Micro Pigs as pets

[Miss M 10]

henhugger even though they dont need tonnes of land, you cant get a license without it...

[Dozy 11]

With a life expectancy of 18 years, if they get popular - not too long.

 

I fear you're right. I can remember when Vietnamese Pot Bellied pigs suddenly became fashionable - it didn't last long, but unfortunately long enough for quite a few idiots to buy them, without having the faintest idea of what keeping them entailed.

[foxyflugel 10]

I saw one on Gumtree - it was really cute - a brown one it was. It looked like it was being kept indoors in a dog crate. They wanted £575 o.n.o - it was 9 week old and apparently an unwanted christmas present!!!!! Like someone has already said - I also wonder how long it will be before a Micro pig rescue has to be set up .

[mctee 10]

I saw one on Gumtree - it was really cute - a brown one it was. It looked like it was being kept indoors in a dog crate. They wanted £575 o.n.o - it was 9 week old and apparently an unwanted christmas present!!!!! Like someone has already said - I also wonder how long it will be before a Micro pig rescue has to be set up .[/quote

Edited February 7, 2010 by mctee

[mctee 10]

I saw one on Gumtree - it was really cute - a brown one it was. It looked like it was being kept indoors in a dog crate. They wanted £575 o.n.o - it was 9 week old and apparently an unwanted christmas present!!!!! Like someone has already said - I also wonder how long it will be before a Micro pig rescue has to be set up .

 

hi im pleased to let you know that this little piggy you are talking about is now no longer kept in a dog crate but is very happy running about my 8 acres of land with his two new found friends my black lab ace and my french bulldog oscar, i have got to say he is as happy as pigs in muck lol and he as a little girlie friend coming at the end of the month, not sure how to put a picture on here or i would do.

[nikita 10]

hi im pleased to let you know that this little piggy you are talking about is now no longer kept in a dog crate but is very happy running about my 8 acres of land with his two new found friends my black lab ace and my french bulldog oscar, i have got to say he is as happy as pigs in muck lol and he as a little girlie friend coming at the end of the month, not sure how to put a picture on here or i would do.

 

I can vouch for the above,have seen him his name is alfie and his favourite place is stretched out in front of the arga with the two dogs,in fact i think he thinks he is a dog,he loves all the doggy toys, and i know for a fact he smells a lot sweeter than the dogs.

[Dozy 11]

hi im pleased to let you know that this little piggy you are talking about is now no longer kept in a dog crate but is very happy running about my 8 acres of land with his two new found friends my black lab ace and my french bulldog oscar, i have got to say he is as happy as pigs in muck lol and he as a little girlie friend coming at the end of the month, not sure how to put a picture on here or i would do.

 

Ahhh - lovely to hear that he's got a good home - and some new friends.

[mctee 10]

Ahhh - lovely to hear that he's got a good home - and some new friends.

 

not just a few new friends he as over 100 ducks chickens and geese to chase

[Fishpole 10]

You're so right Dozy, these are just the latest fashion and little thought goes into their needs. The Vietnamese Pot Bellied pig that Gemima mentioned in the original post was (sort of) inherited by her friend when she bought the property. VBP's were the height of fashion at the time. The baby pig was being kept in a rabbit hutch of all things and she felt very sorry for him and worried what the future would hold. The property purchase was partly a swop and she would have struggled to find room for a massive wardrobe that she'd had in her previous home so she made a deal with the pig's owner. She left the wardrobe and he left the pig!

 

Percy had complete freedom and the space to be a pig there but lived in the house, because he grew up with and behaved like the dogs. His care throughout his life can't be faulted, he had it all - good food, attention, love and the very best of veterinary treatment. He was very clever, he adapted to his environment, completely outshone the dogs in the intelligence stakes but would he have behaved in the same way had he been kept with a companion pig? As adorable as he was, he didn't have another pig around and he might have been a very different animal if he had.

 

There are many species of animals that allegedly make good pets kept singularly, but I don't believe we should deny them the opportunity to interact with their own kind. They should all have the right to exhibit their natural behaviour in as close to a natural environment as possible, if we truly want to keep happy pets. Cats and dogs have evolved to become domestic pets and can easily be kept alone because they generally have the opportunity of interacting with others but I doubt singularly kept pet pigs could be afforded such a basic luxury, given the licensing and control orders to prevent the spread of disease.

 

McTee, after having said all of the above, I am really intrigued to hear how Alfie gets on when he has a new pig playmate. He has obviously been just as lucky as Percy was to find a home with the space that he needs after being kept in a cage and soon he's going to have a pig friend. I'm quite sure they are super intelligent and will adapt to their environment but will having a fellow pig around change the dynamics? I can't wait to hear all about it, please keep us up-to-date. Well done for giving him a better life.