Guillotine door vs saloon door hog trap: which gate to build around

We haven't tested these units; scores come from published specs and the rubric on our How We Choose page. The gate mechanics below come from Texas A&M AgriLife's trapping pages and its 2011 publications on corral traps, box traps and door modifications. This comparison is one piece of the hog traps and trapping hub.

How each gate works

AgriLife lists the gate options for hog traps as "funnels, rooter gates, guillotine, and saloon doors", and splits them by behavior: funnels and rooter gates allow continuous capture, while "saloon and guillotine gates only close after a trigger is set off" (AgriLife, Trapping). So both gates on this page are held open until something triggers them. The difference is what happens next.

A guillotine gate slides down a frame. AgriLife's box-trap publication describes sliding drop gates that "use a trip wire to trigger the door to fall", often held up by a pin on a cable run through a conduit to a trigger at the back of the trap. Once it falls, it stays shut: "One drawback of guillotine gate box traps is that they do not allow additional pigs to enter once the trap has been sprung" (AgriLife, Box Traps for Feral Hogs, L-5525).

A saloon door is a pair of hinged doors that open into the trap. In AgriLife's corral design, the doors are held open by props, and springs pull them shut: the doors "open into the trap but will slam shut due to the springs" (AgriLife, Hog Trap Design). Because they swing inward, hogs outside can still push through after the trap springs. AgriLife's corral publication says of saloon-type and rooter-type doors: "After the first animals are captured, more hogs can enter by pushing their way into the trap" (AgriLife, Corral Traps for Feral Hogs, L-5524).

Guillotine vs saloon door at a glance

The guillotine gate: strengths and limits

The guillotine's strength is certainty. When it drops, the trap is closed, and nothing pushes it back open. That's exactly what you want with a remote trigger: you watch the sounder walk in on a live camera, wait for the last hog, and close the trap on all of them at once. AgriLife says a camera-based remote trigger lets you see how many pigs are present before closing the gate, though it "is typically more costly and does require cell service".

Its limit is the flip side. On a trip wire, a guillotine closes on whichever hog pulls the wire first, and every hog outside at that moment stays outside. AgriLife's advice for trip-wire traps limits the damage: put the trigger at the back, away from the door, so many hogs are inside before it closes, and don't put bait directly on the trip wire. The door also has to be wide and tall enough that hogs don't trip it on the way in.

The saloon door: strengths and limits

The saloon door's strength is that it keeps working after it springs. A late-arriving hog that finds the doors closed can still shove through, and, as AgriLife's box-trap publication notes of swing gates, "the first captured hog may serve as a lure to attract additional hogs." On a trip-wire trap you check in person, that can turn a partial catch into a fuller one.

It's also a home-shop build. AgriLife's design uses hinged doors with wooden props, eyebolts and springs, and a trip wire run through wire eyes on T-posts from the props to a bait hole at the back. As hogs root for the bait, the wire tension pulls the props free and the springs close the doors. The corral publication notes that some people use picture-framing wire for the trip wire, because it's durable enough to spring the trap but will break if a hog becomes entangled.

The limits: springs and props need adjusting and checking, and a push-in door depends on hogs being willing to push. AgriLife's door-modification publication notes that for rooter-style push-in doors, "older trap-shy hogs are often reluctant to enter" (AgriLife, Door Modifications for Feral Hog Traps, L-5527). A saloon door sidesteps that for the first entries, because it stands wide open until the trap springs; only the late arrivals have to push.

The third option: rooter gates

You'll see rooter (or lifter) gates in the same conversation. A rooter gate is a door hogs lift with their noses to enter, which is why AgriLife lists it among the continuous-capture gates. L-5527 calls rooter/lifter doors "a popular choice among trappers because they allow for continuous capture", then lists the drawbacks: traps must be held open and pre-baited for several days, and trap-shy older hogs are often reluctant to push through. Its fix is to modify the rooter door so it "initially functions as a drop door", then works as a rooter door once the first group is captured. In other words, the experts' answer for a push-in gate is to make it behave like a held-open gate first.

