I know this is a long shot but would anybody be willing to share some tips on connecting with land owners (in North Texas) to help them with their hog problem? I had a lease in Meridian until the owners passed and the kids sold it.

I'm not looking to get paid, just seems like a mutually beneficial arrangement. Or if anybody is in NTX and would like a hog hunting buddy feel free to DM.

Thanks and Best

This is an answer I wrote elsewhere that you might find insightful...

Hog hunting has become a business, and that is part of the problem. As a person who does what you want to do, I have come to realize that one of my biggest hurdles to deal with is earning the trust of landowners in a very short period of time and that is made difficult by the fact that they have virtually all had somebody there already who “wanted to HELP them with their hog problem” who did them wrong.

The issue at hand is that these former helpers have been anything other than helpful. They weren’t there to actually help the landowner, but were there because they wanted a place to hunt for free when it was convenient for them to hunt. These helpers have often violated the trust of the landowner by doing things such as leaving open gates that should be closed, leaving trash behind, shooting animals for which they don’t have permission, using the landowner’s property as a gun range, camping on the property, going “muddin” in a pasture after a rain, and/or damaging facilities or equipment.

Here is an excellent example of what I am talking about. I was helping a buddy on one of his landowner properties. The winter wheat was just sprouted and we see this guy drive into the pasture and start doing donuts. The following video catches the end of that event taken through a thermal scope. It is a bit after 2:00 am and my buddy gets on the phone to the landowner and says, “Hey, we are out here in your pasture and we are watching some guy do donuts in his truck….” Come to find out, the guy doing donuts is a coyote hunter who had permission to hunt coyotes on the property. He wasn’t even supposed to be on the property that night. It is this sort of behavior that will sour landowners from getting future help. This guy rutted up 4 or 5 acres we later learned. It wasn’t his first time.

Here is the video…



The trick is to get in with one landowner. That can be tough. I have gone door to door, run an ad in the paper, tried to get with property owning relatives of my friends with very little luck. I would guess I have about a 95% failure rate. Doing all of that is time consuming. However, when you get in with your first client, you must do absolutely right by that person and that person will eventually become ad advocate to his neighbors/friends and your potential may spread.

I now service about a dozen properties. Each one has a different set of rules as each has a different landowner. On some I hunt ONLY hogs. On others I hunt hogs and coyotes. On one property, I can shoot any legal animal so long as it isn’t deer, mountain lion, fox, jackrabbit, or livestock. On some, I can let the dead hogs lay in the pasture. On some, I have to carry the carcasses to a bone yard/designated area. On some, I can have a guest for which I am responsible. On some, there is no way in hell that I can have a guest. Some landowners want me to notify them before I hunt. Others don’t require me to do so.

I video all my hunts and provide the landowner with copies of what I have done, letting them know what I have killed.

I have made offers to several to help with various issues. I have helped wrangle livestock that has gotten out on several occasions. I have mended a couple of fences along the way as well. If I notice a problem on the property, I let the landowner know what I have seen, just in case s/he doesn’t know of it.

Always remember that you are a guest on the landowner’s property. You may be helping out the landowner, but the landowner is also helping you out. There are only so many properties, but an unlimited number of people who want to hunt it. Always do right by your landowner so long as what is being asked is legal and within your ethics.

Ask yourself this. Are you really there to help landowners with a problem or just looking for a free place to hunt when it is convenient? How many nights a week are you willing to commit to helping deal with said problem? If the landowner calls you at lunch and reports hog issues, can you be there that night or the following night? If you are only showing up once or twice a month, you aren't really helping the landowner with an ongoing problem. You are tourist hunting. There is nothing wrong with that, except the premise of "help" really doesn't hold up.

Very well said DNS.

I will add to that a little bit. To really be able to help, you can't be too far away. If a landowner is having trouble now, with either coyotes or pigs, he needs help now. All of my properties I help on are less than an hour away, most are within 30 minutes or so. That gives me a whole lot more leeway on being able to make a run and do some shooting for them. If I was 2 hours away there is no way I could help some of these landowners on any kind of timely basis.

Thank you for your quick reply. I completely agree with making sure that intentions actually meet up to what is discussed with the land owner. I had a similar relationship with the land owners of the lease i was on and called anytime i saw livestock limping or a cow stuck in the tank. Your in depth response is great advice and will be kept in mind while scouting for potential land owners.

I'm looking specifically in north TX for the fact that I want to be a asset vs. a liability for anybody allowing me to hunt on their land. I'm originally from College Station and have places to hunt down there but i'm of no use to those land owners as i'm 3 hours away and can't get there to help at short notice.

Thank you again for your response and if you ever would like a 2nd gun on one of those properties that allows you to bring one give me a shout.

3rd on DNS. I posted a podcast link a while back where this issue was discussed. For me it took me 2 years to earn the trust to make it happen. Once earned that trust is invaluable.

If you can connect with someone that you know and they know someone with land, a personal introduction can help.

Good feedback

Very good info.
My cousin has a 35 acres land in Magnolia. He would not even let me take care his property cuz he said "1) you are too far (2 hour drive), 2) you do not have time (full time job + wife/kids)".
He has a guy that he uses for the last 3 years that he can trust.