# 22LR for hogs



## MikeH2040

Due to the small game season restrictions for hogs on base or the WMAs...does anyone have any recommendations for or against using 22lr? what about shot placement? is it still heart/lungs or should we use head shots? I assume I would need to be closer (75 yards or less) to the hog to get an effective hit. I honestly don't even feel comfortable using a 22 unless someone out there can say for sure its a safe bet. I'd hate to shoot a hog and have it run without a bloodtrail....

Any advice is helpful


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## ryanh487

MikeH2040 said:


> Due to the small game season restrictions for hogs on base or the WMAs...does anyone have any recommendations for or against using 22lr? what about shot placement? is it still heart/lungs or should we use head shots? I assume I would need to be closer (75 yards or less) to the hog to get an effective hit. I honestly don't even feel comfortable using a 22 unless someone out there can say for sure its a safe bet. I'd hate to shoot a hog and have it run without a bloodtrail....
> 
> Any advice is helpful



shoot 'em in the ear.  take your time, get inside 50 yards, wait for the right shot.  It won't be easy.

Other option is to use a .50 caliber muzzleloader, which is considered a small game weapon and will put a hog down in a hurry.


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## bfriendly

MikeH2040 said:


> Due to the small game season restrictions for hogs on base or the WMAs...does anyone have any recommendations for or against using 22lr? what about shot placement? is it still heart/lungs or should we use head shots? I assume I would need to be closer (75 yards or less) to the hog to get an effective hit. I honestly don't even feel comfortable using a 22 unless someone out there can say for sure its a safe bet. I'd hate to shoot a hog and have it run without a bloodtrail....
> 
> Any advice is helpful



If you can get a good shot on one, a .22lr will do just fine..I like a heartlung shot unless I am looking straight at one.........bust a lung and it wont go far


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## ChainReactionGC

Remember.... contrary to GA state law, Black powder isn't considered a small game weapon on Ft. Stewart.


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## MikeH2040

Thanks, I don't think I'll do it....I'm tracking the black powder regulation.


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## Nicodemus

If I`m going to shoot a hog with a 22 lr, it will be a solid, and I`ll wait for a side shot and put it right in the ear canal. If it is facing me on about the same level, I`ll not take a shot due to the angle of the hog`s forehead.

I`ve done a lot of experimentation with a 22 on both wild and tame hogs, at ranges from about 40 yards to a few inches, both rifle and pistol. Hollow points lack penetration, and Stingers and other hyper velocity hollow points splattered on impact with the skull on frontal shots, most of the time. Solids don`t. Also, the shield can stop a 22 bullet.


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## riverbank

X2 on what nic said. A long time ago my mamas yard dog had 2 hogs bayed in the yard. They were eating the acorns. I popped that sucker in the forehead with a 22 from about 20 yards. He shook his head and ran off. It was raining like crazy outside, I heard the knock of the round hitting and also saw water splatter off that hogs head. To my amazement he hauled butt out of there. This hog was a big  boar , he ran off , then came back. There were 2 hogs. The smaller one was a sow and I'm guessing she was in heat. I steadied up for a shot on her but it never happened. They both bolted after he came back. A week or so later my buddy got both of those hogs about a mile down the road on his place. He dropped them both with a deer rifle. That big spotted boar was right at 300 pounds. He had a skull mount done and some of that 22 round was still in the skull. Didn't even make it all the way through. That hog was old. At the time there wasn't many hogs around that area and you could tell he didn't have much competition. His cutters had grown so long that they were in a half moon shape. I still can't believe he came back though. He bluff charged me before they made there escape and I dang near soiled the ole britches.


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## riverbank

On the other hand.....we raise hogs and when we want to put one in the freezer it's always done with a 22 behind the ear. Take your time and don't get excited. Down goes Frazier.


