Links on the links: Wild pig causes destruction at Southridge in DeLand

Friday the 13th was pig's unlucky day

By Jen Horton
BEACON STAFF WRITER

posted Mar 17, 2009 - 1:02:44pm

In a scene straight out of a Warner Bros. cartoon, a rascally hog caused a lot of havoc at a local golf course.

Brian Harford, a registered nuisance-animal trapper, recalled the phone call from Southridge Golf Course, 800 E. Euclid Ave. in DeLand.

They said they had a problem. A big problem. A pig was rooting up their greens.

Harford didn't believe it. This was a golf course in the middle of a suburban part of a city.

"I said, 'Are you sure it's a wild pig?'" Harford said. "I've had people mistake an armadillo rooting for a pig rooting before."

Harford went to the scene of the crime.

"Sure enough, it was a hog rooting," he said. "I really could not believe there was an actual wild pig in Downtown DeLand."

Neither could Jim Lawrence, the golf-course superintendent. But he had witnesses.

"Some people had seen it," Lawrence said.

And more people will see the damage. On the day the pig was caught, he caused around $600 in damage at the 11th hole.

"We had some minor damage about three weeks ago," Lawrence said. "But the putting surface on the 11th green, that's pretty high-quality turf. That's going to take some time to heal."

Lawrence said Southridge is trying to encourage the turf to regrow. If it was too damaged, it might have to be replaced, which could cost more money. The repair will also take a lot longer than the destruction.

"It didn't take long for it to do a lot of damage," he said.

It did take a long time to catch the porker.

"Brian and I walked the woods with a dog, trying to find it and maybe corner it," Lawrence said.

Harford set up his nuisance-animal traps, moved the traps several times, and frequently checked them, all to no avail. The wily hog kept giving Harford the slip.

"It's never taken me two months to trap a hog," Harford said. "I just couldn't believe that I could not catch this pig."

Friday the 13th turned out to be a very lucky day for Harford, and a very unlucky day for the pig.

Harford got a call from the golf course at around 9 a.m. The pig had torn up an area about 15 feet by 15 feet, on the 11th green.

Harford said the management pleaded with him to come right away.

"I need to catch him first," Harford replied.

The Southridge workers told Harford he had caught him. The pig was in the trap.

"I said, 'That is awesome!'" Harford said. "I was so excited to hear I finally outsmarted and caught this nuisance pig that caused so much damage."

Harford got to the golf course quickly. When he loaded the trap with the pesky porker into his truck, the Southridge staff showed its appreciation.

"You would have thought I was a war hero," he joked.

In a way, it was a war: man against pig.

"He was one of the meanest I've seen," Harford said.

The adventurous pig didn't make it out alive. Wild hogs can be relocated, but only if a property owner offers to take responsibility for the animal and any destruction it causes.

The pig in this case is destined for a new kind of links. Harford said the meat will be donated.

Harford has lived in West Volusia for 27 years. He and his wife, Gi Gi, live in Deltona with their son, Branden, a high-school junior. Another son, Kris, just enlisted in the U.S. Army.

In addition to being a nuisance-animal trapper, Harford is a contractor for Sears. He hosts kids' fishing derbies and fishing clinics through a fishing program called Hooked on Fishing, Not on Drugs. He's also working on an outdoor television show called Compulsive Outdoors.

He likes to golf, too. He traded his services at Southridge for greens fees.

For more information about Harford or Compulsive Outdoors, visit compulsiveoutdoors.com.

— jen@beacononlinenews.com

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