I have a question about hog traps that have a guillotine type door, I wanted to know if they are illegal to use in Texas to trap hogs. The reason I ask is that my Father in laws friend has one and when I asked to use it as I don't have a trap, my father told me that he had heard from another friend within that circle that they were illegal to use to trap hogs because they were inhumane to the animals as they have been known to break the backs/spine of the hog from when the door is tripped leaving the hog crippled and suffering. I just wanted to know if there was any truth to that before I set out the trap. I have searched on the Texas parks of Wildlife Dept. website but can't seem to find a clear answer....SO if anyone has any info on this I would really appreciate the feedback. Thanks....

Nope not illegal. Used them for years.

I've got a big hog trap with that type door. Works great and the door is probably 8 feet from the trigger. Never had a hog damaged by the door, though a hog has never left the trap alive.

Took me a while to develop a good reliable trigger mechanism, but all is good now.

Thanks for the replies, I kind of thought it wasn't illegal to use the guillotine door hog traps but wanted to know for sure....

The guillotine is my favorite design! Leaves much more room in the trap than other styles. 603Country is right about the trigger, this is the design I came up with. The photos are not the best but the teflon block rides on a roller bearing on the actual trigger. Getting it down to about 5 pounds is not a trick. I had to redesign the bellcrank to make the trigger heavier (this trap is for bobcats).

mine has the ol pin with string attached going to a 2x2 plywood put the corn on. caught 3 hogs, none with injured back. as far as gullatine beijg illegal, they went ta hanging years ago, electric chair ta leathal injection. I stick with the firing squad my self. corn out 20 yards from trap climb in trap shut gate & wait. hog traps are like killing hogs with gun. .22 vs 50cal. bigger the gun, trap more effective. as u (destroyer) stated, have ta use what one can aford. best wishes.

Really like gollygee's design. Might just steal that on my next build.

Good man!

x2

No they are not illegal in Texas, I have several of them and have trapped hundreds of hogs in them (guillotine type) and only had one that I "think" was injured by the door. They all get one to the head with my 22 pistol anyway unless the rare occasion that I want to hobble one for dog training or if someone wants one to fatten up more.

I have caught 13 so far in a large guillotine trap this past month.

The most I ever caught at once in my big pen trap was, I think, 16 pigs of various sizes. And once I caught a massive stinking tusk hog and that was the only time I thought the trap might not hold.

For my pen trap door, I took some treated 4x4 and sank them in the ground about 2 feet apart and put a top brace on. The 4x4's had grooves I had cut in them for the door to slide up and down (Woodworking is my retirement hobby). I made the door of treated 3/4 inch plywood, the edges of which are highly greased. The trigger is set pretty light and is wire connected to a simple release that goes across the shallow hole where I put the corn. Pig sticks snout in hole, triggers door. Pig is caught. It's like Alcatraz in that only one big pig ever escaped - by jumping out of the pen. That was the Michael Jordan of pigs, I suppose.

The pen is made of that heavy steel panel wire with the rectangular squares. I finally had to wrap the bottom of the pen with old cyclone fence wire, because some little ones were able to squeeze out.

One minor problem is that I cannot figure a way to keep the deer from going in there and triggering the door. They just jump out, but it keeps me from catching more pigs.

could try putting some old smelly socks bye door ta keep deer out it's why quite using my trap, deer can't jump out

Stainless steel rod for the trigger works great also, you have to put it at an angle with a pivot point but it allows you to adjust poundage.

had mine sprong segeral times before caught a hog, camo them