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## Killer Kyle

I had one bad experience shooting a hog with a .22 LR last August. Shot it behind the ear in the spine. It went straight down, legs straightened out and rigid, didn't even squeal or kick. But after about 20 seconds on the ground, it began to kick. Rolled down the hillside and stopped in a log jam. It was able to barely get up and started struggling off. I perused it, but it outpaced me, and I lost it. Followed it on into darkness. That said, I think a .22 LR can be and is an effective tool when used in the right situations and the right way. I obviously didn't make the right shot, and the hog paid the price. It was a bad enough experience that I just bit the bullet and went out and bought a ML. Had I made the same shot with a .50, that hog would have been stone cold dead. The wound would have been too traumatic. I think the upside of toting a .50 is that where certain shot placements or errant shots yield questionable results from a .22, a .50 erases all possibility of wounding and results in a certain kill. By that I mean if your shot with a .22 is a little high, low, or back of say the heart lung area or ear canal, you can horribly mame the animal. But do that with a .50, and it is usually going to mean a dead hog. Catching a .22 bullet in the eye is going to be a bad ordeal for the hog if you miss the ear canal, but do that with a .50 and it's gonna kill the pig. I say if you are going to do it, then do it, but be precise and surgical. Don't take any quick shots where you can't get on your target accurately.


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## Big7

22LR 60gr Aguila SSS Solid

60 gr @ 950 fps of bad to the bone.

Make sure you get this box, they do make one that is primer only.
NOT the same thing.

Solves all your short range, no center-fire allowed problems. 

Been there, done that. If you have never tried them, do yourself a favor.


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## earl39

Don't know what the regs are in Georgia but a 17HMR FMJ will zip right thru a hogs skull.


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## Barebowyer

17 WSM out now too!


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## GunnSmokeer

*rimfires legal*

The Georgia Fish & Game laws that specify what weapons are allowed for small game (Code section 27-3-4) say that a .22 caliber rimfire or smaller rimfire is allowed.

I would think that a .22 WMR (.22 magnum) is a far better choice due to both bullet construction (it's got a real copper jacket, not just copper "wash" over the soft lead bullet) and velocity.  From a rifle, the .22 magnum can top 2000 f.p.s. with 32-grain loads.  40-grain bullets go 1900 or better.  The .22 LR loads only give about 1250 f.p.s.

Yeah, the .17 Mach 2,  .17 HMR, and .17 WSM are all legal for small game.  The last one should be good for hogs, with a head shot.  3000 f.p.s. at the muzzle (and 2,500 at 100 yds.) will scramble the critter's brain, if you hit it.


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## frankwright

My hunting partner shot three pigs in about 3 minutes with the 17wsm.

He shot them in the head and he said they never took a step .
I shot one with a 22 mag and it fell right over also. A solid .22 would probably work but there is no room for error.
With the low cost of a fairly decent .22 WMR I would probably pass on the 22LR.


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## Barebowyer

Good info.   Bought a 17 WSM Ruger M77 a few months ago and haven't killed anything but a beaver with it thus far.  I may tote it just because I can...normally have the longbow or recurve instead.  Be safe everyone.


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## ripplerider

A couple of years ago I killed a 200 lb. boar with a .22 solid right through the ear hole at 15 yds. If he hadnt given me a perfect broadside shot at close range like that I wouldnt have taken the shot. He looked bigger than he really was coming out of the ivy thicket. Was shooting a very accurate bolt action that I had a lot of confidence in. He rolled down the mtn. right to my feet still kicking. I put a couple more shots in his head but the first one killed him.


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## dusty200001

MikeH2040 said:


> Due to the small game season restrictions for hogs on base or the WMAs...does anyone have any recommendations for or against using 22lr? what about shot placement? is it still heart/lungs or should we use head shots? I assume I would need to be closer (75 yards or less) to the hog to get an effective hit. I honestly don't even feel comfortable using a 22 unless someone out there can say for sure its a safe bet. I'd hate to shoot a hog and have it run without a bloodtrail....
> 
> Any advice is helpful



it is legal to hunt small game on wma with black powder rifle. yes that's crazy but it does mean that you can carry it for the pigs.


