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Old March 2, 2012, 12:07 PM   #1
shooter43
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Hog attracting?

Here in Florida deer season is over, but hogs are still fair game. whats a good way of attracting them? ive heard sour corn works really well, if so how do you make it? do scents and liquids work?
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Old March 2, 2012, 04:02 PM   #2
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Soured corn works well TFL member hogdogs lives on Florida and has lots of good advice. Basically yeast water and corn. You can put sugar too. Let it sit in the sun for a week or two.

I have had good luck with molasses, you can find jugs of it on clearance after deer season. Spoiled milk works good too.


There is a myth found not to be true; the myth is that if you kill pigs in a trap, you have to move it. We have a policy not to let pigs leave alive, so I always kill them in the trap. Under the assumption that you have to move the trap once a pig dies in it, I would begin the arduous task of moving the trap every time. After moving the trap it would be at least two weeks or more before any pigs were trapped again. Being the superior species, I deduced that I was getting stinky human juice on the trap. And then I figgured that pig smell, urine, blood and poop was better than stinky human smell. Plus I noticed that pigs would root in the old trap locations. I get better action out of traps now
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Old March 2, 2012, 04:53 PM   #3
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Hogs generally do not care if other hogs have been killed in a trap. If they are hungry and not trap shy they will go in. i've caught hogs the night after hogs were killed in the same trap.
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Old March 2, 2012, 05:32 PM   #4
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Yep, I was learning and I listened to old wives tales until my own experiences taught me otherwise. I just want others to avoid the hassles I went through.
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Old March 2, 2012, 05:38 PM   #5
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You dont have to sour it. Plain shelled corn works just fine. If you have enough hogs to hunt they will find it pretty quick. If you will dig a hole with post hole diggers, pour corn in, then cover and spread a little corn on the fresh dirt they will have to root it up, and it will last longer.
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Old March 2, 2012, 05:45 PM   #6
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I do both, but the soured corn seems better. And it gives me something to do at the house LOL.
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Old March 2, 2012, 06:53 PM   #7
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thank you! i will try that next time! i know the Buck bomb company makes the 'hog bomb' does that work well also?
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Old March 2, 2012, 07:48 PM   #8
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Dry corn attracts too many deer... Accidentally trapped deer are as illegal as intentionally trapped deer...

It is not going to draw like still fermenting corn with the odor in alcohol vapors on the breeze...

Releasing a 6 point from a 4X4X8 is quite a thrill but the laws of physics involving them antlers hanging in the fence grid can get dicey...

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Old March 2, 2012, 09:39 PM   #9
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soured corn. I'll keep to that. Ive tried dried corn many times, seen some does but never any buks. This soured trick will be fun. Thank you all for the advice.
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Old March 2, 2012, 10:17 PM   #10
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I've had better luck with soured corn, but I think that's because the smell goes further - increasing the chances a hog will smell it. My problem is raccoons. Those little rascals will eat their weight in corn every darn day. I blasted one off of a corn feeder a while back. My wife said "you didn't shoot a hole in my yard feeder, did you". "Of course not, says I, but the next day I did have to patch the hole. I hate when that happens. Coulda sworn that coon was wide left of the feeder.

Serious hog hunters that I know say that putting the contents of a package of cherry jello on top of the corn will bring in the hogs. Hasn't worked for me yet.

As for souring the corn, I use a can of beer and some water. The beer goes on the corn, and not in my mouth.
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Old March 3, 2012, 01:03 PM   #11
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Hogs will push the deer off the corn. Seen that too many times to count. I hunt one of the highest deer density areas in the southeastern US, and have never had a problem with the deer beating the hogs to the corn. Deer browse, and move on. Hogs will eat till its gone or they are spooked. If you have enough hogs to justify the effort of putting bait out, they will find it.
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Old March 3, 2012, 02:59 PM   #12
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One cool thing is that coon traps will also catch itty bitty pigs.
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Old March 3, 2012, 03:53 PM   #13
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Attracting Hogs?

Having done for many years I have found that hogs will eat about anything. Finding just what they want to dine on at the time is the challenge.

I’ve baited them with everything from garbage to diesel soaked corn, they ate it all sometimes, but not all at all times. It seems that their tastes change for time to time.

