Hogzilla
Hogzilla ( suitcase word from hog 'pig' and Godzilla ) was a wild boar that was shot on June 17, 2004 by Chris Griffin at Ken Holyoak's farm in Alapaha , Georgia . It was claimed that he weighed about 450 kilograms and was about 3.60 meters long.
In early 2005, the animal's carcass was exhumed by scientists on behalf of National Geographic . They published the results of their investigation in March 2005. Accordingly, the animal is a hybrid between a domestic pig and a wild boar . They estimated his weight at the time of death at about 360 kilograms and a length of about 2.25 to 2.40 meters. The animal's tusks were about 46 and 41 centimeters long, setting a new record length for North America.
Giant pigs
In certain regions of their range - especially in Eastern Europe - wild boars can become very large. The two Hungarian nobles Prince St. Imre and Nikolaus Zrinski are said to have been killed by a pig of this size, although the assumption of murder is more likely today.
Hogzilla was the son of a domesticated pig, bred for a large amount of meat, and a wild boar, the latter probably being the father. In addition, the National Geographic scientists put forward the theory that the pig ate mainly protein-rich fish food, which it stole from a nearby fish farm .
Dispute with National Geographic
The farmer Ken Holyoak, on whose farm the animal was shot, doubted the information from National Geographic as a result of the publication. He himself had weighed Hogzilla and claimed that at 450 kilograms the pig was significantly heavier and also significantly longer than what the scientists said. Above all, he emphasized that the meat had already partially rotted and atrophied. Nancy Donnelly, the author of the National Geographic article, argues that these decay processes were taken into account in the investigation.
Alapaha
Since the discovery and publication of the Hogzilla, the small town of Alapaha, about 180 miles from Atlanta , has been of public interest and attracted crowds of visitors who were drawn to the story. The city itself has already built the story into its culture by hosting its own fall festival for the boar. The festival includes a parade, the choice of a Hogzilla princess with a pink outfit and an oversized replica of the boar.