Match the gate to the trigger

• Remote cellular trigger: a guillotine gate. The Hunt Supply trigger lists guillotine-style drop gates on a rail as its compatible gates (Amazon listing). The HogEye Mini camera includes a latch and adapter, and its maker says it works on any trap (HogEye Cameras); confirm fit with the maker for a saloon door.
• Trip wire you check daily: either gate works. A saloon door keeps catching after it springs; a guillotine needs the trigger far enough back that most of the sounder is in when it fires.
• Rooting trigger or bait-hole wire: AgriLife's saloon and top-hinged designs are built around it, with the wire running to a bait hole at the back.

Our guide to hog trap trigger ideas compares trip wires, rooter sticks and cellular triggers in more detail.

Guillotine on Amazon, saloon by hand

The guillotine side

The Hunt Supply 6 ft Hog Trap Gate is a welded-steel guillotine drop gate, 6 ft wide on a 7 ft rail, that opens to about 4 ft high and weighs 155 lb (J4 Welding). It's the only purpose-built hog trap gate we found on Amazon. The trigger, camera, panels and T-posts aren't included, and no warranty is published. The matching Hunt Supply Cellular Hog Trap Trigger drops it on one phone call and ships with a 12 V battery, a solar panel and 12 months of cell service (J4 Welding), though it doesn't publish its carrier. Pair them with a live-view camera from our hog trap camera picks so you can see the sounder before you call.

The saloon side: build it

We'll be plain: we found no saloon-door hog trap gate on Amazon, so there's no buy button for this side. The route is to build one to Texas A&M's design:

1. Size the opening. AgriLife says the door "must be wide enough (32″ to 36″ total opening width)" for hogs to pass through without tripping it when they first enter.
2. Hang two doors that open inward, with springs attached to the gate frame so they close on their own.
3. Prop them open with wooden props on eyebolts, a two-by-four or a stick, or hold them with a hook-and-eye latch until the trap is triggered.
4. Run the trip wire to the back. Wrap baling wire around T-posts to form eyes, and run the trip wire from the props through them to a bait hole at the back of the trap.
5. Bait to the trigger, not on the wire, so the doors don't close before the group reaches the bait.

For the corral around the door, our guide to building a hog trap covers the panels and posts, and our corral vs box trap comparison covers which style to build.

Three gate tips from Texas A&M

• Keep deer and calves out at the door. AgriLife's door-modification publication suggests stringing a piece of baling or barbed wire across the middle of the door opening. It's a minor obstacle for a hog but will usually deter nontarget animals such as deer and calves. It works on either gate.
• Share the gate with a neighbor. The corral publication points out that the gate doesn't need to be in place until the trap is set, so neighbors who coordinate can cut material cost. A steel drop gate only has to be on site when the trap is set, which makes it an easy piece to share.
• Don't let the door trip early. AgriLife's trap-design authors say the door must be wide enough that hogs pass through "without tripping and closing the door when they first enter the trap", and L-5527 warns that rooter panels hung too low let a large hog trip a trap prematurely. Check clearance for the biggest hog on your camera, not the average one.

Which gate for your trap

• A remote trap with a camera: guillotine. You choose the moment, and the gate seals.
• A trip-wire corral you check every morning: saloon. Late arrivals can still push in.
• A box trap: AgriLife notes that swing and lifting gates allow more than one hog to be trapped at a time, while a guillotine box trap stops at the first catch.
• Trap-shy, older hogs: a gate held wide open until it's triggered, guillotine or saloon, rather than a push-in rooter door.
• Big boars: width and height. The Hunt Supply gate opens to about 4 ft high; on a homemade door, keep the full 32 to 36 in opening.

Whatever the gate, the rules after the catch are the same. In Texas, "transportation and release of live feral hogs is unlawful, unless in compliance with Texas Animal Health Commission (TAHC) regulations" (TPWD Outdoor Annual), and 4 TAC §55.9 limits where live hogs may go (4 Tex. Admin. Code §55.9). See what to do with trapped hogs in Texas before the first catch. This is not legal advice.