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## 4570Hammer

I take them all the time with a Ruger American rimfire 22lr with Winchester M-22 subsonic.  You gotta get ’em in the brain pan to drop them instantly.  Just like taking any animal, shot placement is key.


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## HogKillaDNR

4570Hammer said:


> I take them all the time with a Ruger American rimfire 22lr with Winchester M-22 subsonic.  You gotta get ’em in the brain pan to drop them instantly.  Just like taking any animal, shot placement is key.



Guess I'll start taking my 22lr out with the can and see what happens.


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## ucfireman

I bought a used .22WMR just for hog hunting during small game season.
If I was buying new I would look at a .17HMR. 
I have not had the good fortune to take one but if I do it will be an ear shot, based on the recommendation of those with some experience.


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## Tentwing

My comment I fear will not be much help as I have never shot a hog with a 22lr . However I have put many on the ground with a 22 mag. Ear shots are the way to go . Even with ear shots you still wanna go with a solid round. You don’t wanna use anything that will easily fragment. Bullet weight retention is the key when taking mid size game with a small caliber. 

 Kind of ashamed to admit this but I had 120lb. sow interrupt a squirrel hunt about a decade ago. She stopped long enough for me to convince myself that a Winchester 20 gr solid 17HMR round to the ear  at 40 yards might work. At first I thought I might have somehow missed, because she never moved for about 5 or 6 seconds. Then she just fell straight over on her side. To my surprise there was a massive exit wound, but I was unable to find a entrance wound until I skinned her out.

I’m certainly not going to recommend a 17HMR for hogs , but I truly believe that “shot placement” is king ……… TW


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## Robust Redhorse

If I was using a 22 LR, I would try to shoot CCI Velocitors or a solid 40+grain bullet going 1200 fps, then no problem out to 50 yards.


I'm good with a 22 WMR with solid bullets all day long out to 100.


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## ScarFoot

MikeH2040 said:


> Due to the small game season restrictions for hogs on base or the WMAs...does anyone have any recommendations for or against using 22lr? what about shot placement? is it still heart/lungs or should we use he
> 
> I've killed a handful with a .22, For small game legal hog hunting I use 12ga TSS in bb size, it's legal and deadly, I've killed them as far out as 62yds.  It breaks bones and you don't need a still or completely visible pig in the thick stuff. Possibility of loss is too great with  22 long rifle, and one boar that I shot at close range with .22 lr charged knocked be down and cut my knee and calf requiring 40+ stitches, I like the shotgun!


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## Timberjack86

Tight shooting turkey load to the neck would work too


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## longrangedog

I've killed about 40 with a .22 subsonic all either between the eyes or in the ear. All were killed while in a trap which is the only circumstance where I'd use a .22.


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## snuffy smiff

My cousin's husband once shot a big boar with a 50 cal. muzzle loader. He was hunting the property alone then called me all excited and begging me to come and help him find it. I lived just up the road a piece. That hog ran way over a mile, much of it thru the thickest 40 acres of briar patch you ever did see. Never saw anything run that far whilst bleeding so much! When we found him 3 days later we figured out he'd been hit in the liver. Talk about gettin' religion and quick-there ain't many things scarier than crawling around on yer hands and knees thru thick-arse briars with a shotgun hoping and praying a wounded boar that you can't even see don't come charging at you. Thankfully, he made a huge circle thru them briars then headed downhill into the local swamp. Now, gettin' into there was a whole boatload lot of fun, too. Buzzards were what led us to him but it being mid-August the carcass was too far gone to do anything other than feed them buzzards... A shame, too-he was a big ol' hog.


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## HogKillaDNR

Timberjack86 said:


> Tight shooting turkey load to the neck would work too



I wonder how some Long Beard XR in 12 guage would do.


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## Timberjack86

HogKillaDNR said:


> I wonder how some Long Beard XR in 12 guage would do.


That's what I use, I haven't killed one with it yet but I'd say it would break his neck at 40 yards.


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## mossyoakpro

HogKillaDNR said:


> I wonder how some Long Beard XR in 12 guage would do.



