Hog sign. What to look for.

[G-Ret]

Unfortunately I'm on public land in Florida; so no baiting or I'd have been doing that ages ago. Law goes it can't be ingested. I've found zero scat in rooting, nests, or beds. I'm currently working on a legal corn and sugar based attractant. Few pictures of the nest rooting and wallow I found yesterday.

 

[FrankT]

I got scat all over my plots and where I feed them, it is fertilizing the whole area. Sometimes down the middle of the lease road there is scat. Most of the regular trails they use have scat too.

 

[G-Ret]

I don't really see any scat where I go. I saw a little turkey fiddlehead laying in a path the other day but that's about it. I very rarely see scat on the public lands

 

[FrankT]

I am wondering why not, what are they eating? I mean mine comes in tonnage, you just cannot miss it on any trail regularly and currently used here. They will not crap in the bedding area but there should be a latrine area fairly close by.

 

[G-Ret]

There is literally nothing. They eat mostly tuber plants and small fresh water critters

 

[FrankT]

Just amazing, never heard of no scat, I am at a loss

 

[G-Ret]

I know, it doesn't make sense to me either. Same thing goes for deer scat

 

[pruhdlr]

They gotta crap.......however......it has been my experience that if there is a (seemingly)absence of it,the hogs are rather quickly moving thru the area. Also....I have never found any crap in the bedding areas or in the wallow areas. ---pruhdlr

 

[G-Ret]

There is a ton of huntig pressure on the Southwest Florida wma's so I'd imagine your right about the not hanging around long enough to pinch a loaf

 

[FrankT]

yeah I have mine taking naps under the feeders and in the baited areas. With what I feed them they gotta crap!

 

[G-Ret]

What I'm making is I'm grinding deer corn to a powder, some attractants, and koolaid powder. My plan is to try to keep each bucket around 12 lbs to make it easy to carry and then mix it with a beer or two so it will ferment then I can take it out and mix it with soil. They won't be able to eat it (legal) and it should draw them in

 

[FrankT]

In FL I do think what you are making is still illegal on a WMA...but U am sure you will check before you take it out. If it were me I would take an edible snack for me like peanuts, sunflower seed or whatever and accidentally drop on the trails. OF instead of scent killer I would use hog attractant on my boots walking around...LOL

 

[G-Ret]

I had called FWC and had them look up the actual law. It cannot be ingested. So that outs things from food on the ground to mineral licks. Liquid spray attractants are legal. They just can't be able to eat it

 

[FrankT]

Hey, as long as you are on top of it...go for it! OH I know attractants are illegal, I was just thinking outside the box. Can you tell I don't bother with WMA's I think the rules are stupid and then for a non game animal, hogs actually have seasons on WMA's here.

 

[pruhdlr]

I would find it EXTREMELY hard to believe that just because you grind deer corn to powder it would be blessed to use in a WMA.

Rule of thumb ---> scents that attract are OK,anything that they are drawn to eat,lick,etc is a strict NO-NO.

One reason that I stopped hunting the WMA's and Eglin AFB some years ago was....people baiting up deer and hogs. I was told by a couple different FWC officers that if I was caught hunting "in the vicinity" of any "BAIT" I would be ticketed and my weapon confiscated. BUT.....the "good news" was....I could buy it back at the next FWC auction if I was the high bidder.

Suggestion...do yourself and your fellow hunters on the WMA a favor and DON'T BAIT. --- pruhdlr

 

[TEXASLAWMAN]

Frank your hogs seem to do the opposite of mine. Under the feeders and on the trails I never see scat but I know they are there from the game cameras and fresh tracks. The places I find the large quantity of scat is their bedding areas. Unlike other animal they seem to poop where they lay. If I find hog scat I know this is a place they feel safe and are spending large amounts of time.

 

[FrankT]

Wow that is opposite! With my roll barrels they may be in my area 4-6hrs, even I have to poop eating and walking around for that long...LOL I got scat everywhere! I should do a scat video!

 

[G-Ret]

Destin FL scat video..... ::shudders:: I have looked for scat just about as well as you can without getting on your knees and sifting for it. I have gotten so frustrated by this that lately I'll pick up things that look like scat (if I can't tell by looking) and sniff it... STILL NO LUCK! By that nest I found there are about 7 different paths that lead to that nest. No scat. :-/

 

[G-Ret]

Of course as soon as I voice out about not being able to find scat, I find a TON of it along the edge of a swamp and throughout a freshly burned area

 

[FrankT]

See they got to dump somewhere! OR maybe you have an infestation of Dung beetles!