I love animals, and I’ve always acquired my pets—cats and dogs—from rescue organizations. Recently though, I learned about a new kind of animal rescue and the growing need for organizations who are willing to reach out and assist in the care and re-homing of them.

Pigs have become, in much of the United States, a pet commodity with skyrocketing popularity—and that’s not necessarily a good thing.

Potbelly pigs were imported into the United States from Vietnam in 1985. Originally destined for lives of captivity in U.S. zoos, a PBS Nature program “The Joy of Pigs”  (1996) gave Americans a glimpse of how happy life could be with potbelly pigs as pets, and pig ownership became the latest trend in pet-parenting.

It is estimated that there are somewhere between 250,000 and one million pigs in the U.S. living as household pets but, as I learned, that existence isn’t always a happy one—for the pigs or their owners. In fact, a survey of 802 humane organizations in seven states reported they received over 4,000 requests in an 18-month period to accept potbelly pigs. 485 slaughter houses received roughly the same number of requests to slaughter potbelly pigs during the same length of time.

This data suggests pigs are not quite the desirable pets they once used to be in the United States and also, that an increase in the number of unwanted pigs, is becoming a problem for rescue shelters across the country—one they can rarely accommodate.

To better understand the issue, I spoke with a long-time friend of mine, Erin Brinkley-Burgardt. I’ve known Erin since she was a teenager and now, decades later, she is the Founder and Director of an incredible rescue mission in Byers, Colorado. Hog Haven Farm is a non-profit organization dedicated to rescuing pigs and, when possible, re-homing them. Additionally, Hog Haven Farm is involved in a long and respectable list of other outreach activities centered around education of the public, including pig owners, on pigs as pets.

The public’s knowledge of pigs as domestic pets is as muddy as a pig wallow, as I learned from Erin.

The sad truth is, the need for pig rescue is growing and this is due in large part to the fact that pigs have unique training and care needs which aren’t intuitive to the average pet owner. I spoke with Erin about this at length, and by the end of our visit, I had learned five lessons about pigs which have changed my entire perception of these gentle giants as sentient beings.

But first, briefly, Erin’s story:

Erin and her husband Andrew lived southwest of downtown Denver, in a highly populated neighbourhood when they adopted their first piggy-baby. Pipsqueak (“Pippy”)  weighed 15 pounds at the time, and weighs 130 pounds today. They knew they wanted to be piggy-parents and the only legal requirement was to petition the city for a zoning allowance to keep pigs.

As new parents tend to do, Erin went to the trusty internet for information on piggy-parenting and was dismayed by the amount of misinformation she found. This was the beginning of opening her eyes to the fact that there is a great need to rescue pigs who aren’t being cared for properly, out of ignorance more than anything, and an even greater need for education.

In 2014, Erin founded Hog Haven Farm and registered it as a Colorado non-profit organization. Thanks to the power of social media, word spread quickly and by August of 2015 they had eight pigs (rescues and pets) behind a six-foot-privacy fence in their Denver house, with blessedly non-nosey next door neighbors. Knowing the need for rescuing pigs exceeded their urban space, they found a perfect location for their rescue farm in Byers Colorado, east of Denver. In just a few months, they had 20 pigs at their new location and this number continues to grow.

To this day, Hog Haven Farms is one of only two pig rescue organizations in the state of Colorado and the need for housing rescued pigs regularly exceeds their capacity.

Erin talks about her pigs as though they are family members, as any proud pig-mommy would.

I particularly loved a story she told about a pig who now goes by the name Lucky. Lucky escaped from a truck driving down the highway, presumably headed to slaughter, and was picked up and taken to Fort Collins. After giving the owner five days to recover the 650-pound Yorkshire pig, Erin brought him to Hog Haven where he will live out the rest of his life (probably another 16 years) in safety. It took Lucky much longer than other rescued pigs to warm up to human interaction, probably because of the way he had been treated in a factory farm without human interaction. “He’s gradually warming up to us,” Erin says.

It’s not uncommon for Erin to receive phone calls from people all over the state of Colorado who have discovered the incredible retreat provided by Hog Haven Farm. In fact, that is how Wilma (potbelly) and Journey (China Polland sow, raised as an agricultural animal) found their home at Hog Haven. Erin received a call from someone who had seen these two pigs advertised on Craigslist as animals “for meat” (does this stuff really happen on Craigslist? Yes, it does!) and she agreed to help rescue them right away.

In addition to rescuing pigs, Hog Haven educates owners on how to train their pet pigs. They provide boarding and adoption services as well, and several of the more social pigs make visits to an assisted living facility to bring joy to Alzeihmer’s and dementia patients.

Now I have to admit, when I hung up the phone with Erin after learning about her incredible mission, my mind was a jumble of thoughts:  I want a pet pig! When can I arrange a visit to meet her piggy crew? How can I ever eat meat again, now that I know about piggies with names, like Lucy, Milo and Daisy?

I curbed my budding excitement about the piggy-potential for my life by objectively coming up with Five Lessons I’ve Learned from Hog Haven Farm. I share these with you here not to point fingers or cast blame or guilt you into any single thing or action, but to do my part to spread a bit of awareness about these sentient beings who oink and snort and love carrots and belly rubs. They are, in fact, quite wonderful animals.