Should work fine...I unknowingly walked in between a big sow and pigs one turkey season.  #6 Hevi-Shot to the face at 10 yards made her decide she didn't need to charge me anymore...


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## Doug B.

HogKillaDNR said:


> I wonder how some Long Beard XR in 12 guage would do.


I killed one a few years ago with Winchester Super XX's in a 12 guage while turkey hunting.  It wasn't the gun I would have picked to shoot a hog with but the opportunity presented itself so I took advantage of it. It was a 60 to 70 pound hog.  I shot it behind the front leg and it ran about 40 yards. It was close when I shot it, maybe 6 or 8 yards, but I wouldn't want to shoot one at a long distance.


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## Dusty Roads

MikeH2040 said:


> Due to the small game season restrictions for hogs on base or the WMAs...does anyone have any recommendations for or against using 22lr? what about shot placement? is it still heart/lungs or should we use head shots? I assume I would need to be closer (75 yards or less) to the hog to get an effective hit. I honestly don't even feel comfortable using a 22 unless someone out there can say for sure its a safe bet. I'd hate to shoot a hog and have it run without a bloodtrail....
> 
> Any advice is helpful


Forget the 22LR-my dad and cuz's where gonna butcher one of the hogs/they forgot the 303 and so used 22,it bounced of its' head and did it squil and all of them went mad&about tore the whole pen down.What a bad time it was.


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## Gingergreen

Why not use a 22 magnum OR 17Hmr? I've killed more high with that round than any other. Rim fire and will get you into the small game seasons in GA. I'm not a fan of 22 lr for hogs.


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## NCHillbilly

Dusty Roads said:


> Forget the 22LR-my dad and cuz's where gonna butcher one of the hogs/they forgot the 303 and so used 22,it bounced of its' head and did it squil and all of them went mad&about tore the whole pen down.What a bad time it was.


I've seen a whole lot of  hogs killed with .22 LR headshots. Often with .22 shorts. It's about the angle you shoot them at if you're going for the between the eyes shot. Earhole or just above between the eyes from an upward angle does the deed quickly.


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## HogKillaDNR

Has anyone used CCI .22 Segmented Subsonic rounds for hogs?


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## buckmanmike

A .22lr on any hog is a good caliber. I prefer a quick kill, but a slow kill is fine to me on hogs. Killem all.


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## bfriendly

Killer Kyle said:


> I had one bad experience shooting a hog with a .22 LR last August. Shot it behind the ear in the spine. It went straight down, legs straightened out and rigid, didn't even squeal or kick. But after about 20 seconds on the ground, it began to kick. Rolled down the hillside and stopped in a log jam. It was able to barely get up and started struggling off. I perused it, but it outpaced me, and I lost it. Followed it on into darkness. That said, I think a .22 LR can be and is an effective tool when used in the right situations and the right way. I obviously didn't make the right shot, and the hog paid the price. It was a bad enough experience that I just bit the bullet and went out and bought a ML. Had I made the same shot with a .50, that hog would have been stone cold dead. The wound would have been too traumatic. I think the upside of toting a .50 is that where certain shot placements or errant shots yield questionable results from a .22, a .50 erases all possibility of wounding and results in a certain kill. By that I mean if your shot with a .22 is a little high, low, or back of say the heart lung area or ear canal, you can horribly mame the animal. But do that with a .50, and it is usually going to mean a dead hog. Catching a .22 bullet in the eye is going to be a bad ordeal for the hog if you miss the ear canal, but do that with a .50 and it's gonna kill the pig. I say if you are going to do it, then do it, but be precise and surgical. Don't take any quick shots where you can't get on your target accurately.



I walked up behind a HUGE sow with a bunch of piglets , all black. I had just got my Marlin semi auto in .22 Lr. She was quartering away perfect within 10 yards and i started sending bullets! I aimed behind the ear and after 3 or 4 shots, she flipped backwards towards me. I was NOT going to jump on her like some Murphy graduate! But I did stick the barrel n her ear and let off another  couple, and another couple in the same area as she flopped! Did I tell you she was HUGE……..yes it was super intense!
I followed the blood triail til dark, but no luck. I called my friends and we went out that night and picked up the trail, but never recovered her…….it was my first epic fail and I’ll never forget it.

