In the heart of rural Oklahoma, a wave of unrest spread through the quiet farmlands. A sounder of feral hogs had laid waste to the surrounding fields like a rampaging army, leaving behind a trail of destruction with upturned crops and rutted pastures. One of our neighbors had mentioned that this sounder had been consistently stealing silage left out for his cattle and that he needed these pigs gone.

Mark Gossen and my brother Micah Graf were both in the area willing to go get the job done. They both have experience with hunting hogs and favor using thermals at night to do so. As the sun dipped below the horizon, casting an orange glow across the hog-ravaged fields, the duo set out on their mission to reclaim the silage from the relentless enemy. Mark was equipped with a semi-auto 6.5 Grendel and Micah was armed with a Christensen Arms MPR chambered in .308, which was topped with the Pulsar Thermion 2 LRF XP50 Pro. As many of you reading this already know, thermal is a technological marvel that gives hunters the upper hand in this nocturnal pursuit.

Near dusk, the duo set out to go check the field for pigs. Arriving shortly after dark, they scanned with their thermals and saw two pigs out in the field. A large boar was rummaging inside the silage trough while another smaller pig was out in the open field. After getting their gear together the smaller one walked further away down into the valley. With the goal of getting both pigs, they decided to play the wind and go after the one that was on the move.

Under the cover of darkness, the duo crept through the field, guided by the glow of the thermal scopes they used to scan with. The Thermion 2 LRF XP50 Pro’s clarity allowed them to see through the night with astonishing precision, a crucial advantage in their quest to track down the hogs. Getting into position, they started a countdown and both fired at the same time. The pig let out a squeal as it went down, but it was down for the count. Repositioning to scan back at the feed trough, the duo did not see where the bigger pig had gone. They kept scanning, and all of a sudden, the boar came bounding up over a terrace as it ran towards them.

While we may never know if it was coming after the hunters, or bounding to run away in the same direction the previously downed pig went, Micah and Mark acted quickly. They started a countdown, and then both fired. The behemoth of a boar soaked up a .308 and a 6.5 Grendel, realized where the shots were coming from and quickly changed direction, kicking up dirt as it bolted away. Acting quickly, Micah racked another round in his bolt gun, waited a split second to lead the boar ever so slightly, and let the last round fly. It connected perfectly and dropped the boar in its tracks.

After the dust had settled, they went to get the pickup to haul off the wild pigs. Returning, they stood amazed as they realized how big the boar that had been stealing all of the silage from the cattle was. Hooking it up to a scale, they measured the monster to be a whopping 387.4lbs. Not only did they far exceed their previous record for the largest boar they had hunted, but they helped out the local farmer. It was a win for everyone, except for the two pigs who were stealing food from the wrong cattle.

For those who have to see to believe, a short recap of the hunt is posted to the Instagram page here.

While we knew this farm had a pig problem, if it wasn’t for thermal power of the Pulsar Thermion, we probably wouldn’t have ever seen the wild hogs at all. Due to the modern technological advances we hunters have been afforded thanks to innovative companies like Pulsar, fighting Oklahoma’s hog infestation in even the darkest of nights has become an easy and rewarding adventure.