Good question...If you are talking about the preferred shot placement on a mature boar(150-plus lbs.), your best shot is a hard quartering away shot several inches behind the crease of the shoulder. Mature boars develop a thick gristle plate that gets thicker and heavier as they age. I doubt you would even penetrate it with a broadside shoulder shot on a really mature boar. For this very reason, I would also recommend a short, compact, heavy duty fixed-blade broadhead that provides maximum opportunity for penetration.
For smaller boars and sows, an arrow straight up the front leg mid-line to the lower 1/3rd will do the trick. A hog's vitals are a little father forward than other North American game, very similar to that of African game. The lungs don't come as far back as they do on a whitetail for example...A broadside shot more than 4-5" behind the crease is a gut shot on a hog.
Good luck! shoot a bunch!
Your average hog isn't any harder to kill than a deer. The really big boars can have extremely thick "shields" and that puts them in a completely different category of tough. The shield and thick mud caked hair can make it really tough to get good penetration.
Have fun, hogs were designed for the bow hunter!
As an aside, a 75 grain boat tail hollow point in the ear does an excellent job also :)
The heart is low and slightly forward. Best shot scenario is quartering away aiming a low at the crease. This should put you in the heart.
Bottomline: Stay away from the shoulder on larger hogs.
Best eating size hog is 75-125# range. Piglets are super delicious. When they get up in size the meat gets gritty.
The vitals lie incredibly low and far forward on a hog when compared to other North American game species, so a majority of folks shoot them like they would a deer- behind the shoulder. I can't tell you how many times we've heard "I hit him perfect", while tracking a wounded hog. What would be perfect on a deer or elk may be a gut shot on a hog. Their stomach comes as far forward as an inch behind the elbow.
Also, if you look at their neck and visualize their spinal column in the middle of their neck, you can see just how low their spine is. Anything above the spine is simply muscle and even a high lung shot is not ideal as they can run a long way before expiring, and by the time the first drop of blood hits the ground from that high hole there's a very high chance you won't find it. There's a lot of fear about hitting the shield on a hog also. First of all, only an old, mature boar hog develops the shield. It is simply cartilage the builds up over years of rubbing to encourage the build-up of this cartilage. While we have seen shields of 2" or more thick on mature boar hogs, a sharp cut-to-tip broadhead penetrates that shield like a hot knife through butter. Bullets can be hampered, but broadheads not as much. Look at it like a bulletproof vest on a hog. If you hit them in the right spot, they're going to die.
Lastly, on the subject of quartering shots...we strongly suggest our guests wait for a perfectly broadside shots to increase the likelihood of recovering their animal. Unless you hit the aorta, heart or other major blood vessel, it's not likely you will kill a hog with a single-lung hit. Just like a human being with a collapsed lung, the other lung will continue to function, and we've field dressed many hogs with only one good lung. More often than not, if only one lung is hit, the hog will survive. I'll post some pics to show better what I'm trying to say.
Don't push em, but if possible gain high ground immediately after shooting a big boar so you can keep eyes on them, if possible. They don't bleed much and you can't always count on a good blood trail.
So to answer your original question, try to hit them directly above the elbow in the bottom one third of the chest, perfectly broadside. That will bring home the bacon!
Hope this information helps you and others as well!
When you skin a hog you will also find out how sharp your knife is and how good of steel your blade is made of and a hog's hide tells the truth about sharpness of an edge.
That is some great info you shared. I know you have seen your share and heard your share. Hard to beat top notch advice. Thanks
elkmtngear's Link
I hit this large boar (est. 225-250#) quartering away. The arrow entered about 3 to 4 inches behind the near shoulder, and buried in the hide just ahead of the offside shoulder.
It took him about 200 yards to go down "hit perfectly". I was simply amazed at the thickness and weight of the hide. The head and hide alone was probably nearly 100 pounds.
I gave him an hour, since he was a big boar. Years ago, one of the local Bow Shop Owners hit a boar a little too far back, and he was blind-sided by the hog while bloodtrailing it. The result was 4 hours of surgery on one of his calves.
They are indeed tough critters... and dangerous!
Best of Luck, Jeff (Bowsite Sponsor)
The vitals on a hog are slightly forward but not much. I always try to shoot hogs and deer tight to the shoulder. Every deer I've heart shot from the ground has a hole through it's leg at the elbow. Any lower and the heart would be outside the hide!
Nice shot dm/wolfskin, I'd call that the X ring! Impressive shot with the stick bow!
Sapcut's Link
The arrow went thru bow shields, part of scapula and everything in between.
Sapcut, did I read that right? 830 grain arrow!
The shot was actually a front quartering shot. That arrow went thru a lot of thick bad news swine armour before exiting. And like I mentioned, he was on the ground dead in 8 seconds.
BTW...if you build your arrows accordingly, there is no need to avoid the shield.
Killed a few pigs. Their vitals are more forward than deer/elk. I shoot em straight up the leg, but then I shoot pretty much everything straight up the leg.
Big boars have a "shield" but I have never been stopped by it. Any decent weight arrow with a good head (COC is better yet) will get through it no problem. Normally through the other side too but have had a few the far side shield has stopped. In all honesty I trust my gear and pay it no attention.
Shooting 460 grain right now and a good 2 blade has blown right through every time with every pig, but have killed fair number with the old 4 blade muzzy. I shoot 70 lbs but I knew several folks that shoot 60 and have no issues with penetration. Tuned is going to be very important as well, an arrow with all it's energy behind it. I would shy away from wide cut mechs and/or steep blade angles.
Smaller pigs will not be any issue period. Just hit em where you should.
Good luck,
Lee
wild1's Link
Shot in South Texas. Shot him broadside behind the shoulder thru the "plate". No pass-thru but he only made about 40 yards.
I cannot use dogs to track where I hunt and I hunt a lot in the summer since for me they are the only game in town.
Obviously, I am not going to contest what Tradman said because he has more experience in one year than most will in a lifetime as far as pigs go. What I will say is when you have trained yourself for years to shoot deer you have to make a conscious decision to aim different for pigs.
This may may not be as difficult for guys that have traveled and hunted different species may not be as challenged.
As for me, I have not had animal that will make you pay more for what is considered an ideal shot on deer like animals than Mr. Pig.
Be it big, little, or small hit him wrong and you may end up with more story than bacon.
Actually, shoot deer this way, too.
