Warthogs have good reason to be wary of African wild dogs. These tusked, bristly pigs are tough and scrappy, but they’re not invincible, and wild dogs are relentless pack hunters that can turn a warthog’s day into a nightmare.
A warthog—typically weighing 120-250 pounds—relies on its speed (up to 30 mph in a sprint) and agility to escape threats. Those curved tusks can gore an attacker, and they’re not afraid to use them if cornered.
But African wild dogs, weighing 40-80 pounds each, don’t hunt solo. A pack of 10 or more can surround a warthog, using their teamwork and stamina to outmaneuver it.
While a warthog might fend off one or two dogs with a well-placed charge or tusk swipe, the pack’s strategy is to harass, nip, and exhaust it until it can’t fight back.
Wild dogs don’t go for a quick kill like a lion—they wear their prey down, and a warthog’s short bursts of energy aren’t a match for that endurance.
In the wild, warthogs often bolt for their burrows when they spot wild dogs. Those underground hideouts—usually old aardvark holes—are a warthog’s best defense, letting them back in tusk-first to keep predators at bay.
If they’re too far from a burrow, though, it’s a different story. The dogs’ yipping calls and coordinated lunges can panic a warthog into a desperate run, and if it’s a juvenile (smaller, less experienced) or an injured adult, the odds tip heavily in the dogs’ favor.
Even a healthy warthog might hesitate to stand its ground against a full pack—those jaws can tear into tough hide once they get a grip.
Encounters aren’t always fatal, though. Warthogs have been known to escape or even injure a dog or two if they land a solid hit. But “afraid” fits: their instinct is to flee or hide rather than gamble on a fight they’re unlikely to win.
Wild dogs don’t specifically target warthogs as often as they do antelopes like impala, but they’re opportunistic— a lone warthog caught in the open is fair game.
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Credit: X/Grok 3
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