Mike Stroff's Hog Hunting Tips

If you're in an area overrun by wild hogs, hunting them is often the only way to manage their population. If you're new to hog hunting or wanting to step up your game, Savage ambassador and host of "Savage Outdoors" and "The One", Mike Stroff has the expert tips on how to hunt hogs.

Pigs Under Pressure
Wild hogs are ruled by their appetite (honestly, can you blame them? Everyone has their days). The best way to find them is to find their food. "If you don't find the food, you're not going to find the hogs. Period." says Stroff. As hunters, we're all aware of how hunting pressure and changes in an animal's environment can affect their behavior. And hogs are no different. Hogs are smarter than most people give them credit for and they find ways to adapt to hunting pressure in order to survive. Understanding the pressures on wild hogs and how it plays into their food sources will help you find the pigs you're hunting. The trick is -- don't overeducate them, because they'll find other food sources or feed in your favorite spots when you're not around. 

Set Up A Feed Trough
There are a lot of different ways to hunt hogs and it all depends on your location. Some states allow you to use dogs, others allow the use of feeders or baiting, you can use tree stands, hunt over food plots -- hog hunting methods are as varied as the hogs themselves. So make sure you're following all of your local rules and regulations when out hunting. 

When the land is green and there is plenty of water, the hogs can really run wild. During these times of year, Stroff likes to put out some feed -- this helps locate the hogs and concentrate them in one area. As we know, if you know where their food source is, you can find the hogs -- because hogs are ruled by their appetites! Hogs have a great sense of smell, so you want to make sure the feed is nice and stinky for them. A great hog hunting tip: sour up some corn in a bucket by pouring water in it. Other animals won't touch it, but the hogs will find it fast! You can buy supplemental feeds with sweet berry smells to mix with the corn, "but you don't have to do that. You can just just mix some water in and let it sour up," says Stroff. 

Get  More From Trail Cameras
Trail cameras are a great source of intel for deer hunting, but they're also essential in your hog hunting arsenal. Hogs are often nocturnal animals during the height of the summer months. They're trickier to find as the weather heats up, even if you know where their food sources are. Set up a trail camera in front of their food sources so you can start collecting data about their movements in the night and during the day.

Outsmart Feeder Beaters
Wild hogs are big, tough animals, and frankly, they're pretty rude. They'll use their size and brute strength to topple feeders and that takes a toll on your equipment. As we discussed earlier, hogs are much smarter than we give them credit for, so you'll have to outsmart these feeder beaters to keep them from cleaning out your feeders. The best thing to do is find a way to stake the feeder into the ground. If you have an older barrel feeder like Stroff, drive T-posts into the ground at the feeder legs and tie barbed wire around it.  "Remember, hogs are tough. They're big and they will tear your stuff up," says Stroff. 

Top Hog Calibers
When choosing a caliber for hog hunting, just about any classic deer caliber will do. Many hunters use their deer rifle on feral hogs and do just fine. But Stroff prefers to "go big or go home." Hogs are tough animals! They have thick hides, thick shoulders and are dense creatures. Stroff always recommends to people hunting with him to choose a bigger caliber like 270 Win, 30-06 Springfield, 308 Win, etc. "I don't like tracking hogs. As far as I'm concerned, when you're hog hunting, bigger is better," says Stroff.

Savage offers two models purpose-built for hog hunting. The 110 Hog Hunter is tough, versatile, reliable and built on the time-tested Model 110 platform. Its adjustable length of pull stock can be customized to fit any shooter for comfort and consistency. Adjustable iron sights allow for fast target acquisition (for such big animals, hogs are quick on their feet!), and the muzzle is threaded for a suppressor. It's available in 308 Win, 350 Legend and 223 Rem. 

The Savage Impulse Hog Hunter is the all-new straight-pull rifle. The speed of the Impulse and how easily a hunter can cycle the bolt is what really sets it apart from a conventional bolt action. A simple, intuitive backward and forward motion is all it takes to cycle the Impulse. Any hog hunter will tell you that hogs rarely appear alone, so speed is of the essence if you need to take follow-up shots at a single hog or if you're trying to double or triple on multiple hogs. The Impulse Hog Hunter is available in 308 Win, 30-06 Springfield, 300 Win Mag and 6.5 Creedmoor.