So I'm fairly new here, but have been lurking for years. Just got into trapping pigs helping my neighbor because apparently we are overrun with them. He cuts tons of hay and has close to 1200 acres total all around my house that I have access to. Anyway, these pigs are really doing a number on his fields, I mean bad. I set up a box trap and 2 different types of circle traps and have trapped a total of 7 in 10 days. My question is, why will they go in a box trap when it's up against tall grass at the pasture fence and not when it's in the middle of a cut field? I've moved it back and forth, baited exactly the same way, and they'll root up right next to the trap but won't go in it. Why would they care where it's located?

Brush it in with tumble weeds, crp grass, or hay. Lots of hogs have seen traps and aren't comfortable around them. In a big corral pen that's brushed up they'll go in, not even realize they're caught and continue to feed. This draws more pigs into the trap.

Leaving the door wired open the first week and them go in and feed without getting caught helps too.

like a good neighbor

catch you a mature sow, put her in a pen in the middle of a corral trap, you will have to provede some water & feed, its like telling the kids where the candy store is

Three problems with this:

1) In cool weather it's not so bad, but you'll still have to provide food and water regularly. In summer, without shade, the sow will die quickly.

2) The odds are pretty good that any sow you catch will already be bred.

3) In Texas, it's illegal to keep a hog more than seven days unless you have an approved facility. http://feralhogs.tamu.edu/frequently-asked-questions-wild-pigs/ (See item #47)

Thanks der teufel, that's some good info. I built a "pig corral" to hold some hogs that we were able to transfer from the trap to take to a buying station. Had no idea about the 7 day thing. Definitely gonna look into the permit. I'm not gonna get into the whole thing of using pigs to trap pigs, trapping and transferring to a holding facility is hard enough as it is. One thing I've learned, though...only deal with them when its dark. Those things are 100% bat$hit crazy in the daytime. Already had two knock the teeth out of their head ramming hog panel at full speed.

Like somebody else said, I just wired the trap door closed for a week or so till I was sure they were coming for the corn.