If there’s one thing men are known for, it’s their obsession with tools. It could be that new drill with a 25-horsepower motor or the new table saw that costs as much as a small car. Either way, a man is known by his tools.

That means shopping for dad is a relatively simple endeavor. You may think he wants a new pink sweater vest with matching purple tie, but you’d be wrong. When he’s not tinkering around with a gun, he wants some hard wood or cold steel in his hands—something made for work. Even when dad’s playing, he’s still working—so give him what he really wants.

Because we really know dads, Game & Fish has compiled a list of the best tools and blades to give the padre in your life this Father’s Day. Give him one of these great gifts and you’re sure to make this Father’s Day one to remember.

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Browning Checkmate Folding Knife

The Browning Checkmate is a folding knife with a false edge spear point blade. The blade is made out of hollow ground stainless steel, while the handle features robust liner lock construction and has checkered G-10 scales. The Checkmate also features a belt clip and a hardened glass breaking point. This makes a great everyday carry knife or outdoor companion for the dad on your list.

Price: $60

Cabela's Exclusive Benchmade 585 Mini Barrage

As one of the premier knife makers in the world, you know what you’re getting when you buy a Benchmade. Combine that with an exclusive offer from Cabela’s, the World’s Foremost Outfitter, and you’ve got the Benchmade 585 Mini Barrage knife.

Available in an orange, molded and ultra-durable Valox handle, the 585 comes with a black or stainless finish drop-point blade with ambidextrous thumb studs. It’s the perfect carry knife for any outdoorsman and is built to last. Whether you’re doing some work around the house or hunting out in the woods, the 585 is a great buy for Father’s Day.

Price: $140

Cabela's PBS Crosslock By Buck

Cabela’s teamed up with Buck Knives to produce this Alaskan Guide series PBS Crosslock knife, a sure winner for dad’s next hunt or expedition. With extra-strong blades, the Crosslock has a 3-inch spear point and a 3-inch saw blade with a guthook and anodized aluminum scales. The blade holds an edge extremely well, making it a reliable tool in any situation. It's got a great nylon carrying case and packs lightly for any outdoor adventure.

Price: $110

Electric Fisherman Fillet Knife

For the dad who loves to fish, the Electric Fisherman fillet knife from Mister Twister is a must have. Make filleting your catch quick and easy with this comfortable-to-hold, heavy duty electric knife. With super sharp blades, ergonomic grip, safety lock and quick blade release, you’ll never look at filleting a fish the same way. This is a must-have for the fisherman in your life.

Price: $33

Gerber Diesel

The Gerber Diesel is one of the toughest multi-tools around, and that’s saying a lot for the company that builds multi-tools for Navy SEALs. What makes the Diesel so great is an industrial-strength build, flick-of-the-wrist deployment and rugged black coating.

As Gerber says on its website, you could get away with a lesser tool. But why run the risk of all the cussing and fuming when you can own the mac daddy of all multi-tools? Look no further than the Gerber Diesel for the dad in your life who needs a beefy, reliable multi-tool.

Price: $83

Leatherman MUT

Looking for the kind of Father’s Day tool that would make Batman jealous? Look no further than the Leatherman MUT, a tactical tool designed for military, law enforcement or civilian shooters. It has everything you need for the woods—a saw, knife and pliers—but also features replaceable wire cutters, electrical crimper, hammer, cutting hook, bolt override tool for clearing an AR chamber, a firearm disassembly punch, cleaning rod adapter, bottle opener and screwdriver.

Sound like a crazy long list? That’s because it is. It’s enough to make the dad, outdoorsman and shooter in your life drool for days (trust me, that’s a good thing).

Price: $ 120

SOG Fling

Okay, so a good throwing knife might bring up memories of bad Kung Fu movies from the 70s, but there’s nothing more manly than mastering the art of knife throwing in your backyard or the outdoors. It may not be the safest thing to do after a round of beers, but it’s a fun and useful survival skill nonetheless.

One of the coolest new products for 2013 is the SOG Fling, a throwing knife with a handle wrapped in nylon cord. How much nylon cord? Seven feet, to be exact. If you add that up with a pack of three knives, that’s 21 feet of rope—just enough for a precarious survival situation.

