Will Super Pigs Invade Michigan From Canada?

"Super Pigs" have become a big problem in Canada which borders several U.S. states and Michigan is one of them, could those hogs cross the ice into the Mitten?

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What is a Feral Hog?

In case you are unfamiliar with feral pigs or feral hogs, they are basically domestic pigs that have escaped or been released to live in the wild.

Wild boars have been known to interbreed with domestic pigs creating hybrids.

How Do These Pigs Get Released Into The Wild?

Sometimes pigs will escape a farm through an open gate or broken fence and choose to live in the wild. They adapt well but the big problem is the breed and have lots of little ones that survive so they become invasive because they can wipe out crops and food for other animals. Other times farmers will get tired of dealing with them and turn them loose.

Often ranches that have hogs on them for hunting and the hogs get loose through holes in the fence, or if the ranch closes the owners will just turn them loose. Turning wild hogs or domestic pigs loose is a big problem and they are hard to get rid of, just ask Florida.

Will Super Pigs Cross the Canadian Border Into Michigan?

According to WOOD, back in the 1980s, Canada encouraged farmers to raise wild boar, but when it wasn't profitable, many farmers cut the fences and freed the pigs.

Hogs are very resilient and can adapt to almost any type of living condition and they reproduce faster than you can thin them out. Wild hogs will eat anything can wipe out farmers' crops, and carry a lot of diseases if they mix in with domestic pigs.

Canada's border runs all across the northern part of the United States. There have already been reports of hogs on both sides of the border of North Dakota and Canada. Other hogs have been spotted 18 miles from Minnesota so it's already starting with other states.

Even though Canada is directly north of Michigan and can be seen in several spots the Great Lakes and some rivers separate the two countries. Those lakes and rivers freeze up and it would be easy for a hog to travel across the ice. So far no feral hogs have made it to Michigan from Canada but it's only a matter of time before some of these hybrids that are called super pigs make the journey. Michigan may want to consider banning raising and transporting wild hogs in within the state. If we want to keep Michigan "Pure" where better do everything we can so a feral hog problem doesn't develop in the state.