Corn is probably the top bait, sometimes a squirt of diesel on it. Commercial hog chow works well too, it’s best mixed with corn. Crawfish, crabs, or shrimp heads do fair, rice bran too. Sometimes a shovel full of rock salt mixed in turns them on. Of course garbage rates right up there. Like I said, they’re not picky, you just have to have what their taste buds are craving at the time. Get creative. Jello, Kool Aid, cake mix, canned carrots, you never know....

As for traps, I rarely move them, some are too big while others are a pain to do so. All of mine are open topped so deer can escape. I have caught as many as 25 to 30 in the same trap over time, killed them in it and caught more. The smell of death means nothing to a hungry hog.

Traps that have doors that can be rooted open after being sprung are the best. Some times a lone pig finds the bait and sets off the trap. Others showing up can root their way in on arrival. I have several of this type and catch more hogs in them than others.

Big, old, boar hogs are smarter and trap shy than sows and young ones, so you’ll catch more sows and young ones. To get these wise guys you’ll have to hunt them.

If you find hog sign and are baiting to shoot them, give it some time and keep up the baiting. Hogs travel over a very wide area and it may take a while for them to make their rounds. Remember, no hog sign for more than a month probably means no hogs. A game camera is a good investment......

Addendum:

When you barbecue one, don’t toss the scraps, use them for bait. I caught more than a few using them....... Seems they’re fond of barbecued pork too.....
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Old March 4, 2012, 10:41 AM   #14
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a big pile of corn. Pour some diesel on a close (dead!) tree or stump. They love rubbing against it to keep the ticks and other critters off and the scent of the diesel carries a long way. Kill every one you see, they are the most destructive things in the woods and are rapidly expanding their territory.
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Old March 4, 2012, 11:48 AM   #15
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I am of the opinion that you aren't going to be doing much of attracting that which isn't already there. I have tried corn, sweet feed, soured corn, jello corn, various fruits and vegetables and 3 commercial attractants. I have done, corn, soured corn, and jello corn in deep post holes. Oh, and there was molasses and creosote telephone poles. I know I have tried some other stuff, but can't recall what.

Despite the testimonials of numerous hunters (in person, online, and vouched for in ads for commerical products), I have never had hogs come charging out of the woods for the yummy treats I set out within minutes of doing so. Regardless of how sensitive a hog's nose is reported to be, there isn't any magical elixir that when put out causes hogs to come running. I know several folks will claim that hogs came immediately after putting our their special mix of whatever and maybe it really happened, but it probably wasn't the magical mix.

I can't think of a single example where such stuff has been applied and produced fast results that it wasn't applied at a location already frequented by hogs for food. So if hogs did show up after putting it out, more than likely the hogs were already in the area, already going to check out the feeder anyway because they know that food is going to be there with some regularity.

If you see any of the hunting shows where they hunt hogs with bait and are doing product endorsements for attractants (such as in the Hog Man tv series) note they they always are using their special products at locations where they have already been feeding hogs. When the hogs come in, the TV personalities always talk about what a good job the attractant did to make the hunt a success. That is bogus. Notice that they never put that stuff in some random location far away from any feeder and have hogs show up immediately. Not that those guys often return to the blind with the remaining product with them and the hogs never show up at the blind looking for the commercial attractant.

I have shot 4 or 5 hogs in the last 3 years within minutes of getting arriving at my stand and feeder where simple corn was being used. In one case, I arrived after dark, scanned the area with night vision to see if any animals were feeding, saw none and climbed into my stand, got settled, and within a minute of getting in the stand, did another NV scan and 5 hogs were under the feeder. Last September I showed up to my stand at midnight, immediately starting hearing chew noises, shot a hog below and behind my stand and was calling my wife at 12:05 to announce my success. Last Spring, I was checking my feeder on the way to my stand when a sounder walked in on me and didn't seem too bothered that I was there until I started shooting.

If we used these events to indicate a successful hog attactant, then I am apparently a hog attractant because hogs often show up within minutes of my arrival. That sounds pretty silly, no? Yet I have the experience and have documented this happening. Who could argue with such results?

