Holly and Nick were “labeled” as Royal Dandy teacup/potbelly mixes at one point in their lives prior to coming to Best Friends. What exactly does that mean? This entry I’m going to talk about the mythical tiny pigs that are really just babies that will grow up to be bigger than promised.
The words “teacup” “dandy” “extreme” and “micro-mini” are all words used as a marketing ploy to get unsuspecting folks to buy baby pigs thinking the piglets will stay small as adults; unfortunately some of the media have given airtime to these breeders only perpetuating the myth and selling of piglets. USA Today did an article last year that did represent both sides…kudos to USA Today especially since they had a “pigture” of our Daphne and interviewed me for the rescue side! Now if Sprocket and I could just get on Ellen (and might as well have George Clooney on at the same time since he once had a pig!)
The vast majority of breeders and sellers misrepresent the truth about the piglets that are being sold (isn’t that such a nice way of saying that they are lying to make themselves money at the expense of the pigs?). Pigs can begin breeding at a very young age and some breeders will breed pigs that are under six months old. The gestation period is three months, three weeks and three days so by the time the litter is born the parents are still not very old and since it takes up to five years to determine the full size of a pig; the parents are not even close to their full mature size. Some breeders/sellers will then tell potential buyers that the piglets will get no bigger than the parents knowing full well that it is in fact simply not true. There are many breeders/sellers are claiming that they have “down” bred pigs to stay anywhere from 19-40lbs! They also try to starve them to the point of stunting their growth with some breeders now even packaging their own feed that is comprised mostly of whole seeds which will not be digested and therefore the pigs won’t get the nutrients they need to properly grow. These starved pigs may not reach proper mature size but they won’t stay tiny either and many end up very sick and die at an early age.
These breeders/sellers lie about size knowing that more people would be apt to buy a pet pig if it would stay tiny. Most people will not keep the piglet once it starts growing up but the sad fact is that the breeders/sellers do not care about the pigs, just the money. And now we are starting to see lots of “backyard” breeders popping up all over to cash in on the tiny pig craze.
The retention rate for pet pigs is only 2-5%...not a promising statistic. Pigs can be wonderful pets but they are not for everyone. Your home needs to be properly zoned for pigs, you must have an area of your yard that can be rooted up constantly, it’s imperative to have proper shelter, shade and mud/pool, a vet who is educated and experienced with pigs and a lot of patience since they really are “pig headed” (and proud of it by the way!). Pigs are not just like having a dog although sellers will tell folks that. People who are considering getting a pet piggy (or better yet two pet piggies) should educate themselves about how to care for pigs before getting the pigs. And one should never purchase a pet pig when there are so, so many in rescues and shelters that are in desperate need of an adoptive home and someone to love them.
Imagine that someone buys a piglet that is a potbellied pig (or one of the few other “miniature” pigs; miniature pig really only means smaller than an 800lb farm pig!) believing that it will stay about 40lbs. However, the average size for any “miniature” pig is about 150 lbs. How many folks will really keep the pig once it starts getting bigger and probably hasn’t been trained? Now imagine that the piglet is a mixed breed, like Holly and Nick, having some potbellied pig, some farm pig (and who is to say what breed of farm pig, there are a lot and all are way bigger than potbellied pigs), and some feral pig. These pigs will grow close to 350lbs at full size. Only one person in a million would keep a piglet that was alleged to stay at 40lbs but grew to 350lbs! Many pigs that are no longer wanted are taken to city shelters where they are many times euthanized simply because the shelter doesn’t know how to care for them or how to place them. Many are dumped out in the woods or turned out as stray. These pigs that do manage to survive on their own, avoiding cars, dogs, and people looking to torture them for the “fun” of it will then fall into the feral pig population if one exists in that area (41 states have a heavy population of feral pigs) contributing to the population if that pig isn’t altered. There are pig rescues and sanctuaries throughout the states but they are few and far between in comparison to dog, cat and horse rescues. And all pig rescues are overwhelmed due to the high number of unwanted and homeless pigs that were bought by people who didn’t know how big the pig would really get or how to properly feed and train the pig.
Answers to your posts:
Phoenixstrength: the piggy lessons are always my pleasure! Good question…yes, unaltered pigs are susceptible to reproductive cancer and I’ll talk more about that when Holly is spayed.
Slickabrina: the babies will be harness trained by your next visit (I’ll talk about that in a future entry for sure! We’d love to have you with us for a full day…the pigs are addictive aren’t they?!
Samglauser: Can’t wait to see you and yes, your boy Sprocket has gotten big but he’s still a doll. You’ll love these two!
Roxee: after that photo of you and Daphne in a mud bath the only way to top it is with two piggies and you in a mud bath! Can’t wait for you to meet the “kids”!
Czimmmer671: I know you’ll be back (you’d better be!), the question is how soon?! I swear I’d come visit you if you were closer! These two will have manners by the time you get here and they promise not to chase you..wink, wink.