Price: $50

SOG HuntsPoint Boning Knife

As a maker of military grade knives and tools, SOG also knows its way around the outdoorsman’s toolbox. Its new HuntsPoint boning knife belongs to its purpose-driven line of hunting knives, made with co-molded handles and stainless steel that takes a beating.

As a dad, this is the kind of knife that makes you smile. The touch of orange on the handle makes it visible in the wild, and the leather sheath keeps it fastened to your hip in the worst of conditions. This is the big game hunter’s ideal belt knife.

Price: $80

Spyderco Resilience

The largest of Spyderco’s Value Folders series, the Resilience packs a mean punch for the dad on your list. It offers a high level of cutting performance, tip-to-handle cutting edge and a slip-proof blade that makes it a great carry knife for any situation. Whether you’re working around the house, on the job or out in the field, this is a must-have folding knife for a great price.

Price: $75

Victorinox SwissTool Spirit

Victorinox Swiss Army—which started making knives for the military back in 1884—is a company marked by over a century of tradition and an iconic little red knife. I remember fondly the first knife my dad ever bought me—a red Swiss Army knife just like the one he carried every day. It's a timeless classic and I still have it today.

But like everything else, things change with time. In the case of the SwissTool Spirit by Victorinox, that's definitely a good thing. The Spirit is an outdoorsman's dream—it comes with just about every tool imaginable, you can easily access each implement without opening the pliers and it has a highly functional locking system for added safety. The tool is built with a bend to fit the contour of the human hand, and rounded edges on the frame keep it from digging into your flesh when giving it a good workout. This is absolutely one of the best multi-tools on the market.

Price: $80

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10 Tools and Blades For Your Dad

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Prior to cooking, take care to fillet all the meat away from the bone and you’ll enjoy a portion of fish that’s crispy and crunchy on the outside, tender and succulent on the inside.

By using coconut oil for frying, unhealthy fats are eliminated. Frying fish can be done at the campsite using a Dutch oven or at home with a skillet. For those who don’t like to fry, fish can be baked at 400º for 12 to 15 minutes.

Cut bass fillets to nugget-sized pieces. Prepare three shallow dishes for the three-step process. In the first dish place sugar, salt, seasonings and flour. In the second dish, beat the eggs with the tablespoon of water. In the third dish mix bread crumbs and coconut.

In a large skillet, heat 1/4-inch of coconut oil on medium-high heat. One at a time, coat fish pieces with flour, dip into egg mixture, press into bread crumb mixture to completely coat, then add the coated fish to the hot oil. Fry 1 to 3 minutes per side, adjusting heat and adding more coconut oil as needed. Serve with a slice of lemon and a favorite dipping sauce.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 pound bass fillets
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon granulated garlic
• 1/4 teaspoon granulated onion
• Dash of cayenne pepper
• 1/2 cup flour
• 2 eggs
• 1 tablespoon water
• 3/4 cup bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup coconut oil

“After recuperating from spawning, walleye are more interested in feeding than anything else. Cabbage and other vegetation is ripe with life, concentrating baitfish and prey fish alike, providing cover and offering everything predator like a walleye would want.”

Baitfish using the early season weed beds—and attracting walleye—include everything from shiners to shad, said Brosdahl, as well as yellow perch.

“The shiners move into the shallow weeds to spawn in late June in my local waters, and the walleye follow, feeding right in there among the shiners and the vegetation,” he explained.

“And in waters here they are available, walleye eat more yellow perch that most anglers realize. Anyone who fishes for yellow perch knows that young perch hang out in the weeds, this time of year or any other. I’m convinced that if more walleye anglers used perch or perch-patterns, they’d be surprised at how many more—and bigger—walleyes they’d catch, starting in the spring right through the fall.”

Brosdahl should know. The four-season angler may be better known for his on-ice success than his open water walleye-catching skills, which are impressive. Brosdahl is a full-time open-water walleye fishing guide and tournament pro, qualifying for two FLW championships with eight top 10 finishes under his belt.

By the time June starts busting out all over, Brosdahl is catching more than his share of open-water walleye from his home base in Max, Minn. Whether fishing familiar walleye waters close to home or lakes and rivers that are new to him, he has learned to look for the weeds to find spring walleye.

