will be presenting a topic to the public that some might not see the gravity of discussing, yet many understand just how big the problem is.

The program entitled, Wild Pig Management: Beyond the Basics, will bring an ongoing issue of wild pigs and the destruction they can cause to the surface in Autaugaville Thursday afternoon.

Regional Extension Agent for Forestry, Wildlife & Natural Resources, Lynn Dickinson, said the organization’s Extension Agents are the “boots on the ground” when it comes to the issue of Wild Pig Management and other important trainings throughout the community.

“In addition to hosting and teaching workshops, we also work to serve the citizens of our assigned counties personally by helping them troubleshoot different issues they are experiencing,” Dickinson said.

There are several reasons for the wild pig situation the county is in, the agent said.

“Pigs are not native to North America. They were introduced by the settlers and were allowed to roam freely,” she explained. “That’s how it started, but pigs begin reproducing at six months and have several litters a year. It is very difficult to manage a species that reproduces as early and often as wild pigs do.” 

Dickinson said that the service doesn’t have definitive up-to-date estimates of the damage that wild pigs can do, but the last numbers were around $55 million a year.

“I suspect that’s a little low given some recent numbers in Georgia are around $98 million a year,” she added. “Wild pigs can cause major damage to the landscape. They dig out huge ruts in the land. A large sounder of pigs can destroy a pasture very quickly. Farmers typically see pig damage, which means loss of crops. I’ve seen ruts big enough to get a tractor stuck. They also like wooded areas, especially if there is longleaf pine that’s still in the grass stage present. Wild pigs will pull them out of the ground and eat them.”

That is one reason that the Extension Service is trying to get the word out to the public.

“They affect both the agricultural industry and landowners alike. The damage they create causes loss of potential income in addition to the costs of repairing the land,” Dickinson commented. “Pigs are hard to manage. One reason is that hunters like to hunt pigs too, so people have transported them into areas where they previously weren’t found. Another reason is the large population. There are several trapping methods that are effective in controlling the population and research is still underway for a toxicant, but I think the biggest takeaway is educating the public in not only how to trap them but also not to transport them.”

During the workshop, the extension will discuss the top 10 mistakes in pig control, updates on the soil and water conservation committee’s feral swine program, and trapping options and equipment demonstrations.

For more information on the Wild Pig Management workshop or to contact the Autauga County Extension Office, go online to www.aces.edu/counties/autauga