Feral Pig Removal – The TRUTH of the Matter re Jimmy Joe Bob and Lawsuits

Want to talk to you today about feral pigs. Seems to be that we’re getting more and more calls all the time on them. It’s just a ongoing problem here in Florida. The more construction development that happens, the more these pigs are getting forced into neighborhoods and agricultural areas and such. And I just kinda wanted to talk a little bit about hiring someone to track pigs. Kind of guys with our “hiring a professional” series, and just some things to consider for property managers, home owners, and so on, so forth.

Here’s the lowdown: People want things cheap. I get it. I absolutely get it. You don’t want to have to spend money that we normally don’t have to. But here’s the downside of this: If you hire Jimmy Joe Bob in a pickup with a couple dogs and his crossbow or whatnot, it’s not safe, people. It’s not safe. It has liability run all over it. Because if that pig takes off, that dog doesn’t respect property lines or anything else. It’s not the way a professional does it. So we don’t compete with those guys. I’ll be honest with you, I all the time will, “I got so-and-so, they said they’ll come out and catch them for free.” Well, have at it. But make sure that your homeowner’s insurance, or your property insurance is up to date, and that you have plenty of coverage. Because if they accidentally misfire a bow and shoot a cow or a house or a person or a pet or whatever, or if their dog is chasing a hog and decides to get Fluffy, the neighbor’s dog instead … Or for goodness sakes, they’re walking through the yard and they hit your little sprinkler swell and twist their ankle and break their ankle. They’re gonna sue you because they ain’t got workman’s comp. They don’t have any of that.

Hiring these guys that have your “feral hog card” and their NWT number, which I believe is nonexistent at this point in time with fish and wildlife … It’s not good. It’s not a good way to do business. You need to protect yourself in this day and age. You need to make sure that they have liability insurance. Even if it’s a one-man show, make sure he has workman’s comp. He can sit there all day long and say, “Oh, I don’t need workman’s comp, I don’t have that many employees.” And that’s true, by law he doesn’t have to have workman’s comp, but it doesn’t protect the homeowner from him not having workman’s comp. If he gets hurt, he can still sue you. There’s no if, and’s, or buts about it.

For more information and a FREE INSPECTION/ESTIMATE Call 1-866-263-WILD or (941)729-2103. We are your expert for humane and techno advanced feral pig/hog exclusion, trapping and removal in Bradenton, Parrish and surrounding areas.

Trust me, that guy is a construction worker by day, and he’s doing this hog removal at night with a couple of his buddies, and he goes and falls down and breaks his leg and he can’t go to work, and he can’t support his family or anything … And I’ve seen this happen, I saw this happen on an armadillo trap one time. And he can’t support his family or anything, that guy is gonna do whatever he has to do to support his family. And I don’t blame the guy for doing it, I really don’t. You gotta support your family, you gotta take care of them. But the way he’s gonna support his family is off of your insurance. He’s gonna sue your homeowner’s insurance for his broken leg and his loss of wages and all that stuff, and you’re gonna be sitting there with your jaw dropped down to the floor, saying, “How did this happen?” I’m telling you how it happens. 

When you hire professionals, hire professionals. Hire ones that are licensed, insured … And I’m talking insured all the way around. That they have commercial insurance on their vehicles, that they have a commercial liability policy in effect, and what the limits are. Don’t take anything less than a mil. I’ll be honest, I wouldn’t let anybody on my property for less than a mil liability. Because medical bills are outrageous. These doctors and hospitals, and I’m not beating them down, but it’s expensive. You know, if someone’s walking through your yard and they get hit by a rattlesnake, that’s a hundred grand right there. Rattlesnake bite, the average cost of treatment, $100,000.

Call Nuisance Wildlife Removal, Inc. today, to humanely solve your wildlife problems, and wildlife proof your property. 1-866-263-WILD or 941-729-2103.

So don’t be a victim trying to be cheap. Hire a professional that again, once again, has a million dollar policy for their liability. That they have commercial vehicle insurance. Because if they’re out with their private vehicle insurance and they run into your house accidentally or something or a barn or another car, whatever, and the insurance company finds out that they’re using it for commercial purposes and they’re not covered commercially, they’re not gonna pay it, and then you’re gonna be out. So commercial liability insurance, one mil. Commercial vehicle insurance, and worker’s comp. Worker’s comp is the most expensive one. And I’m gonna tell you, there’s very few of them out there that have it. Protect yourself. Protect your family, because if they sue you, and they go past the limits of your policy, they’re coming after you. And they don’t care if they take your car, your home, whatever they take. That lawyer is gonna take whatever he can to do.

So back to feral hog trapping. That’s the biggest part right there I wanted to get out, was just hire professionals that have all this, and don’t let them fool you on, “I don’t need workman’s comp, I’m exempt.” Because they might be exempt with the government, but they’re not exempt with suing you. Okay? Other thing is, hog work is not cheap. For professionals to come out and do it safely and efficiently, it takes a boatload of equipment, it takes a boatload of labor to get this stuff done right. And when you catch a hog, one guy going out jerking hogs out of traps ain’t safe. You really need two people. I mean there’s some guys out there can do it and I’ll give it to them, and they can do it safe. But the majority of people I seen out there trying to pull hogs out of traps, they need two people, I’ll be honest.

So it’s not cheap. It’s not cheap work. But the other hand is, the damage that these hogs are doing to lawns and agricultural property is not cheap either. You know, you get an inspector in there and they see that you’ve got hog feces in your crop for agricultural, let me tell you something. You just wasted that field, probably. I’ve heard of them coming and shutting down fields because of hog droppings out in the fields. You gotta be … They’re expensive. Hogs are expensive. They do expensive damage and they’re expensive to catch. But do it right, because going the cheap way is never, never, never the good way.

If you got any questions, 866-263-9453. Again that’s 866-263-WILD. Or hit us up on the web at wildlifetrapper.com. Y’all take a listen to that and think about it. Is your family’s future worth losing over a hog problem? Hope you all have a good one, we’ll talk to you soon.

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