Mounted on trained horses and armed with long, sharp lances, the hunters seek to bring down their game from the saddle. But if by any foul chance the hunter should be thrown from his horse near the hunted brute his chance for life is not good. The furious brute will rush upon him, and with one thrust of its strong jaws may rip his body open with a deadly wound. Great nobles and warriors have met with death in this base way and the wild hog has held his own bravely among his enemies.
Is this fierce fighter of the forest the same animal as the lazy grunter of the pig-sty? There is no doubt of it. His long life under man's care has taken all the fight out of him. Only in one way does he show his old temper. He is the most obstinate of all the animals we know. He does not like to be driven and will do his best to go just where you do not want him to. But he no longer fights to win his way; he only grunts or squeals and holds back.
From Madeira's "Hunting in British East Africa"
The Wart Hog. An African Tusked Cousin of the Wild Boar of Europe
Try to drive a pig and you will find this out. You will soon be in a fret over the stubborn brute. If you want him to go forward you may find it best to try and drive him backward. An Irishman tells us that this is the only way to "persuade" a pig.
It takes a Chinaman to make little piggy go the right way, and this is done by putting him in a basket and carrying him. Two men carry this basket, hung on a pole. It is a sort of cradle in which piggy goes to market. The only time the pig can show his obstinate temper is when he is asked to go into the cradle. He holds back, as usual, but the cunning Chinaman knows what to do. He takes hold of the pig's tail and gives it a hard pull as if trying to drag him backward and the stubborn brute at once rushes forward into his cradle.
The pig will eat almost anything. By nature he is a plant feeder and in his wild state will roam the forest feeding on plants, fruits, and roots of all kinds. His hard snout helps him to dig into the ground in search of favorite roots and his keen sense of smell aids him in finding them. Thus he likes wet, shady places where the ground is soft and such plants grow.
In France and Italy the pig is trained to hunt for truffles, a kind of fungus which grows under ground and which makes good eating. He finds the truffles by his sense of smell and roots them up with his snout. In some places dogs are trained to do the same. The truffle found, the pig's master rescues it for his own table.