From top to bottom, wild boar skull, feral hog skull, domestic hog skull

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Using 51 linear measurements of this hog's skull, and one angular measurement, and then running those measurements through a specialized computer program, Mayer determined with "100% probability" that this skull was that of a domestic hog, one that was born - and raised - in a pen.

He used tooth-wear measurements on the hog's molars to determine an estimated age of 6-1/2 years. Its ear length was a massive 238 mm, compared to a maximum 165 mm measurement on the largest wild boars.

Clearly, the numbers weren't adding up.

Perhaps most interestingly, according to Mayer, the ears indicated no scratches or scarring, which would be typical of a wild hog that no doubt would have battled other hogs and animals in the wild.

"They (the ears) were pristine, not a mark on them," said Mayer. "I'd never seen anything like that on a boar that age."

Moreover, Mayer said that he looked for signs of ectoparasites, like ticks or lice, which would also be expected with a wild animal, on the hog's skin. He found no parasites. No egg sacks. No traces. Nothing.

Genetics lab DNA results will confirm whether this animal had any wild boar in its ancestry or not, according to Mayer, but at this point, he said, "It just doesn't fit."