Rick Perry and Texas' feral pig in the Mud
Gov. Rick Perry's solution to Texas' feral pig problem:
Letting hunters pile into helicopters and shoot as
many hogs as they want. Photo: Joe McDonald/CORBIS
In a controversial move endorsed by the governor, Texans are renting "pork choppers" to aerial-hunt the wild hogs who are menacing the Lone Star State
Letting hunters pile into helicopters and shoot as
many hogs as they want. Photo: Joe McDonald/CORBIS
In a controversial move endorsed by the governor, Texans are renting "pork choppers" to aerial-hunt the wild hogs who are menacing the Lone Star State Best Opinion: NY Times, Star-Telegram, Newser
Sarah Palin made headlines during her 2008 vice presidential
run for supporting a controversial hobby: The aerial hunting
of wolves. Now, the 2012 Republican presidential frontrunner,
Texas Gov. Rick Perry, is giving helicopter-riding hunters
something else to shoot at: Feral hogs. Here, a brief guide:
run for supporting a controversial hobby: The aerial hunting
of wolves. Now, the 2012 Republican presidential frontrunner,
Texas Gov. Rick Perry, is giving helicopter-riding hunters
something else to shoot at: Feral hogs. Here, a brief guide:
How bad is Texas' pig problem?
More than 2 million feral hogs are rooting around in the state
(roughly half of the national total). Most are descendants of
pigs American pioneers allowed to roam free. Even though
Texas' wildlife services agency spends $25 million a year to
control the population, the wild swine still manage to do
$52 million in crop damage annually. They also tear up
lawns, parks, and golf courses. Republican State Sen.
Sid Miller owns a commercial nursery that some of the
animals ravaged just last week. "They probably did
$3,000 damage," he said, as quoted by the Fort Worth Star-
Telegram. "It looked like World War II where they went
through."
So what is Perry doing about it?
He signed a law that, as of Thursday, allows hunters in the
Lone Star State to rent a seat on a helicopter and shoot as
many wild hogs as they want. One Houston firm, Vertex
Helicopters, requires hunters to take a $350 safety course
before they can book a $475-an-hour hunt aboard one of
its "pork choppers." Hog-targeting hunters from New York,
Kansas, and Missouri have taken the course and plan to
travel to Texas to blast away at pigs. "These are people
who are really, really serious about shooting things," says
Mike Morgan, Vertex's president, as quoted in The New
York Times.
Surely some people are upset about this, right?
Indeed. "For one thing, it's cruel because the pigs often
end up being only wounded," says John Johnson at Newser.
Also, this might not even solve the problem, especially in
other parts of the country enamored of the idea of
heli-hunting pigs. "San Diego County, Calif., has been
overrun by a new wild pig population rumored to have
been [trapped and] released in order to start a hunting
program," says Mark Essig in The New York Times.
So encouraging hunting in Texas might actually be helping
the scourge spread.
More than 2 million feral hogs are rooting around in the state
(roughly half of the national total). Most are descendants of
pigs American pioneers allowed to roam free. Even though
Texas' wildlife services agency spends $25 million a year to
control the population, the wild swine still manage to do
$52 million in crop damage annually. They also tear up
lawns, parks, and golf courses. Republican State Sen.
Sid Miller owns a commercial nursery that some of the
animals ravaged just last week. "They probably did
$3,000 damage," he said, as quoted by the Fort Worth Star-
Telegram. "It looked like World War II where they went
through."
So what is Perry doing about it?
He signed a law that, as of Thursday, allows hunters in the
Lone Star State to rent a seat on a helicopter and shoot as
many wild hogs as they want. One Houston firm, Vertex
Helicopters, requires hunters to take a $350 safety course
before they can book a $475-an-hour hunt aboard one of
its "pork choppers." Hog-targeting hunters from New York,
Kansas, and Missouri have taken the course and plan to
travel to Texas to blast away at pigs. "These are people
who are really, really serious about shooting things," says
Mike Morgan, Vertex's president, as quoted in The New
York Times.
Surely some people are upset about this, right?
Indeed. "For one thing, it's cruel because the pigs often
end up being only wounded," says John Johnson at Newser.
Also, this might not even solve the problem, especially in
other parts of the country enamored of the idea of
heli-hunting pigs. "San Diego County, Calif., has been
overrun by a new wild pig population rumored to have
been [trapped and] released in order to start a hunting
program," says Mark Essig in The New York Times.
So encouraging hunting in Texas might actually be helping
the scourge spread.
posted at http://theweek.com
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