Monster Pig "Hogzilla 2" 11 Year Old Shot Somebody's Pet

[mudslinger99]

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,277097,00.html

Farmers: 'Monster Pig' Not a Wild Hog, But Was Their Pet Pig 'Fred'

FRUITHURST, Ala. — The Mystery of the Monster pig appears to have been solved.

The 1,051-pound hog, shot and killed by 11-year-old Jamison Stone and the subject of a world-wide Web firestorm over the photo's authenticity, really is...

Fred.

That's "Fred" the pig, and according to Rhonda and Phil Blissitt their humongous hog escaped on April 29, four days before it was killed, according to the Star newspaper.

Late Thursday evening, their claims were confirmed by Andy Howell, Game Warden for the Alabama Department of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries.

"I didn't want to stir up anything," Rhonda Blissitt said. "I just wanted the truth to be told. That wasn't a wild pig."

Her husband agreed.

"If it went down in the record book, it would be deceiving, and we'd know that for the rest of our lives."

The monster hog gained worldwide acclaim after he was bagged by 11-year-old Jamison Stone, a Pickensville native, with a .50-caliber pistol on May 3 at the Lost Creek Plantation, LLC, a hunting preserve in Delta. The big boar was hunted inside a large, low-fence enclosure and fired upon 16 times by Stone, who struck the animal nearly a half-dozen times during the three-hour hunt.

The saga of young Jamison's hunt spread as the family posted the story and photos on their Web site, monsterpig.com.

The Blissitts said they were unaware that the hog generating all the media attention was once theirs. It wasn't until Howell spoke with Phil Blissitt that the pieces of the puzzle came together.

Phil Blissitt recalled Howell asking him about the now-famous hog.

"Did you see that pig on TV?" Phil Blissitt recalled Howell asking him. "I said, 'Yeah, I had one about that size.' He said, 'No, that one is yours.'

"That's when I knew."

Phil Blissitt purchased the pig for his wife as a Christmas gift in December of 2004. From 6 weeks old, they raised the pig as it grew to its enormous size.

Not long ago, they decided to sell off all of their pigs. Eddy Borden, owner of Lost Creek Plantation, purchased Fred.

Attempts by The Star to reach Borden were unsuccessful.

While Rhonda Blissitt was somewhat in the dark about the potential demise of her pet, Phil Blissitt said he was under the understanding that it would breed with other female pigs and then "probably be hunted."

Many other of their former pigs — like their other farm animals — had been raised for the purpose of agricultural harvest.

As the Blissitts recounted the events of the last two days, they told stories and made many references to the gentleness of their former "pet."

From his treats of canned sweet potatoes to how their grandchildren would play with him, their stories painted the picture of a gentle giant. They even talked about how their small Chihuahua would get in the pen with him and come out unscathed.

"But if they hadn't fed him in a while," Rhonda Blissitt said, "he could have gotten irate."

Phil Blissitt said he became irritated when they learned about all the doubters who said photos of Fred were doctored.

"That was a big hog," he said.

The information of the pig's previous owner came out on the same day that officials from the Fish and Wildlife concluded their investigation of the hunt. They concluded that nothing illegal happened under the guidelines of Alabama law.

Allan Andress, enforcement chief for the Alabama Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division, said they learned the hog's origin as the investigation unfolded.

"We were able to determine that he came from a domesticated environment," he said. "So, he was not feral to start with. Therefore, he would not violate our feral swine trapping and relocating rule."

Mike Stone, Jamison's father, contends that he was unaware of the origin of the pig. Before, during and after the hunt — and until late Thursday night, when contacted by The Star — Mike Stone was under the impression that the hog was feral.

"We were told that it was a feral hog," Mike Stone said, "and we hunted it on the pretense that it was a feral hog."

[doc70sub]

So, this grand hunter killed a pet in a pen.....very very brave & wiley this young man is.

[Aces'n'8s]

Originally Posted by doc70sub

So, this grand hunter killed a pet in a pen.....very very brave & wiley this young man is.

Yeah, I'm sure they had him holed up in a 15'x20' kennel just waiting on the right hunter to dispatch it.

[doc70sub]

I thought the term hunter involved killing wild animals, in the wild....using skill, bait, & luck to win his/her prize.

Sounds like he could of fed the hog sweet potatoes until it chocked to death.....would've weighed more then & saved on ammo.