Oh yea, point being, shoot heart/lung if given the chance………..no doubt I could have popped her balloons with lung shots as she was quartering away. Dang she was big!


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## chrislibby88

HogKillaDNR said:


> Has anyone used CCI .22 Segmented Subsonic rounds for hogs?


Do NOT shoot anything at a pig designed to break up or fragment. Shooting a shrimp round like the .22 you want maximum weight retention for penetration through the skull or vitals. Most folks recommend lead solids, and I mostly agree, especially with .22 longrifle. I shoot .22 magnum 40gr game points, and have had really good luck with penetration and good expansion through vitals.


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## Gator89

HogKillaDNR said:


> I wonder how some Long Beard XR in 12 guage would do.






Timberjack86 said:


> That's what I use, I haven't killed one with it yet but I'd say it would break his neck at 40 yards.



I killed a medium sized sow with a load of Apex TSS small town blend, I put the shot high right behind her shoulder at 10-12 steps, DRT.

A few years ago a buddy of mine shot a sow with #6 Federal turkey shot, it hurt her, but did not kill her immediately.  He borrowed a #4 from me and that finished her off.


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## Okie Hog

The Oklahoma WMAs and Fort Sill have the same rules as Georgia,    Killed some wild hogs using a .22 LR.   Graduated to the .22 magnum and the 40 grain total metal jacket ammo.  i've shot 150 pound hogs in the lungs with that bullet, they died.


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## Davexx1

I agree with most others that a 22LR is marginal, but in capable experienced hands it can get the job done. A shot into the brain produces an instant and very humane death for any critter. A shot into the heart/lung area can be fatal, but usually requires a trail job that can be difficult or impossible to follow. Hogs are notorious for not leaving a blood trail from a small caliber bullet hole as their heavy hide and body fat quickly covers and seals the tiny bullet hole. 

The issue with a 22LR bullet is that it is lightweight and made of soft lead with no outer hardened jacket. That bullet is easily deflected up or down or off to the side when it contacts heavy hide and bone. Your target (brain cavity) is fairly thick skull bone and is somewhat rounded like a baseball. If the 22 bullet does not strike dead in the center of that cavity, it can/will deflect off to the side or break up and not penetrate into the brain chamber. If the bullet hits directly in the center of the cavity it will penetrate and kill the animal. Trying to hit the center of the brain chamber on a moving animal can be challenging even at short distances. If you can, take a look at a hogs head or skull. Look at where the brain cavity is in the skull and that will give you a good idea of exactly where you have to hit the head from various angles to produce an instant kill.

Hope this helps.


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## BBowman

I’ve killed several with a .22LR using solid points less than 50yds.  If you want to really do some damage get you a .22 mag or a .17hmr. I’ve a couple of boars over 250# at about 50yds with a .17hmr. Like everyone says, shoot for his ear canal.


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## BassHunter25

Nicodemus said:


> If I`m going to shoot a hog with a 22 lr, it will be a solid, and I`ll wait for a side shot and put it right in the ear canal. If it is facing me on about the same level, I`ll not take a shot due to the angle of the hog`s forehead.
> 
> I`ve done a lot of experimentation with a 22 on both wild and tame hogs, at ranges from about 40 yards to a few inches, both rifle and pistol. Hollow points lack penetration, and Stingers and other hyper velocity hollow points splattered on impact with the skull on frontal shots, most of the time. Solids don`t. Also, the shield can stop a 22 bullet.


I will say I just learned this. We were shooting pigs in a trap. My buddy was shooting solids. And actually right between the eyes was putting them straight down. I was using hollow points and took a couple shots. But this was at very close range. I put a couple in the ear hole at ten yards and they didn’t go straight down. Maybe I missed the exact spot. But at ten yards I’d hate to try it at a further distance.


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