I learned:

1. There is a fallacy that is harmful to pigs: If you see an ad for a “tea-cup” pig or a “mini-pig” or a “nano-pig” and are tempted to take on a tiny, unique, exotic pet as a result, think again. Potbelly pigs originated in Asia where they have been crossbred to make smaller and smaller versions. Still, the fact is, it is inaccurate to expect a pig to stay small.  Information from breeders often states a “mini-pig” will mature around 40 pounds, with a cap at around 65 pounds. Realistically, “mini” is a misnomer and potbelly pigs (their actual name) mature at a low end of 65 pounds and can cap out at 250 pounds. In fact, it’s when pigs exceed the size the owner is expecting that Erin’s Hog Haven Farm often gets a call. Do your research and know that you aren’t getting a mini-anything—you’re getting a pig and pigs grow to be quite big.

2. Pigs aren’t trainable in the same way as dogs and cats: Pigs are as intelligent as they are stubborn. Owners taking on the raising and training of a pig will have a different “beast” on their hands when they realize just how stubborn and just how smart their new piggy-baby is. Pigs are dominant animals with a herd mentality. They need an alpha, someone they recognize as their leader. It takes some special training to exert yourself as the alpha to a pig, but doing so is the key to training them. They are also industrious and know how to get into things. For example, Erin tells a story of coming home to find her pig Pipsqueak on top of her sewing machine table, via a swivel chair, having a snack of cat food. If you are going to have a pet pig, know what you’re getting into with training them as domestic pets, and be committed to follow through with training—that is unless of course you’re interested in 200 pounds of stubborn and smart pig mentality thwarting you every day for the rest of your life.

3. It’s a long-term commitment: If taken care of, pigs will live to around 20 years of age. This is long past the point where the kids who begged you for a pet pig are home to care for it. Your kids may leave for college, but you’ll have a big piggy to keep your nest from feeling too empty. Pigs live longer than dogs and take more care than cats. A responsible pet owner will understand those facts before deciding if a pig is the right fit for a household pet.

4. Pigs aren’t quiet neighborhood pets: “Pigs can be loud,” Erin says. “To understand the strength of a pig scream without witnessing it, consider the sound of a jet engine—typically 112 decibels or less. A pig’s loudest scream can hit 115-120 decibels; however they will not scream that loudly unless they are being attacked or are very scared. Pigs may scream when picked up—since they are prey animals, instincts tell them that their feet off the ground equals they are going to be eaten.”  While many urban neighborhoods allow pigs, many don’t. Know the rules and restrictions in your area and know what your neighbors will tolerate. Hog Haven Farm takes in rescue pigs from families who move out of an area where pigs are allowed and into an area where they are not. It’s not the pig’s fault you moved from a pig-friendly municipality to a non-pig-friendly one.

5. Pigs are loveable: I have to admit, the thought of snuggling up with a mud-drenched pig doesn’t strike me as being quite so attractive where pets are concerned. But Erin assured me pigs are capable of complete empathy and compassion, more so than most people give them credit for. I would love a chance to find this out for myself. They love to snuggle and they attach very quickly to injured or sick pigs within their herds. Pigs easily attach to their human and pig companions and severing that bond can be torturous to a pig and incite deep depression. In fact, many of Hog Haven’s pigs up for adoption must be adopted in pairs, as they have formed a strong bond with a herd-mate which would be cruel to sever. Pigs need affection as much as they need a wallow to play in and a good bit of dirt to root in. Understanding their environmental needs and herd needs is key to keeping them not just as pets but as happy pets.

In summary, speaking with Erin was not only interesting, it helped me personally as well. Like Erin, pigs were always my favorite animal as a child, too. Now, through understanding more about the unique needs of these pets, I am inspired to do what I can to help spread awareness about pigs.

It’s not cool to have an exotic pet if you don’t know how to meet its exotic needs, right?

But beyond awareness, another pivotal change has occurred in my life.

It has been two weeks since I spoke with Erin and that evening, after spending time in the afternoon speaking with her, I prepared a vegan meal of sautéed kale and brown rice. I have been vegan since the day I spoke with Erin. I haven’t looked back and I’m not tempted to. I am loving my vegan journey.

There are some revelations that come to us from odd places and at odd times, though we cannot deny that we are forever changed by their appearance on our stage. The mission of Hog Haven Farm was one of those experiences for me, as was speaking with Erin and feeling the passion she has for her important, compassionate mission.

“Intellectually, human beings and animals may be different, but it’s pretty obvious that animals have a rich emotional life and that they feel joy and pain. It’s easy to forget the connection between a hamburger and the cow it came from. But I forced myself to acknowledge the fact that every time I ate a hamburger, a cow had ceased to breathe.” ~Moby

Sub in bacon and pig in place of hamburger and cow in the above quote and you’ve got the picture of where Hog Haven Farm’s incredible mission and Erin’s infectious compassion have brought me.

May all beings be peaceful, may all beings be happy, may all beings be free.

~

Relephant Reads

Pigs: Smarter than your Dog.

~

Author: Monica LaSarre

Editor: Sarah Kolkka

Photos: DM/Flickr & Adrian Scottow/Flickr