[nahmus]

that is just sad. how can you "hunt" in an enclosed pen. this is just so sad. I feel bad for the pig.

edit

Theres a nice backpedal on their "family" website. I bet they just cooked this all up to try to get famous. Set their kid up as some kind of "great hunter". The kid should be ashamed it took him that many shots to kill it.

The news media used it for headlines for a week claiming it's size was a hoax. On the evening of May 31, I was contacted by Bran Strickland of the Anniston Star and he told me that he had good news and bad news. He said that the good news is your claims about the pig's massive size have been verified. The bad news is that he came from a hog breeder and that the pig had been sold from the breeder to the preserve for the purpose of hunting. Early on the morning of June 1, I went to the computer and read Bran's article which portrayed the pig as a family pet. The pig that Jamison killed did not act like a family pet. It was a very aggressive animal. I was upset at first to read this report but after going through a week of being told what we killed did not exist by the network media, I decided to get to the bottom of this myself. I got my whole family up at 6:00 a.m. and traveled to Heflin, AL to meet with the Blissitts to give Phil Blissitt, whom I have never met or talked to before, the opportunity to explain to Jamison why he had sold a pig that was described as being so gentle and sweet to a hunting preserve in order for someone to come and kill it.

I was able to arrange a meeting with Mr. Blissitt who was happy to oblige as he is a father of a young boy similar to Jamison's age. Mr. Blissitt explained to me that he was an avid hunter and fisherman and that he did not see anything wrong with the hunting of the animal and if he did, he would not have sold it to the preserve. I asked him to tell me a little bit about the animal and asked was Mr. Strickland of the Anniston Star accurate in his docile description of the pig. Mr. Blissitt said he had bought all the pigs for his wife. The hogs were her deal, he and his son just took care of them for her. He said all of their pigs had just recently been sold for slaughter and the big boar was too big to be a breeder because of his massive weight and stature and would certainly be unsuitable for slaughter, referring to him being an uncut boar hog. He said the pig had gotten out several times by simply walking through the fence. He also said that the pig was very scary to people who would come in the yard because of his jaw popping, which is usually seen as a sign of aggression in hogs. He said that on several occasions, he had seen this massive pig throw other pigs around, once even over the fence. Mr. Blissitt also told of building the pig a large shelter that was big enough to cover him and keep him out of the weather but he said the pig tore it to bits in less than 40 minutes. Mrs. Blissitt herself even said in Mr. Strickland's article that at times the pig would even become irate. Mr. Blissitt said he could see how anyone looking at the hog with his jaw popping and aggressive behavior in the 200 acre hog preserve, that is part of the 2,500 acre hunting plantation, would certainly believe this pig to be very scary. He congratulated Jamison on his hunt and said that somebody had to kill the pig.

Mr. Blissitt then said that they never would have brought this issue up if we were not trying to claim it to be a record wild hog. I explained that we had never declared it to be any kind of record and until recently, I was not very well educated on the terminology of hogs and their classifications. As the Alabama Game and Fish Commission investigated the story and the parties involved for wrong doing with the exception of Jamison and I, we sat patiently trying to understand what was going on. When the investigation was complete, I spoke with officials from the Alabama Game and Fish Commission who insured me that nothing illegal or unethical had occurred by any of the parties investigated. They did not tell me this pig had been purchased for stock on the plantation, which does have many species of pigs, including Russian black boar, that do raise there in a feral environment. He did state that the pig was of a domestic origin which was the ONLY legal way for owner's of pig hunting preserves to stock or restock besides pigs being born on the property. I did not really think a lot about what he said nor did I care at the time because I was still fighting the battle proving the pig was real or at least to get the news media to quit saying it wasn't.

Now from the first time this story was told to the interviews Jamison and I have done on radio and television, we have never failed to say that the pig was hunted on a hunting ranch or farm. I know many of you real hunters and animal rights activist have chastised Jamison and I for this hunting trip from the very beginning trying to make it sound like it was something short of a true hunting experience and your opinion is well received and understood. However, I own no hunting land and have very little time so this opportunity to hunt what we thought and technically still is, according to the definition I have, a feral pig, was something I do not regret doing for my son. Had I known that in a short time, someone would call this pig their "pet", we would have simply hunted another hog. I would like to thank Mr. Blissitt for his honest and forthcoming description of the pig and his understanding and taking time to explain to my son that he did NOT shoot the family pet!

I have no hard feelings at anyone involved nor do I feel like I have been misled in any way now that I have a total understanding of this event.

Contrary to What The News is Saying We Do Not Claim to Have Any Kind Of Record.

