The Lone Star State is grappling with the nation's largest population of feral pigs -- squealing, rooting hordes of hogs that can destroy farmland and wildlife habitats, sully public parks, attack pets and domestic animals, and spread diseases such as tuberculosis and even anthrax to farm animals.

The pigs are running amok, particularly in Texas, where the population has "skyrocketed" in the past decade, said Billy Higginbotham, a fish and wildlife specialist with Texas A&M University. He tracks the pigs the best he can. "We don't really know how many there are," he says, adding that no resident had anything "good to say about feral hogs." Mr. Higginbotham also tracks pig damage, which averages $4,184 per incident among farmers or landowners vexed by errant pigs wallowing in ponds, digging up fences, stealing feed or attacking pets. They are not petite pigs: Feral versions can weigh up to 450 pounds. "I fear allowing my grandchildren to go beyond the yard as they may be attacked by wild hogs," one landowner wrote in a response to Mr. Higginbotham's ongoing survey of residents with serious wild pig issues in 40 Texas counties. ... Some tolerate wild hogs just fine -- mainly local hunters, sportsmen or game guides who prefer to negotiate with the pigs through a shotgun or bow and arrow. Sharpshooters have the blessings of many local authorities who are hard-pressed to control the mostly nocturnal pigs. In Texas, feral-hog hunting requires a license and there is no bag limit.

None of this goes over well with Virginia-based People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, (PETA) which has protested feral-pig hunting or public "hot dog" hunts -- which pit a pig against a dog -- for years, calling the practices "outrageous" and blaming the problem on "human irresponsibility."