“Rocks, too,” he added. “Like weeds, rock piles and drop-offs, they offer edges where baitfish congregate and walleye can hide. They provide ambush points to attack from. If you can locate a rocky hump topped by weeds this time of year, you have the best of all worlds.”

1. Give ‘Em A Break
Brosdahl explained that the walleyes will hang around the periphery of a rock hump during the day, and stay to the outside of the weeds up top if they are especially shallow.

“But the walleye will absolutely be on top after dark,” he advised.

The walleye guide said that whether comprised of vegetation, rock or both, steep breaks are “very important, because schooling baitfish will hold off the edge, while the walleye cruise and hide in the protection of the structure. Breaks make great contact points for the walleye, which are seeking the larger, fatter baitfish they want.”

“Bigger walleye don’t want to feed often,” continued Brosdahl. “They want to eat in one full sweep, on a big baitfish like a perch or shad or a fat shiner, when they can. If that size baitfish isn’t available, they’ll stick around and feed on lots of smaller shiners.”

2. Give ‘Em A Blow
Wind also affects where you can find active walleyes in June, says Brosdahl.

“You can start getting summer weather patterns in June, especially late in the month, but before everything really gets wild weather-wise, this time of year you can get winds that create an excellent bite. A good, steady wind will stack fish up in most lakes, and you can find walleyes feeding in the weeds or along rock edges.

“When the wind is strong and steady, fish the windward sides of everything,” suggested Brosdahl. “Baitfish like shiners are weak swimmers; they’ll often get forced along or blown up against a break. And walleye are opportunistic feeders that like big, sluggish baitfish and know that’s where to find them.”

The same opportunistic tendencies are shown by river walleye, he said. “When fishing for river walleye, keep in mind that they are more apt to move to wing dams and structure they can hide behind, out of the current and wait for baitfish to wash by,” said Brosdahl. “From there, all they have to do is rise up or over and pick them off at will. It’s like a current conveyor belt of bait!

3. Catching Walleye at the Bar
To catch these big walleye bellying-up to the salad bar in search of a mouthful, Brosdahl recommends offering them precisely what the hungry predators came for: big live baits.

“You can go with minnows up to 8 inches long, or big shiners, under a float or on a jig like a Fireball,” he said.

Crankbaits can work on the spring fish too, but are usually most effective when the walleye are being the most aggressive, early and late in the day, he suggests, adding: “Bigger crankbaits that mimic injured baitfish can be really effective.

“Fish around the weed beds or humps deeper during the day and move shallow as light fades. Use your fish finder to learn where and at what depths and the baitfish schools are holding to know what depth you want to make your presentation. As long as you are near weeds or rocks that offer breaks, this time of year the walleye shouldn’t be hard to find—’cause if you offer them something they want to eat, and that’s what they’re doing big time right now, they’ll find you.”

Guide Brad Whitehead shows why side-trolling is so effective for crappie over brush piles.

Check out this video for tips on engineering a food plot for kill shots with Matt Haun of Mossy Oak Properties and John Geiger of Game and Fish magazines.

See Jimmy Harris of Unicoi Outfitters and Jimmy Jacobs of Game and Fish Magazines explain how they introduce anglers to trout and fly fishing in North Georgia.

Check out this video of bass Legend Shaw Grigsby breaking down post-spawn waters.

John Geiger: Your most recent season finale on Duck Dynasty crushed American Idol in the ratings and saw 9.6 million viewers. What do you attribute the amazing popularity of your show to?
Willie Robertson: Family values. We’re funny. Funny helps. We’re positive. I think people sense the authenticity of us as people. They wish they were like that, or maybe they are like that. I’m talking God-fearing, gun-toting people like us. Our show is clean. You can watch it as a family. Kids and grandparents can watch together. If it’s appealing and everyone can sit down and watch, then it is a unique kind of show nowadays.

