The city of Dallas wants to avoid going hog wild, literally.
Dallas contracted a trapper for three years for about $284,000. The goal is to catch as many hogs as possible, to get them down to a manageable population.
The trapper, Osvaldo Rojas, plans first to do surveillance, setting up cameras to see where the hogs are.
Traps are planned for areas near bodies of water, one of them being the Trinity River.
"We want to have a bottleneck stop north, stop down south, focus on certain area and work our way in," said Rojas.
Hogs are believed to be disruptive to natural habitats, carry disease, dig up trails and even attack pets or people.
"There's no warning sign. It's not like a dog that starts barking and comes after you. This thing automatically feels threatened, is going to come right after you. He's not going to stop and maul you, he's going to hit you and run," said Rojas.
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Traps are set off by phone and monitored through computers. The city of Dallas will actually be able to see the hogs in the traps through the web.
The contract starts Sept. 1 and will be not just for areas within Dallas city limits but even for neighboring communities.
Hogs are believed to usually come out at night, but Rojas says during summer months, they could come out earlier.
Feral hogs that are captured will be sent to a slaughterhouse.
