Jason “Byrd” Royer of Dequincy has been part of the hog hunting community for many years. His preferred method of chase is with dog teams to catch the hogs. Royer is a true outdoorsman. When I met him at his home recently, he shared freely his knowledge about hog hunting, gave me a tour of his property, introduced his hog hunting dogs, shared with me a delicious meal his wife had prepared and invited me to return for a hog hunt any time.
The increase in feral hog populations across the south has brought many outdoor enthusiasts to hunt the exploding populations. Hunters can choose to chase hogs through traditional styles such as spot and stalk, stand hunting and trapping, or with hog chase and catch dogs. Royer is one of those hunters who works to reduce the population and loves the chase.
Spring hunting
In the spring, hogs tend to feed on late-season acorns, rooting in food plots, or feeding around corn feeders remaining after deer season.
“A good spring rain can shut down movement, but when the rain clears the hogs tend to start moving,” Royer said.
Although Royer hunts in the spring, he does not chase or hunt hogs during turkey season. When he goes, he hunts with two chase or bay dogs that are a mixed but specialized breed that live to chase hogs. The dogs are monitored by GPS collars and Royer monitors the situation from a distance until the dogs get the hog bayed. Once he pinpoints the location of the hog, Royer goes in by UTV to get closer.
“I like to get to about 200 yards from the hog so I don’t spook it and go the rest of the way on foot,” he said.
The remaining distance is covered on foot with his catch dog, a pitbull, in tow. Once Royer gets in range, he will release the catch dog that will grab the hog by an ear and hold the hog in place. He then goes in on foot, grabs the hog by the back legs, rolls it over and pins it to the ground.
Be prepared
The process of chasing hogs with dogs, using a catch dog, and restraining the hog by hand to dispatch it is one that is not for the faint of heart.
“I was once told by an elder lady to not hunt hogs on Sunday, or you would catch the devil,” Royer said.
He told of an occasion when he failed to take this advice and went in search of a hog on a Sunday. His dogs bayed a large bore hog and the catch dog had a hold of the hog’s ear. When Royer approached the hog, it got away from the catch dog, killed one of his dogs, charged Royer, and the hog ended up with Royer’s foot in his mouth.
At that time, Royer did not have his weapon on him and was fortunate the hog was distracted by the dogs. It let go of his foot and fled with the dogs hot on its trail. At the next road crossing, Royer stopped his dogs and let the hog go. Perhaps this devil hog still roams the woods today. This type of hog hunting is not for everyone. It can be extremely dangerous and should not be done without an experienced hunter and trained dogs.
The dogs
The catch dogs Royer uses do not wear vests or neck guards.
“I don’t like to use the gear because the places I hunt have a lot of vines and briars and the dog can get stuck if the gear gets hung up,” he said.
The protective gear is a good tool and can be used effectively to protect the dogs from the hogs, but Royer prefers to ensure his dogs cannot get caught up in vines or brush.
Royer also said the dogs he uses without vests are more cautious.
“When the dog is used to catching a hog without protective gear, when it is released, instead of just charging the hog to bite and hold an ear, the dog circles and looks for an opening to move in,” he said.
In an average day, Royer will catch between one and eight hogs. He has a great passion for hog hunting and a strong desire to pass along this knowledge to the hog hunters of tomorrow.
