Fort Campbell Trying to Get Rid of Wild Hogs
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James Joyner | Tuesday, July 12, 2005 |
Campbell working to rid post of feral hogs (AP – Army Times)
A small number of wild hogs are running loose in remote areas of Fort Campbell, prompting concerns about the possible spread of animal-borne diseases. Feral hogs can transmit infections â ranging from pseudorabies to cholera â to other animals and even to people, Montgomery County Agricultural Extension Agent John Bartee said last week.
In response to repeated questions from the The Leaf-Chronicle over several weeks, Fort Campbell spokesman George Heath said Army officials have known for several years that the wild hogs have been living in remote areas of the 105,000-acre military post. âA few years ago we realized the presence of a small group of feral hogs on Fort Campbell,â Heath said.
The current Fort Campbell wild hog population is believed to be less than 25 animals, and âprobably more like 10 to 15â â and declining, Heath said.
While the headline is quite amusing–and the idea of 10 to 25 pigs able to terrorize a 100,000 acre post containing some of the fiercest fighting men on the planet even more so–this is a real problem. Many military bases have problems with wild boars, in fact.
In addition to the disease threat, they tend to be a nuisance around the campsites of soldiers bedding down for the night during field exercises.
About the Author: James Joyner is the publisher of Outside the Beltway and the managing editor of the Atlantic Council. He's a former Army officer, Desert Storm vet, and college professor with a PhD in political science from The University of Alabama. He lives just outside the Beltway in Alexandria, Virginia with his wife and infant daughter.
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We used to see them on the road to the Sim Center just off the main road near Ft. Stewart almost every time we had an exercise or Annual Training down there.
Of course there was the one time from the Sim Center back to the barracks after our shift was over that we counted almost 20 deer alongside the road.
The mosquitoes in February is another story entirely.
Ahh, memories. Memories of a young, some would say handsome, Private being awakened for his first guard shift at his first rotation through Hohenfels. As this young, handsome Private is donning his boots, the individual who had preceeded him as guard hands him a large branch. "Was ist das", asks our protagonist. "Its a boar stick", is the reply. The dashing, and don't forget young, Private pondered the meaning of boar stick for the first few minutes of his guard shift, when a large rustling and squealing did erupt from the underbrush nearby send him leaping atop the commander's hatch of the closet M3A1 Bradley Cavalry Fighting Vehicle.
Ponder he did not, the meaning of "boar stick". At the close of the Private's watch, as his replacement was donning his boots, the Private thrust the weapon upon his unsuspecting replacement. "Boar stick", is all he said as he hustled back to his bag for the remaining two hours before the new day began, leaving his replacement to ponder the meaning of the "boar stick".
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Off topic post deleted.
That is funny.
But, try going to Fort Hood, where all of the training areas are Open Range Cattle Area. try waking up to a Big Freaking Cow sniffing around your sleeping bag. Scared the living crud out of me. I laugh about it now! :)
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