Wild boar are hunted extensively across Europe and Asia for population control and sport, with welfare implications depending strongly on hunting methods, wounding rates, and follow-up of injured animals.
Wild boar hunting ranges from careful, welfare-conscious stalking by experienced hunters to poorly controlled drives resulting in high wounding rates and prolonged suffering. The welfare of hunted animals depends on shot placement accuracy, the availability of trained tracker dogs for following wounded animals, and the skill and ethics of hunters. Drive hunts involving large numbers of animals, dogs, and shots fired in rapid succession tend to produce higher wounding rates than individual stalking methods. As wild boar management becomes increasingly necessary to prevent agricultural damage and disease spread, improving hunting welfare standards becomes more important.