Haifa man injured in wild boar attack while walking dog

69-year-old, hospitalized in moderate condition, is second person wounded in a year by feral hogs near northern city, where their population has surged

A 69-year-old man was attacked and moderately wounded by a wild boar in the northern city of Haifa on Sunday while out walking his dog, medics said.

Magen David Adom medics said they found the man conscious, with wounds to his limbs. He was taken to the nearby Rambam hospital in moderate condition.

“He told us that while he was out walking his dog he was attacked and wounded by a wild boar,” a medic said.

The man was the second Haifa resident to be injured by a feral hog in the last year.

In December, a woman was moderately injured in a wild boar attack as she was hiking with her family in the Ofer Forest near Haifa.

Boars, a species of wild pig found across Europe, Asia and North Africa, can grow up to two meters (more than six feet) in length, although most are smaller.

Wild boars gather in a residential area in the northern city of Haifa on December 5, 2019 ( MENAHEM KAHANA / AFP)

In recent years the population has multiplied and grown bolder, entering towns and communities in the Carmel region, including the city of Haifa. The coronavirus lockdowns, which saw public life and movement reduced, along with a ban in 2019 against culling boars in the city, has led to an increased invasion of the animals.