JG: There are more than 12 million hunters in the U.S., but I think we can safely assume that many of your viewers are not hunters. How do you think non-hunters perceive us hunters through your show?
WR: Those non-hunters see it as entertaining, and hopefully we show people who hunt and outdoorsmen as positive people anyone can relate to. The program shows that we are successful at our business, and people respect that fact no matter where they live. And they see that we pray together, have a meal together as a family and bring it all back together. Whether you are urban or country or whatever, people are seeing that it’s possible to live like that.

JG: How much of the show is scripted and how much is unrehearsed?
WR: The show needs a beginning, middle and end, and we have 22 minutes to do that. So, therefore, things have to be moved in a way that you achieve that. As far as scripts, we are who we are. None of us went to acting school.

Before we film, we all get together and talk about ideas and situations for the show. We tape it and some stuff works, some doesn’t. I tell you, it would be impossible to script this out of Hollywood with what we do here. They have no idea about how we live here and what we do—it’s just who we are. The stuff we do is authentic.

I am CEO of this company, and you’ll see more of my CEO side portrayed in the show. I am the boss of the company. And they hone in on the parts that are the most entertaining. They highlight the goof-off points. They show Jase not doing work, but he does do work. They just show when he doesn’t.

JG: Why do you hunt with a crossbow?
WR: I’ve always enjoyed hunting with different kinds of weapons: rifle, bow, crossbow. I follow the season. If it’s bow season, I’ll use bow. If I can use a crossbow, I will. I also love having a little extra distance—compared to a bow—and more confidence in my shot. I’m not trying to prove anything to anybody. Crossbows are just fun. You can practice it in your back yard.

I can get my kids involved and take them on hunts. Hey, at some stage we’re all going to shoot crossbows [because we’ll get older and won’t be able to draw vertical bows]. So we might as well get better at them. I also like breaking down that old stigma that they are only for certain types of people.

Personally, I am out to feed my family. This is a new weapon for us in Louisiana. They are safe and fun. I am so glad Louisiana opened up the [archery] season to crossbows [in 2008]. I shoot the Buck Commander Xtreme by Barnett Crossbows. It’s light, and I love the handle on the forend. It’s much easier to use treestand hunting. I was probably the first person to shoot a deer with it, back in December. I took a 180-inch Louisiana buck with that crossbow. It was awesome.

JG: Who is your favorite person to hunt with?
WR: Oh, that’s tough. But I’d say family. I know that’s not one person, but it’s true. I love hunting with my wife, Korie. She had never been hunting but she took a deer in Louisiana last season. She was so happy about it, and I was so proud. I loved being there with her for that. It wasn’t a huge buck. It had no brow tines, or as she called them “brown” tines. That was hilarious. I was whispering to her, “Go ahead and take him.” I started to tell her where to aim, and she said, “I know where to aim. I watch your show.” That was great.

You know I also love to go hunting with Buck Commander crew [Ryan Langerhans of the Toronto Blue Jays, Adam LaRoche of the Washington Nationals, country music stars Luke Bryant and Jason Aldean]. All of us have other things that we do, me with Duck Commander and Duck Dynasty. All these guys are uber busy. But we get together, and it’s just like any deer camp with jokes and campfire and good times.

JG: You’ve attained stardom. You run a very successful company. So what’s next?
WR: I don’t know. Buy an island? Um, we’ll be doing a Christmas album. We’ll film another season if we finish negotiations. I’m not the looking-three-years-down-the-road kind of guy. If I tried to plan the last three years, I would have way undershot this. But there are so many opportunities. Most of them crap. But I’ll just figure out what I want to do. I’ll run the business and hunt as much as I can, which isn’t enough anymore. Last season I got in 23 days of deer hunting in November and December, which was cool. I guess there are seasons in life and we are just in one of the busier ones.

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The Vegan Carrot Call

The boys from Duck Dynasty found their way into headlines again in February as they planned to be on Jimmy Kimmel Live! Vegan singer Morrissey, who was also slated for the show, cancelled his appearance because of the famous hunters.

In comedic response, Willie and Co. teamed up with Jimmy Kimmel to produce the carrot call—a vegan alternative to their famous duck call brand. Good show, we say.

The Harlem Shake

Not to be outdone by the Miami Heat and their rendition of the Harlem Shake, the boys from Duck Dynasty staged their own version earlier this month. Willie led the dance with his LSU helmet, Jase stood still with a shotgun in hand and Godwin flailed on the ground, bare belly and all. Duck Dynasty—where redneck meets retro.

