Originally Posted by
MudderChuck
IMO a problem with smaller bullets is if you do blow the shot or just get unlucky, a Hogs hide is kind of self sealing. The hole puckers shut and they may not leave any blood trail.
I've seen it many times, no blood trail or a wound that seeps so little, other than having exceptional vision or a dog you have little chance of finding that Hog.
It isn't just small bullets. I have seen hogs seal up after being hit with .308 and .45-70, particularly if hit above the midline of the body, what might be around a good lung shot, for example. They bleed internally and their chest cavity may fill with blood, but the hole seals up with fat, muscle, and shield and the blood never gets high enough and under enough pressure to be forced out. Lower shots are more apt to bleed better, the hole acting as a drain and there is often less soft tissue and on boars, less shield to help seal the wound. Here, gravity works in your favor.
One of my most disappointing lost hog shots was a .308 through the shoulder that put out a spray of blood and bit from ground level up to 2 feet high on the feeder pole and nowhere else was blood seen. Spent 2 hours looking for the hog that night and 2 hours the next day and never found blood sign or the hog. It sealed up nicely.