How to Build a Hog Trap

Wild hogs are destructive to farms and ranches. They plow through fences and damage forests by rooting and wallowing. Their rooting also causes ground erosion. They destroy native plants and animals carrying diseases such as swine brucellosis, pseudo-rabies, trichinosis and leptospirosis. Consequently, destruction of the population is a priority. Hog traps, properly built and set will capture wild hogs without the owner being present on the property. Successful traps capture multiple hogs and are difficult to avoid. There are three types: box, cage and corral traps. Cage traps require welding and are available for purchase. When constructing your own, either use wood for a box trap or livestock panels for a corral trap.

Things You'll Need

• 10 2-inch by 4-inch wood boards
• 22 1-inch by 4-inch boards or ten to twelve 1-inch by 6-inch boards
• 3-inch exterior decking screws
• 1 ¾ inch plywood panel -- 2-feet long and 4-feet high
• 2 5-foot 1-inch by 2-inch boards.
• Pulley
• Rope
• Screwdriver
• Drill
• Angle iron or square tubing frame
• 3 or 4 16-foot by 5-foot livestock panels
• Steel T-posts
• Spring slightly stronger than screen door spring
• Metal hinges

Instructions

Box Trap

1. Purchase or cut 10 2-inch by 4-inch boards to a length of 5-feet.

2. Purchase or cut 20 to 22 1-inch by 4-inch boards or 10 to 12 1-inch by 6-inch boards 8-feet long. Cut the same number and size boards to 4-feet. You will need enough wood for two 8-feet by 5-feet fence panels and two 4-by 5-foot panels with boards placed no more than 4-inches apart.

3. Use the 2 by 4's as the frame for each panel, using three 5-foot tall 2 by 4's on the 8-foot sides and two on the 4-foot rear panel. Attach the boards to the 2 by 4's with 3-inch external decking screws.

4. Construct the front panel with space for the trap door. Screw three to four of the 4-foot long 1-inch by 4-inch or 1-inch by 6-inch boards to two 5-foot tall 2-inch by 4-inch boards at the top of the 2 by 4's.

5. Cut six 1-foot long boards of the same size you were using. Attach these to the bottom of the 2 by 4's with the screws.

Corral Trap

1. Overlap the livestock panels by 1-foot.

2. Secure the overlapping ends with 5/8-inch cable clamps clamped to the top and bottom of the panels or by wrapping heavy-gauge wire around the overlapping sections.

3. Form a continuous circular frame with the panels.

4. Leave two panels ends free to allow for a trap door.

5. Attach one of the door styles described below to one end.

Single Catch Guillotine Style Trap Door

1. Drill a hole into one of the shorter sides of the plywood panel.

2. Screw two 2-inch by 4-inch boards to the interior edges of the opening left in the door end panel described above.

3. Screw two 1-inch by 2-inch boards to those two by fours on the side opposite the fencing boards.

4. Attach two more 2-inch by 4-inch boards to the other side of the 1-inch by 2-inch boards.

5. Insert the plywood panel into the slot created by these boards, so that the hole is on the bottom.

6. Attach a cross beam to the upright 2 by 4's about two inches above the top of the plywood panel.

7. Screw a pulley into the cross beam.

8. Run the rope through the hole at the bottom of the door and up around the pulley.

9. Measure a length of rope slightly longer than eight feet and knot the end, so that it cannot go through the hole in the plywood.

10. Attach the rope from the door pulley to a small stick. Then place this stick behind two other sticks driven into the ground. Cover all three with feed for bait. When the hogs have rooted around the bait for some time the root stick comes loose from the other sticks and the trap door lowers.

Saloon Style Doors

1. Weld fencing material to 1-inch square tubing to create two panels measuring one foot by four feet

2. Weld a 2-inch piece of angle iron to the top and bottom of each panel

3. Attach two hinges to each panel by welding them to the inside face.

4. Weld spring to the outside face of each panel.

5. Attach the doors to the open end of each livestock panel with wire by wrapping the wire around the livestock panel and the door frame.

6. Because these doors only open in, they trap rooting hogs as soon as they enter.

References

• MSU Cares; A Landowner's Guide for Wild Pig Management; Practical Methods for Wild Pig Control
• Texas A&M University; Coping with Feral Hogs; Billy Higginbotham and Don Neuendorff
• Hog Hunting Guide: How to build Hog Traps
• Hog Hunting: Hog Trap Design - Corral Type
• Wild Pig Info: Types of Traps