More than 9,800 feral hogs removed in Mo. feral hog elimination partnership

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KFVS) - 9,857 feral hogs were removed in 2021 through the Missouri Feral Hog Elimination Partnership.

According to the Missouri Department of Conservation, that makes the total number of feral hogs eliminated more than 54,000 since 2016.

The partnership is made up of 13 federal and state agencies, along with numerous agriculture and conservation organizations.

“I’m really proud of the progress that the Partnership trappers have made,” said the Partnership Incident Commander Jason Jensen. “In 2021, we covered over double the number of acres and worked with double the number of landowners. Despite the increased effort and efficiency, the number of hogs removed was down by nearly 3,000 hogs. We anticipated we’d get to this point but not necessarily this quick. This is a positive indicator of the progress being made and a declining hog population. "

According to the MDC, partnership employees helped 1,308 landowners and scouted more than 3 million acres for feral hog damage in 2021.

They said the top counties where feral hogs were removed include Iron County with 1,940 hogs, Wayne County with 1,329 hogs and Reynolds County with 1,268 hogs.

The Department said the feral hog’s range is in at least 35 states, including Missouri. They’re mostly found in the southern portion of the state and across at least 17 counties.