Si-Tunes

Uncle Si has a penchant for getting popular sayings mixed up, which is even funnier when he tries to sing the latest songs of the day. "Hey, listen Jack, I like my Korn, my Black Eyed Peas... all with a dash of Salt-n-Pepa. Most of all, I like my Ice-T." In the words of Si, homey don't play.

Si's Anti-Beaver Rant

If you're a beaver living anywhere near Monroe, La., you best lookout. Uncle Si and his wrecking crew have a bone to pick with the "peltic plague," and they're not afraid to say it. As this clip reveals, Si is at his best when he goes hostile on the enemy.

"Phil invented the duck call so he's the Duck Commander," Si said. "If I invented the beaver call, maybe I'd be the Beaver Commander. It has a nice ring to it, Beaver Commander."

It's Not You, It's Me

In this episode, Willie and the rest of the Robertson boys try to comfort his son after a traumatic breakup. Uncle Si offers his lame duck advice, including this hilarious quip about a girl he once knew in college. Now you'll always have a comeback when a girl says, "It's not you, it's me."

Sibling Rivalry

Is there anything Duck Commander boss Willie and his brother Jase won't turn into a competition? Nope. Whether it's fishing or toast or frozen pizza, they're always ready to square off. Willie's a touch of a mama's boy and Jase isn't afraid to let him know about it. "He's the CEO," Jase says. "It stands for caveman with an ego, who is obese."

Redneck Road Trip

Let's just say when you put a crew of duckmen in an RV with uncle Si's home cookin', it ain't pretty. Beans, hot sauce and a confined space don't go together, as the boys from Duck Dynasty find out on their not-so-amazing redneck road trip.

Work Hard, Nap Hard

You probably had no idea uncle Si has an entire philosophy on life, but he does—work hard, nap hard. A&E even turned his life motto into a short music video replete with Si's take on working, napping and sippin' tea.

Driver's Ed

We could tell you Willie is a master when it comes to giving his daughter Sadie instruction, but then we'd be lying. No matter—it's a whole heck of a lot funnier to watch as he tries to give parental advice and falls flat on his face. Most parents can identify, but if nothing else it's worth a good hearty laugh.

Si Goes to Kindergarten

What kind of lesson do kindergarteners need to hear these days? Well, if you ask uncle Si, they need to hear about 'Nam. Uncle Si sits down to tell a few youngsters about blood, gore and Bengal tigers.

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10 Awesomely Redneck Duck Dynasty Moments

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Willie Robertson will be featured in a special issue of Crossbow Revolution, available on newsstands everywhere July 9.

Even so, pioneer Martin Varner is among the first people mentioned in Texas history concerning hog hunting. As an article published by Texas A&M AgriLife Research notes, historian “Noah Smithwick (1968) claimed in 1830 that ‘Martin Varner (colonist) had a lot of wild hogs running in the bottom [lands of his property] and when he wanted pork he went out and shot one.’”

This was in the thickly wooded hills and ravines of East Texas, near Nacogdoches. The town was an important trading center between Texas colonists and people living across the Sabine River in bordering Louisiana. The area also had a sizeable interest in pigs—of the domestic variety—with 60,000 of the porkers living there per an 1834 census of the Nacogdoches settlement.

At the time, many farmers let their hogs essentially range freely over the countryside where they found their own forage. When it was time to slaughter or sell the hogs, the animals were usually gathered with the aid of dogs.

Of course, not all the pigs were found and some undoubtedly wandered away. According to the aforementioned article, “By the late 1800s wild hogs were numerous throughout the big thicket of east Texas and provided the most important game meat. Through the turn of the twentieth century, as settlement increased throughout Texas, the numbers of hogs allowed to range freely also increased. In the early 1900s [historian] Mearns noted that feral hogs were numerous in many parts of Texas along the Rio Grande.”

The year 1539 is often given as the date hogs were introduced the North American continent. That’s when Spanish explorer Hernando DeSoto and his army landed at present-day Tampa Bay, Fla., bringing along with them a herd of hogs some estimate as high as 300 animals. However, hogs actually arrived in the New World several decades earlier, when Christopher Columbus introduced swine to the West Indies on his second voyage in 1493. Not surprisingly, hog hunting soon followed.

