This Absolute Madman Just Wrestled a Wild Boar Out of His Pool Like It Was a Drunk Friend at 3 a.m. And I Went As Well As You Imagine

Somewhere in what looks like a very nice backyard with actual grass and trees and not just a concrete slab, a shirtless bald guy decided the correct response to finding a massive black wild boar thrashing around in his swimming pool was to wade in and personally escort the thing out. Not call animal control. Not grab a garden hose and spray it like a raccoon. No. He got in the water with it.

The footage is pure chaos. The boar is big, dark, and soaked, looking like it has no idea how it ended up in the deep end but is committed to the bit. The guy is standing there in the water, hands on the animal, pushing, guiding, and basically manhandling it toward the edge like he’s helping a buddy who’s had six too many IPAs climb out of a hot tub. At one point he gets it up on the ledge, it stumbles onto the grass, and then, because wild animals have no gratitude, it turns around and the whole process has to happen again. The guy ends up sitting in the water next to it at one point, just vibing while this thing is still in the pool with him. Absolute legend behavior or absolute lunatic behavior. Probably both.

Here’s the thing people always forget about wild boars until it’s too late: these are not the cute little pigs from the petting zoo. Wild boars (Sus scrofa) are dense, muscular, and built like tanks. Adults routinely hit 150–300 pounds, can hit 40 mph in a straight line, and come equipped with razor-sharp tusks that can be several inches long. When they decide they don’t like you, they don’t just charge once and bounce off. They come low and hard, repeatedly, using those tusks to slash at whatever is at thigh-to-knee height. That is not a fun place to get opened up.

The numbers back up the “do not mess with these things” warning. A worldwide review covering 2000–2019 documented 163 separate fatal wild pig attacks that killed 172 people. That’s roughly 8–9 deaths a year on average. Most of the killers were solitary large boars, and a big chunk of the attacks happened outside of hunting situations, people just walking, working in fields, or minding their own business in rural areas. Lower-limb lacerations are the most common injuries in non-fatal cases because the animal’s height puts its tusks right at the level of major blood vessels. There are documented cases of deep penetrating wounds, arterial damage, and people bleeding out. In one study of urban European wild boar injuries, a significant percentage were penetrating tusk wounds to the legs. These animals can also carry a whole host of bacteria that turn a bad cut into a worse infection.

They’re generally shy and will avoid people if given the chance. But corner one, surprise one, or get between a sow and her piglets, and the switch flips. They attack ferociously and keep coming. Hunters who have been on the receiving end describe them as surprisingly quick to turn and re-engage. The guy in the pool got lucky. The boar was exhausted, stressed, and mostly focused on getting out of the water rather than treating the human as a threat. That is not the default setting.

Watching someone casually manhandle one of these things in a residential swimming pool is equal parts hilarious and terrifying. Most people would have stayed on the deck yelling at it from a safe distance or waited for professionals. This guy treated it like an oversized, extremely pissed-off golden retriever that fell in. He got it out, it didn’t immediately try to open him up, and everyone walked away (or ran away) in one piece. That’s a win.

Just don’t try it at home. Wild boars are not looking for a pool day with a new friend. They’re looking for an exit, and if that exit involves going through you, they are fully capable of making that happen in a very permanent way. The shirtless hero of this particular video got away with it. Most people who test their luck don’t.