Texas lets hunters shoot hogs at night; California points to fencing and permits

The Outdoor Channel poked fun at California’s approach to nuisance feral hogs earlier this week, pairing a 2022 local news segment on suburban pig damage with footage of hog hunting in Texas, the Daily Caller reported.

The 2022 report from NBC Bay Area described wild pigs tearing up lawns and ransacking garbage cans in a San Jose neighborhood. Possible fixes included artificial turf, fencing and “hazing” the animals with loud noises. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife told the station such damage is a risk of living on the urban edge next to open space.

Brian Lynn, vice president of marketing and communications for the Sportsmen’s Alliance, told the Daily Caller News Foundation those measures would not curb the damage. “Hunting is a hard enough endeavor to break into and maintain,” he said, arguing California’s regulations raise costs for hunters. He cited tag costs and nonlead ammunition requirements and said state rules bar thermal optics and other night hunting except under agricultural depredation permits.

California has since replaced per-animal pig tags with an annual validation under a 2022 law that took effect in July 2024. According to CDFW, hunters generally need a license and a wild pig validation, but the season is open year-round with no bag limit. Under the department’s current fee schedule, the validation costs $28.34 for residents and $101.26 for nonresidents for the 2026-27 license year, on top of the hunting license.

Different rules apply outside sport hunting. CDFW’s depredation guidelines bar artificial light for sport hunters, who are limited to the period from half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset. Landowners with a depredation permit may use artificial light under the permit’s conditions. An owner whose property is being damaged, or is immediately threatened, may also take pigs on the spot without a hunting license, at any hour. A department spokesperson told the Daily Caller that fencing is the most effective and likely most cost-effective long-term protection, and that property owners can apply for permits to trap and kill pigs.

Texas treats feral hogs as exotic livestock. Texas A&M researchers say the state has no closed season or bag limit, and hunters may use spotlights, thermal scopes and night-vision optics. Since September 2019, a hunting license is not required to hunt or trap hogs on private property with the landowner’s permission, though one is still required on public land. Hunter education certification requirements continue to apply on both private and public land, the researchers note, with exemptions depending on a hunter’s age. The state has more than 3 million of the animals, they estimate.

Texas also permits baiting and certain methods of hunting from vehicles and aircraft, subject to applicable restrictions and permits. Aerial hog hunting requires separate authorization from Texas Parks and Wildlife.

The problem extends well beyond the two states. National Geographic reported in 2021 that an estimated 6 million to 9 million feral hogs inhabited at least 42 states, with U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates of about $2.5 billion in annual damage. The magazine reported that recreational hunters removed roughly 24% of the population in a busy year, while annual reductions of 60% to 80% would be needed to eradicate populations.