Dog walker suffers wild boar attack in village in south-west France
Woman’s dog bitten after being charged by sow and piglets in Landes department
While the dog was bitten, the woman remained unharmed (photo for illustrative purposes only)
2026 dzikislawomir/Shutterstock.
A dog walker has been charged and her dog bitten after an attack by a wild boar in a village in south-west France.
The woman and her dog were walking late in the evening in the centre of Messanges, a commune of around one thousand residents in the Landes department, when a sow and her piglets charged at them.
The woman came out of the incident unharmed as she managed to hide behind a car, but her dog was bitten and taken to a veterinarian for treatment.
The incident took place on April 18 at around 23:00.
“It was around 23:00 on Saturday evening. A resident was walking her dog, which was off the lead, in the Airial district when the sow charged at the dog,” Pascale Castagnet, the commune’s mayor, told ICI Gascogne.
“She bit the dog. Then the animal charged at the owner as well, who hid behind a car to escape. A resident heard a noise, heard the woman scream, and came out to help. The woman wasn’t injured, but she was very frightened. The dog was bitten and taken to the veterinarian,” she added.
After the attack, the commune’s town hall posted an alert on Facebook asking residents to be vigilant, keep their dogs on a lead, and avoid any approach.
A resident told Sud Ouest that this was not an isolated case, and that the sow had charged several people in the street over the past few days.
What to do if you encounter a wild boar
Although boar attacks remain rare, they can happen anywhere. If you do encounter one, you should keep your distance, especially if it is a female with piglets.
Try to remain calm, and if you have a dog with you, keep it on a lead to prevent it from getting too close to or disturbing the boar.
You should then back away slowly while keeping the animal in your field of vision (never turn your back on it), or let it pass without disturbing it.
In the case that the animal charges at you, try to find higher ground (for example, climb a tree or get behind a hedge). If this is not possible, back up against a tree or stay close to a rock and let the boar pass by.
Usually, wild boars are scared of humans, and only attack because they are injured, cornered, frightened, or a female protecting her young.
