Residents in Mesquite are calling on the city to do something about an increase in feral hog sightings.
“All of this damage that you’re looking at was done by feral hogs within the last six weeks,” said Ted Faulkner.
Falkner has lived in Mesquite’s Falcons Lair neighborhood for 17 years, and the entire time, he’s dealt with feral hogs.
“The first two months I was here, it caused me to change my flowerbed into a rock garden. After that, it was dormant for maybe a year or two,” said Faulkner.
As of late, he says they’ve been coming around more frequently. He shared several videos with CBS News Texas of hogs running through the neighborhood at night. In one video, you can see a pack of about six, at times, he’s seen up to 10 roaming around.
“I’ve warned people in the neighborhood, ‘do not walk out here after dark because you might encounter the hogs, they become frightened, and they might attack.’ That’s the biggest concern is public safety,” said Faulkner.
The other issue is the damage they cause.
“They could probably get a part-time job working for an excavation company… We’re talking about several thousand dollars of damage,” said Faulkner.
Faulkner believes the hogs live in the wooded area across from his house. His suggestion is to fence it off, preventing the hogs from coming into the neighborhood.
“I’ve talked with the animal control and with the city manager’s office. I made three different reports. The assistant city manager is saying they have contacted Texas Parks and Wildlife to see if they can get some assistance, because Mesquite doesn’t have the capability to trap these hogs,” said Faulkner.
The city says residents are encouraged to report feral hog sightings, but says animal services is unable to trap or remove them.
“How much does it take before someone comes up with a way to control them?” said Faulkner.
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