According to the book, Wild Pigs in the United States, “Thirteen years after Columbus introduced domestic swine to the West Indies, the Spanish colonists that settled on these islands found it necessary to hunt the now free-ranging descendants of these animals because they were killing cattle.” The pigs also destroyed crops and even attacked people.

On the North American continent, explorer DeSoto and his army trekked from Florida to the west, crossing the Mississippi River into present-day Arkansas and Louisiana. Herds of live pigs came along to provide the soldiers with fresh meat. Some of the hogs were traded to native people, while others escaped.

By 1540, according to Wild Pigs in the United States, there were free-ranging swine in Desha County, Ark., that escaped from Desoto’s expedition years earlier. Georgia had feral hogs since the 1540s when Spanish settled islands right off the Georgia Coast. Hogs got to California in the 1500s via Spanish colonists, too.

Early on, Native Americans saw the feral hogs as game animals. According to Dr. John Mayer, co-author of the aforementioned book, French colonists who arrived along the coast of northeastern Florida in the 1560s had a lot of trouble finding enough food to survive. Local native hunters helped out and brought these struggling colonists fresh, wild pork.

“So there were feral pig populations established in Florida by then, and the native people already considered them game animals,” Mayer wrote.

Mayer is among the country’s foremost experts on feral hogs, having studied and hunted them for over 40 years. He is currently a research scientist at the Savannah River National Laboratory, near Aiken, S.C. Mayer notes from European settlement of the continent and well past the Colonial Period, feral hogs weren’t truly considered game animals by most people. Letting hogs, cattle and sheep range freely was a common practice among settlers well into the 19^th century.

“Those animals, especially the pigs, had the ability to go wild,” says Mayer. “Pigs actually go wild faster than any other livestock. Why that is, we don’t know, but clearly they do.”

These wild hogs were viewed as the property of the local farmers, not game for the taking (though this surely happened at times). When farmers wanted pork to eat or hogs to sell, they and their dogs went into the forest to catch hogs, often with the farmers riding on horseback. As an interesting aside, this is where American bay-and-catch hog dog hunting got its start. The hogs were then sold or fattened up to make ready for the table.

“They were certainly wild pigs at that point,” says Mayer.  “But they were still seen as personal property. Now, there are accounts of people in places like New York State in the early- and mid-1800s coming upon large wild boars, ferals, and shooting them. But, by and large, people hunted game animals—and wild pigs were seen as belonging to someone.”

Some exceptions to this included Tehama County, Calif., where domestic pigs arrived via Spanish settlers in 1840s. By the 1880s settlers hunted feral hogs in the foothills of the county northeast of Red Bluff in what is now the Dye Creek Ranch. Native Americans on California’s Santa Rosa Island hunted free-ranging ferals much sooner, as early as 1820 to 1840.

The present-day perception of feral hogs as game animals began forming shortly before the start of the 20^th Century. Many Southern and Eastern states changed their free-range livestock laws, so farm animals could no longer run loose legally. A feral hog was—by legal definition in many places—now free for the taking.

Wealthy hunters helped change perceptions by introducing pure Eurasian wild boars in the 1890s to several places in the United States. These initial introductions were in fenced hunting preserves in places like Corbin’s Park, N.H., and Litchfield Park, N.Y.

Before WWI, George Gordon Moore of New York created a hunting club near Hooper Bald, N.C.  As told in the book, Pigs, From Cave to Corn Belt, “A vast tract was enclosed by a high fence, and a clubhouse and other buildings were erected. Here fifteen wild swine of both sexes, imported from the Hartz Mountains in Germany, were released. For eight or ten years they were not molested, which gave them ample opportunity to propagate and multiply.”

“In 1920 a little group of huntsmen, mounted on local nags and armed with spears, rode into the enclosure, each bent on bagging a boar. But the strong and cagey tuskers had no intention of being captured or slain by a pack of novices riding reluctant and inexperienced mounts. At least one hundred of them made a mockery of their prison walls, charging and breaking through the stout wire enclosure like so many machine-gun bullets riddling a piece of cheesecloth. And that was the end of horse-and-spear hunting in America… It also marked the demise of the promoter’s ambitious hunt club.”

