Thread: When men were men

Boar with good tusks can do alot of damage - he's an animal to treat with great respect. Back in the 60s we had several pigdogs killed - ripped when approaching from front rather than sides for ear holds when bailing.

I recall one occasion back in South Waikato the dogs were bailing a boar on a high flat hill covered with dense northern bush. And the boar kept breaking. Old man and I followed noise of the dogs for some time, then realised the boar was following us. A circling going on - all in very dense undergrowth. Then hell of a racket about 20 meters away and old man pushes me (7-8 years old) up a rotten tree out of the way of the scrap. Next thing boar breaks, races past me - exactly as the tree breaks down and crashes with me couple of meters behind him. Hell of a racket as dogs go past, catch him up and bail him again about 5 meters away. Finally old man gets through the undergrowth, BOOM from the jungle carbine, and its all over. Talk about a scared kid ...year's supply of nappies on that one..

On another occasion we finally got a particular boar who was notorious in the South Waikato back in the 60s. Had been trying to get him for years. Dogs got onto him again and again but he was too big, too strong. Very well known in the district as the Blackberry Gully boar - and over a number of years it had killed 17 dogs belonging to lots of hunters. Old man finally got to him when the dogs stayed on him all afternoon - lead by a young dog who didn't have the sense to quit - and they finally bailed him in a deep boghole. Old man got to him and nailed him with the jungle carbine. It was a big crossbred brindle boar and weighed 320lbs. 3" tusks (undrawn). News of his demise was written up in Waikato paper of the day, and mounted head is still on my brother's wall. True story..