Wild Pigs Wreck Destruction On Bay Area Business Park

SAN JOSE, CA — A group of pigs has been going hog wild on the landscaping at a business park in South San Jose, attracting attention and concern from employees, according to video footage and media reports.

Guy Clark uploaded several videos this month to YouTube of the roughly one dozen pigs — most of whom appeared small and young, although there were some larger animals in the group — tearing up sod in the parking lot and along Hellyer Avenue, their tails wagging but a path of destruction in their wake.

This isn’t the first time pigs have caused a problem in the area, with the city of San Jose in 2020 passing a temporary ordinance that allowed licensed trappers to kill them with a bow or crossbow, KGO reported.

Damage reports spike this time of year due to increasing food scarcity, according to KGO, citing the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, which said the property’s owners could hire trappers.

One such trapper, Vince Bruzzone, told SFGate there is a large population of wild pigs in the Silver Creek Valley.

“As the hills and stock ponds dry up this time of year, pigs move toward more fertile and resource abundant areas,” he told the outlet. “Irrigated landscaping is a natural draw as they search for soil-dwelling invertebrates.”

There are up to 400,000 wild pigs in the state, and 80 were harvested during the 2024-25 hunting season in Santa Clara County, SFGate reported, citing the fish and wildlife department.

In addition to property destruction, the pigs can wipe out water sources and have been traced back to E. Coli outbreaks, according to SFGate, which added they can be dangerous, stalking and charging a couple of Bay Area hikers last year. If a pig begins to charge, people should hide behind a rock or other large object, or climb a tree, the outlet reported.