After the hunt club closed, the wild boars went out into the North Carolina countryside and multiplied, providing hunters with a new game animal. Hunt preserve escapes happened in other parts of the nation, too, and Euro boar bloodlines got added to the feral livestock mix.

From 1900 to 1950 feral hog became wild, huntable game in the eyes of many people, as well as the government. Some states began to regulate them as game animals and required licenses.  California was one such state, and today is one of the few states that actually still requires hunters to have a pig tag.

From the 1950s on, pig populations started on a strong growth curve—one that has never stopped. These ferals have been reported in 47 states with established populations in at least 38 states. Today, North America is home to an estimated 4 to 5 million feral hogs. In many ways pigs have multiplied so successfully because of genetics: Pigs are capable of bearing three litters of piglets per year in warmer Southern states. In addition, many of these areas have few or no natural predators to limit expansive populations.

Pigs continued to escape from game farms and livestock operations. Hunters are frequently blamed for moving hogs around the nation and releasing them to create new hunting opportunities. The practice was and is illegal, but it has definitely been done.

At the same time, though, some game agencies have helped the pigs expand their range. As Wild Pigs in America reveals, the Florida Game and Freshwater Commission started a program in the 1950s that relocated nuisance feral hogs to state public hunting lands. “Between 1960 and 1976, for example, 2,848 feral hogs were stocked into the J.W. Corbett Wildlife Management Area, Palm Beach County, from other localities around the state.”

By the 1990s, “You had a population explosion in feral pigs. The Pig Bomb! Plus, you had a lot of media exposure about hog hunting with the Internet and cable television shows and magazines. That got a lot of hunters looking at hogs. To the point that, by the mid-1990’s the hog was and is the second most popular big game animal in North America, by the number of animals taken, second only to the whitetailed deer.”

From imported livestock to our second most popular big game animal, the wild hog is now a huge part of the American hunting landscape.

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East Texas Wild Hog Roundup

It’s early April in East Texas, and that means only one thing—it’s time for the Wild Hog Roundup. Hosted by Wulf Outdoors Sports, a retail outlet in Center and Athens, Texas, the Roundup is a week’s worth of hog hunting with guns and dogs, plus a big dose of hog trapping. At stake is a whopping $28,000 in cash prizes, including a $5,000 award for taking the heaviest hog in Shelby County.

The Roundup was started to help get the word out that exploding feral hog populations have become a significant problem in Texas. The destructive hogs root up pasturelands and agricultural fields, compete with native wildlife for forage and can spread diseases to livestock.

Now in its third year, the Roundup has been a huge success. Hunters and trappers have answered the call and killed over 700 hogs last year alone. The prize money doesn’t hurt, either!

“Folks here in East Texas live and breathe the outdoors and hunting,” says Virginia Solgot, Wulf’s marketing manager. “Hog hunting’s always been a part of life here, but it’s become even more popular as we’ve seen these hog numbers increase so dramatically.”

Hog Doggin' It

Historically, a lot of the hog hunting in East Texas has been done with dogs. Ronald Murdock, now in his 40s, has been “hog dogging” since he was a small boy. He’s raised his own strain of Blackmouth Cur hog dogs for nearly just as long.

“We love these Piney Woods,” says Murdock. “And chasing these hogs with our dogs is such an adrenalin rush. My family’s been doing it for generations now. Can’t imagine the Murdocks not doing it.”

The biggest hogs taken since the Roundup started have been by hog dog hunters—on foot or following on horseback. Last year, the big pig was a 303-pound boar taken by Ronald Murdock (right) and his brothers.

Hog Dog Tradition

Hog hunting’s been an integral part of Southern life for decades. Chasing down hogs with dogs was and is the preferred method for many, many Southerners because it combines the thrill of the chase with the camaraderie of the hunt. The result is a plentiful supply of fantastic wild hog meat.