[Aces'n'8s]

Originally Posted by doc70sub

I thought the term hunter involved killing wild animals, in the wild....using skill, bait, & luck to win his/her prize.

Sounds like he could of fed the hog sweet potatoes until it chocked to death.....would've weighed more then & saved on ammo.

Some would say baiting a wild animal isn't hunting.

I wonder what constitutes a "large, low-fence enclosure" in that article? Too bad the article wasn't specific.

[TheRedHorseman]

More than likely it was a fenced in ranch of sorts, so the fat ass had to actually huff and puff about 100 feet prior to shooting.

[basketcasejeep]

I had a hog named Fred when I was a kid.

Those were the best pork chops I've ever had.

[toymoto]

At least they didn't try to pass it off as being 15' feet long and 1300lbs then bury it in a sandpit like hogzilla. I don't really care how it was killed...it's just a damn hog but I can say I would never pay to hunt fuckers.

[JasonR]

/

[DRM]

monsterpig.com

The least you losers could do is get the full story

The news media used it for headlines for a week claiming it's size was a hoax. On the evening of May 31, I was contacted by Bran Strickland of the Anniston Star and he told me that he had good news and bad news. He said that the good news is your claims about the pig's massive size have been verified. The bad news is that he came from a hog breeder and that the pig had been sold from the breeder to the preserve for the purpose of hunting. Early on the morning of June 1, I went to the computer and read Bran's article which portrayed the pig as a family pet. The pig that Jamison killed did not act like a family pet. It was a very aggressive animal. I was upset at first to read this report but after going through a week of being told what we killed did not exist by the network media, I decided to get to the bottom of this myself. I got my whole family up at 6:00 a.m. and traveled to Heflin, AL to meet with the Blissitts to give Phil Blissitt, whom I have never met or talked to before, the opportunity to explain to Jamison why he had sold a pig that was described as being so gentle and sweet to a hunting preserve in order for someone to come and kill it.

I was able to arrange a meeting with Mr. Blissitt who was happy to oblige as he is a father of a young boy similar to Jamison's age. Mr. Blissitt explained to me that he was an avid hunter and fisherman and that he did not see anything wrong with the hunting of the animal and if he did, he would not have sold it to the preserve. I asked him to tell me a little bit about the animal and asked was Mr. Strickland of the Anniston Star accurate in his docile description of the pig. Mr. Blissitt said he had bought all the pigs for his wife. The hogs were her deal, he and his son just took care of them for her. He said all of their pigs had just recently been sold for slaughter and the big boar was too big to be a breeder because of his massive weight and stature and would certainly be unsuitable for slaughter, referring to him being an uncut boar hog. He said the pig had gotten out several times by simply walking through the fence. He also said that the pig was very scary to people who would come in the yard because of his jaw popping, which is usually seen as a sign of aggression in hogs. He said that on several occasions, he had seen this massive pig throw other pigs around, once even over the fence. Mr. Blissitt also told of building the pig a large shelter that was big enough to cover him and keep him out of the weather but he said the pig tore it to bits in less than 40 minutes. Mrs. Blissitt herself even said in Mr. Strickland's article that at times the pig would even become irate. Mr. Blissitt said he could see how anyone looking at the hog with his jaw popping and aggressive behavior in the 200 acre hog preserve, that is part of the 2,500 acre hunting plantation, would certainly believe this pig to be very scary. He congratulated Jamison on his hunt and said that somebody had to kill the pig.

Mr. Blissitt then said that they never would have brought this issue up if we were not trying to claim it to be a record wild hog. I explained that we had never declared it to be any kind of record and until recently, I was not very well educated on the terminology of hogs and their classifications. As the Alabama Game and Fish Commission investigated the story and the parties involved for wrong doing with the exception of Jamison and I, we sat patiently trying to understand what was going on. When the investigation was complete, I spoke with officials from the Alabama Game and Fish Commission who insured me that nothing illegal or unethical had occurred by any of the parties investigated. They did not tell me this pig had been purchased for stock on the plantation, which does have many species of pigs, including Russian black boar, that do raise there in a feral environment. He did state that the pig was of a domestic origin which was the ONLY legal way for owner's of pig hunting preserves to stock or restock besides pigs being born on the property. I did not really think a lot about what he said nor did I care at the time because I was still fighting the battle proving the pig was real or at least to get the news media to quit saying it wasn't.

