A pack of wild boars. (Ryan Brook/Submitted)

By Dominick Lucyk

Population Rise

SWF says wild boar ‘shoot farms’ contribute to growing population

Dec 5, 2019 | 12:22 PM

Wild pig populations are on the rise in Saskatchewan, and some wildlife experts think boar farms could be part of the problem.

In the province, it’s possible to pay to shoot feral hogs at a range that raises them.

Darrell Crabbe, the executive director of the Saskatchewan Wildlife Federation, isn’t happy about these businesses.

“We wouldn’t use the word ‘hunting’ in the same sentence as those. We call them ‘shoot farms,’ ” he said. “We would look forward to a day where there aren’t any around.”

Crabbe said the farms can contribute to the boom in pig population.

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“(The pigs) escape. Once they get into the wild, they’re very difficult to catch and control their spread,” he told 650 CKOM.

Crabbe said the entire problem of wild boars started in the 1980s, when the farms were introduced. He pointed to a 2002 study of boars in Moose Mountain Provincial Park by researcher Brad Tokaruk.

“Escapes are common, as much as three per cent per year, due to the wild boars’ natural instinct to dig and root,” the report said.

Ministry of Agriculture points to existing regulations

Dr. Betty Althouse, the chief veterinary officer with the Ministry of Agriculture, said two sets of regulations minimize the issue of escaped boars.

“Under the Stray Animals Act, they require specific fencing to avoid having them escape,” she explained. “For traceability and movement reporting, they follow all of the same rules that domestic swine do.”

Regulations are tougher in neighbouring provinces. Both Alberta and Manitoba have banned boar game farms.

According to Althouse, there are fewer than 20 such farms in Saskatchewan.