WASHINGTON COUNTY HOG OUT PROGRAM BEGINS SATURDAY

  

Washington County will pay a bounty on feral hogs beginning this Saturday.

The bounty program will pay $5 for every killed hog. Participants in the program must bring both ears of the hog (still attached to the scalp) to the Washington County Fairgrounds rabbit barn on the first Friday of every month from 9 a.m. until 11 a.m.

Washington County accepted a grant for $15,000 in August from the Texas Department of Agriculture’s “Hog Out” program, which offers funding for the bounty and educational programs. The program this year will extend until May 31st 2017, or until the funds are exhausted.

Participants will be eligible for a bounty contest which awards prizes to the top five individuals who turn in the most ears during the program period. The cash awards are:

1st place- $1,250

2nd place- $1,000

3rd place- $750

4th place- $250

The estimated 2.6 million wild hogs in Texas are estimated to cause $52 million in agricultural damage, with landowners spending an additional $7 million to control pigs and/or correct damage annually.