It’s amazing when you think about it: After two or three hours chasing down a hog, the successful hog dog hunt yields just one giant hog. For the rancher whose pasture lands look like moonscapes because of rutting hogs—or the farmer whose newly planted fields are half destroyed by the same perpetrators—hog dogging a wild pig or two just isn’t enough to make the kind of dent needed in the feral population.

Tradition Meets Tactical

The old and the new are very much on display at the Wild Hog Roundup. Traditional hog doggers join the ranks of the tactical feral militia, all sharing the same mission of thwarting the feral hog invasion. It will take both groups to put a dent in the rapidly expanding hog population.

Roundup gun hunters have been taking a tactical approach, with a number of hunters using AR-style rifles, new hi-tech ammunition, night lights attached to the AR’s, pricey night vision scopes and thermal imaging spotters. Last year, event coordinators even had an inquiry from a potential hog hunting team that wanted to know if they could use a helicopter!

“I told them, as it says in our rules, ‘by any method legal in the State of Texas,’” a Roundup official said. “Helicopter hog hunting’s been legal here for a couple years now, so, yes, they could have used a helicopter.”

Hog Festivals Galore

Hog hunting as a major feature of Southern culture is apparent by the many hog festivals held throughout the region. In Abbeville, Ga., there’s the annual Ocmulgee Wild Hog Festival, held the Saturday before Mother's Day each year. Among the events are the hog dog baying contest, children's pig chase= and the wild hog waller dance.

Durant, Okla., is the scene of the Wild Hog Festival, two fun-filled days of events and activities that include a gun and motorcycle show with live entertainment. Hunters compete to bring in the largest wild hog. In Texas, there’s the Ben Wheeler's Fall Feral Hog Festival.

Arkansas’ Calhoun County hosts the Hogskin Holidays Festival and Pork Cook-Off. While it doesn’t offer hunting, the event was designed to honor Calhoun County as “Hogskin County,” a name it got during the Great Depression when people would come here from surrounding counties to hunt and butcher wild hogs. Many of these hunters left the skins hanging on fences or trees, hence the nickname “Hogskin County.”

There are also all the hog hunting contests, which include in Texas. Among them is the Atascosa Hog Dog Competition, the East Texas Wild Hog Round-Up, the Gordon FFA Benefit Hog Hunt and the Gator Country’s Hog Challenge.

World Predator and Wild Hog Expo

The World Predator and Wild Hog Expo will be held this April 19-21 in Waco, Texas. A look at the exhibitor list shows the strong influence of hog dog hunters.

“Dog-bay-catch hunters are a huge part of the Expo, as far as visitors and exhibitors,” says Jeff Scurry, a Georgia native, who produces the Expo with his brother Ken through their umbrella company, Scurry Outdoors South. “Truthfully, going out with hi-tech gear and shooting 40 hogs in a night isn’t what they’re all about. It just doesn’t appeal to them.”

But as Southern hog populations have surged, there’s been a big cost.

“Mainly, the Southern farmers are the ones taking the hit with all the hogs,” adds Scurry, himself a life-long hog hunter (he prefers archery). “Cotton, corn and alfalfa fields—the hogs are just tearing ‘em up! And they’re eating a whole lot of the acorns that deer and turkeys need.”

High Tech Hog Hunting

A.J. Niette of southeastern Alabama plays a big part in helping local farmers keep wild hog numbers down. A retired engineer, Niette, 65, didn’t even hunt hogs until three or four years ago. But when he started, he took a very high tech approach.

Niette’s hunting rig is a .223 AR-15 rifle custom-made by DoubleStar Corporation and is topped with a D-760 Gen 3 Standard 6x Night Vision Scope, made by Night Optics USA. He’s also got it decked out with a Streamlight Super Tac Long Range Infrared Active Illuminator light. For a night spotting optic, Niette actually uses a FLIR 307 H Series thermal imaging camera. He says the FLIR lets him distinguish whether he’s seeing a deer or a hog out past 600 yards.

Niette won’t give an exact figure as to what all this gear’s cost him, though he admits it’s in the $15,000 to $20,000 range.

“Last year, I killed 144 hogs,” Niette said. “And 67 of those were sows. If you don’t keep after these hogs they’ll fill up the woods in a year. Even now, staying on them, you should see what they do to a newly planted peanut field in a night. Just chew it up.”

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