With Double Naught Spy hog attractant, however, the same parameters apply as with the other attractants. Hogs are showing up at locations where they know food to already be. It isn't the special attractant, but just coincidental timing between the hunter and the hogs. If you hunt a baited location enough times that hogs do visit, sooner or later you will have very short hunts like I have had and it has nothing to do with special products.

When you listen to folks talking about hog attactants and how well they work, notice that such folks aren't always successful despite their claims of great hog attraction. A buddy of mine had noted that hogs had not hit his feeders for a while and so he had sat many nights with no luck and he was "breaking out his secret mix." If a hunter has a secret mix that truly works, why would the hunter ever NOT use it? Why would they go more than one hunt of not using it and not being successful before using it?

Special secret formula sour, jello, etc. corn and other attractants are more about the hunter than the hogs. It is not that much different than primitive society pre-hunt ceremonies conducted such that the hunters will be successful. As westerners, we think pre hunt ceremonies involving dancing, chanting, ritual markings, etc. to be self deceptive as we know that dancing around, chanting, etc. isn't actually going to cause the game to behave differently. Special recipes are a lot like that as well.

So what have I learned from using such attractants?

Deer, raccoons, and ants love soured and jello corn too. Lots of animals and bugs like molasses. Hogs like this stuff too, but if they don't get there before the other animals eat it, then they don't get any. Post hole soured corn put out in the middle of a food plot doesn't work nearly as well as post hole soured corn put close to a feeder. I have two such post holes with sour corn in my food plot right now and despite the reported amazing capabilities of a hog's nose, none have dug up either cache despite having had hogs pass through the food plot several times now. So in other words, soured corn under a feeder or post hole soured corn near a feeder appears to attract hogs, but only because they were going to the feeder anyway.

My creosote telephone poles that I had hoped the hogs would use for rubbing are unbothered and growing weeds around them.

Fruits and vegetables were often consumed by other animals long before hogs ever arrived. Strangely, even when the hogs did arrive and I had pumpkins and pumpkin sections near the feeder, they completely ignored the pumpkins.

Lots of animals like sweet feed. The big problem with sweet feed in motorized feeders is that the sweet feed soaks up moisture and swells into a gooey mess. Blowing rain soaking your spinner pan with sweet feed on it can cause the feed to swell with moisture and the moisture will then get carried up the chute tube and clog the feeder. Sweet feed on the ground when it rains will swell up and dissolve into the ground, the feed being lost for consumption. Sweet feed is best used in dry conditions only.

Oh and Grim Reaper Wildlife Attractant that has various videos showing hogs running in to a feeder within minutes of application actually does more to repel animals than attract them. I tested some and watched deer keep a 2-3 yard distance between themselves and the spot I had treated and they would not eat the corn within that zone. I sent some to a buddy over at WildHogHunters.com and he tested a feeding spot they used for 2 or 3 weeks, using a game camera to monitor results, not returning to the location during the test weeks. Zero hogs showed up and it did not seem beneficial to attracting other game either.

Bottom line...regular corn works great. Lots of food products will work just fine if the hogs know there is an available resource consistently at a given location. You can spend whatever time you want making special secret recipe mixes and the hogs may love it, but know that your effort, time and expense of making such mixes probably isn't going to do much more for having hogs show up than just by using corn. Don't spend your money on commercial attractants, not unless you have the money to spare and it makes you feel good about supporting the employees of the company that makes it.
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Old March 4, 2012, 12:30 PM   #16
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I somewhat agree with doublenaught spy. You can't put anything out and immediately expect results. Put out your corn and whatever else, (I like diesel) You must maintain this bait station and they will eventually find it and keep coming to it.
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Old March 4, 2012, 01:05 PM   #17
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I tend to just hunt pigs on known routes. Same thing with coyotes. When I trap I walk the fence till I find pig hair, then the trap goes in that spot. If the spot is not accessible with a trap then I wait in the shadows. I have noticed when the wind blows towards a suspected pig hide-out, they find the trap. I don't excessively bait I wanna be careful not to draw pigs that weren't coming in the first place, after all trying to rid them.
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Old March 4, 2012, 01:16 PM   #18
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Let me add something that may or may not mean anything

I have had a pig squealing call for about 3 years now, I make jokes now and then of it.