Now from the first time this story was told to the interviews Jamison and I have done on radio and television, we have never failed to say that the pig was hunted on a hunting ranch or farm. I know many of you real hunters and animal rights activist have chastised Jamison and I for this hunting trip from the very beginning trying to make it sound like it was something short of a true hunting experience and your opinion is well received and understood. However, I own no hunting land and have very little time so this opportunity to hunt what we thought and technically still is, according to the definition I have, a feral pig, was something I do not regret doing for my son. Had I known that in a short time, someone would call this pig their "pet", we would have simply hunted another hog. I would like to thank Mr. Blissitt for his honest and forthcoming description of the pig and his understanding and taking time to explain to my son that he did NOT shoot the family pet!

I have no hard feelings at anyone involved nor do I feel like I have been misled in any way now that I have a total understanding of this event.

Contrary to What The News is Saying We Do Not Claim to Have Any Kind Of Record.

[JeepJerrySeinfeld]

This is bull shit who hunt animal in enclosed area and then brags about it. But damn i still can believe the size.

[linvillegorge]

Hunting in a fenced enclosure is bullshit. I don't care if it's a 20'x20' pen or a 1000 acre ranch. If it's fenced, it's bullshit. IMHO

[Muddin]

Most people I've spoken with who served in the military all say that "hunting" as it is today is BS. They say when the prey shoots back, that's "hunting".

[TheRedHorseman]

Originally Posted by Muddin

Most people I've spoken with who served in the military all say that "hunting" as it is today is BS. They say when the prey shoots back, that's "hunting".

Eh, hadji is a tad bit too gamey for my tastes.

[CJim7]

Originally Posted by DRM

The pig that Jamison killed did not act like a family pet. It was a very aggressive animal.

I guess if i was being shot at 16 times by an 11yo with a a bad aim...i'd be a bit pissed too.

[Travis Waldher]

Originally Posted by CJim7

I guess if i was being shot at 16 times by an 11yo with a a bad aim...i'd be a bit pissed too.

Cut the kid a little slack, he was shooting with a .50 hand gun.

I just thought - wonder what his back drop was.


As for the fenced in part - any of you that hunt and use bait, deer stands, etc. have absolutely no room to talk.

[45acp]

Im not fond of "game pens" but its all just stepping stones.

A fence is cheating.

but...

A food plot feeder is cheating.

but...

A deer stand is cheating.

but...

A modern gun is cheating.

but...

Black powder is cheating.

but...

A compound bow is cheating.

but...

A recurve is cheating. So is a longbow.

but...

A spear would be cheating too.


Now you are left with your bare hands and teeth. Consider yourself a purist.

[mudslinger99]

Originally Posted by DRM

monsterpig.com

The least you losers could do is get the full story

Post number 5 at 8:48 am seems to have been here before yours, no

[mudslinger99]

Originally Posted by Travis Waldher

As for the fenced in part - any of you that hunt and use bait, deer stands, etc. have absolutely no room to talk.

Do what

Putting a deer stand and a corn pile on free range land (no fences) is in no way comparable to hunting a fenced in area where they critters are basically trapped.. Putting a deer in a cage and then shooting him VS letting him out and then trying to shoot him would seem apparent enough to not have to explain the difference.

[DRM]

Originally Posted by linvillegorge

Hunting in a fenced enclosure is bullshit. I don't care if it's a 20'x20' pen or a 1000 acre ranch. If it's fenced, it's bullshit. IMHO

You have no idea how big 1000 acres is, do you? If that was the case, then most of the east coast would be off limits to hunting, because most fenced farms are far less than 1000 acres

[rocknbronco]

Originally Posted by Aces'n'8s

Yeah, I'm sure they had him holed up in a 15'x20' kennel just waiting on the right hunter to dispatch it.

Exactly

[Slowerthanu]

I once Head butted this Bitch for a T-bone at the Albertsons. That is the closest I get to hunting.

[CJim7]

Originally Posted by Travis Waldher

Cut the kid a little slack, he was shooting with a .50 hand gun.

Given the absolute size of that slab of bacon....and the fact he put 16 rounds through that gun and only connected with 6, i'd say its a safe bet he either shouldnt be carrying a gun for the purpose of killing something or he needs a bit of practice with it....which also equates to "he shouldnt be carrying a gun for the purpose of killing something"
wonder how much meat he ruined

[45acp]

I cannot fathom how an 11 yr. old can put 16 rounds through a 500 smith anyway. I shot a 44mag at that age and the front sight cut my forehead.