I broke it out today as an experimentation on domestic pigs, let me say I was suprized at the response of the domestic pigs. They immediately sprung into action and ran to the side of the enclosure closest to me. It really drove them nuts they desperately wanted to get to the source.

I may try it again someday, plus, its brought in a coyote before.
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Old March 4, 2012, 01:53 PM   #19
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Doublenaught said it all pretty darn well, and he reminded me of the most successful way I've trapped hogs. I tried putting the hog trap near a corn feeder, and that worked every now and them. Then I decided to build a bigger open topped trap and put a corn feeder inside the perimeter of the trap. I'd lock the trap door open and let the corn feeder do its job. Sooner or later I'd see evidence of pigs rooting in the trap. Then I'd set the trap door to trigger. I caught a lot of pigs, and now I'm wondering why I haven't been using that trap this year. The honest reason I'm not using the trap is that the squirrels and coons quickly learn to hand (paw?) spin the corn spinner and drain 50 or 100 pounds of corn in a very short while. I've tried several homemade cages to keep the coons away from the spinner, but haven't been totally successful.

But...the feeder in the trap has caught me far more pigs than any other trapping approach. As for trap construction, I picked a spot that had small trees in about the right places and put cattle panels in a circular form. Probably about 5 cattle panels in total. I used Tposts where there were no trees in the right spot. I had to line the inside of the trap with cyclone fencing to keep the piglets from wiggling through the panel holes. The trap door is a vertical falling plywood type that's in a 4X4 treated wood frame. The trigger I use is the 3rd version. Took me a while to find the right way to do it. I think I'll put that trap back in action. I'll get me a new corn thrower that already has a caged spinner.

Thanks to doublenaught for getting my brain back in gear.
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Old March 4, 2012, 04:26 PM   #20
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rickyrick, if your pig squealer works, drop me a PM as to make and model. Not actually stated in my post above (but obvious if you read between the lines), I am apparently gullible enough to try just about anything reasonable to improve my chances to kill hogs. I always justify it with the notion that if it saves me time and fuel, it will be worthwhile.

Using spiritualists, psychics, mental telepathy, or other such supernatural methods are, however, beyond the scope of what I will try. I am guillible, but it has its limits.

Along your lines, a buddy of mine did tell me that in the past, he has tied up a piget to let the piglet start making all sorts of noise and claims that sooner or later if hogs were in the area, they would show up to see what was going on with the piglet (sort of like what you were saying). He would then shoot some of the adults and cook the piglet. I don't envision me traveling with a piglet and tethering it to a tree to attract hogs, but if your squealer does the same thing....
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Old March 4, 2012, 04:52 PM   #21
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The diesel never worked for me.

I have used commercial products that people gave me, they didn't seem to hurt....they all say mix with corn, hmmmmm.

The pig call has mostly fulfilled the role of annoy the wife and dogs.
It turned up when I was going through stuff, so next chance i get I'll try it...I'm sure pigs have to be around first LOL.
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Old March 5, 2012, 12:27 AM   #22
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If you have pigs, the corn mixed with diesel works wonders and critters leave it alone. Also dont worry about killing pigs in traps. You kill twelve in one trap today and rebait and you should have full trap tomorrow. That is if you really have pigs alot of them.
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Old March 5, 2012, 08:25 AM   #23
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Quote:
Also dont worry about killing pigs in traps. You kill twelve in one trap today and rebait and you should have full trap tomorrow. That is if you really have pigs alot of them.
What about everyone else who doesn't have a lot of them? They need to worry about killing pigs in traps?
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Old March 5, 2012, 09:22 AM   #24
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I have not done a lot of trapping..but I have shot a number of em under feeders....There would be blood there for a number of days....They never stopped eating the corn....

As for hog calls..DN..I have had some success with one called Hog Feeding Frenzy....Coyotes came too....
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Old March 5, 2012, 11:20 AM   #25
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DNS,

After I quit moving traps solely for the fact that pigs were killed in them, I had a marked increase in frequency of trapped hogs.

I still move in accordance with pig activity.
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