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Teacup/Micro Pig? Bad idea?

The Menagerie
#1

Hello there fellow COTHers,

I have been researching teacup pigs for awhile now and have become very interested in purchasing one, but since they have recently become so popular in such a short time I feel like it is hard to tell who is a good breeder and who is not. I keep hearing stories of people purchasing these piglets and ending up with a pig much larger than they had planned on. I was just wondering if anyone had any information about care, breeders, etc on these cute little guys since I can’t find any information that I would trust elsewhere.

Thanks guys!

#2

There is no such thing as a breed called teacup. They’re capitalizing on how cute runts are and may start selecting for runts. Very small runts can have all kinds of genetic challenges. In dogs teacup can have double rows of teeth, issues controlling blood sugar, shunts, open skulls, etc. There is an evolutionary cost to these abnormally small animals. However, there is also a market. Undoubtedly the same issues occur with pigs.

http://www.yeepet.com/blogs/Teacup-Pigs%3A-The-Big-Secret-of-the-Miniature-Swine-2434

http://www.barktopia.com/teacup.htm

Paula

#3

Ah thank you Paula, that was the information I was looking for. As much as I would love a teacup pig, I’m not looking to further sustain an industry that is causing inbreeding and general lack of integrity on the breeder’s part.

What breed of pig could someone recommend to me as a household pet? I still think they are great animals.

#4

You’re welcome. I don’t know anything about pigs however, so hopefully someone comes along with that kind of information.

Paula

#5

One of the families at my barn recently got a mini pig. They’re blogging about their experience here: http://pig-tales.com/

They have a lot of info about what led them to get the pig (the younger daughter loves pigs and actually saved all her birthday and Christmas money for years to buy this pig), all the research that went into finding a suitable breeder and pig-keeping, and how it’s been going so far. It’s also pretty funny. (:

#6

minature pot-bellied pigs (that mature at around 150-200 pounds or so) make fabulous pets, especially if you have a farm. There’s probably oodles of them in rescues (or soon will be), as the purchasers of the “teacup” piglets discover they tend to get bigger than expected and abandon them. Advantage of getting from a rescue is you have the adult and know how big it will get.
Here’s a list:

http://www.teacuppig.info/Pig_Sanctuaries.html

#7

Just purchased some hay from a couple who had a mature pot-bellied pig. He was awesome! But huge - I thought he was a regular farm pig until she corrected me. Anyway, her set up seemed ideal - small pig safe fenced farmyard attached to garage & house - “Franklin” the pig had a dog house out in his yard, and one in a small fenced off area of the garage. But he was also allowed inside the house whenever he liked too. She said he never pooped inside, he had his spot outside he like to go, & he would come to the door when he needed to go. He did slobber when eating snacks inside tho -she had a rag ready for that. Overall I was charmed, and scheming on when I could adopt a “Franklin” of my own - she pointed out that it’s best to adopt since so many people buy the cute little piglets & then dump them in shelters or abandon them when they realize how big they are going to get. Though a baby pig would be cute, too many grownup ones waiting for a special home!

#8

Adult pot-bellied pigs range from med dog size (but alot heavier) to normal “boar” size (rather large & heavy for most houses) - I don’t know if breeders can really tell when they are babies which way they’ll go.

They are very social herd animals & really should be kept as pairs at least - a few are lucky enough to end up in sanctuaries, most don’t :cry:

#9

Let me weigh in…

My now very pregnant niece, whom I love dearly, has a house pig. Not a minature, not a potbelly. A house pig. He’s big. His feet are, well, cloven hooves, scratch the floor, wear the carpet. Doesn’t do stairs now that he’s grown.

He does not smell ( the yard is a little piggy, but they are anal about disposal)

They are both well educated, scientist types, and also have a yellow lab, who shares space with the pig, doesn’t seem to mind.

She is due in October, I’m wondering how much the pig will get irritated at being replaced by a squawling infant once he’s not allowed on the couch any longer.

BLTs anyone?

Pigs are livestock in my world, best enjoyed from a distance or between two slices of fresh white bread.

#10

I always wanted a pig. :slight_smile: They are very intelligent and trainable…just like dogs.

Sadly we are seeing a lot of CL ads for micro-mini pigs and tea-cup pigs lately…some for outrageous prices of $1000++. Unreal!

Just like dog breeding, though, I wonder how “intelligent and trainable” these bred down varieties have become? I’d be very careful…maybe I’d consider a pot-bellied pig, but the micro/mini pigs seem to be a new fad and I’d be wary of health problems.

#11

Fabulous link, Wendy.

#12

Pigs can breed before they are full-sized - so a breeder can show you the parents and tell you ‘see, they’re not too big’ but the parents are still babies themselves !

Another problem is that they are easy keepers and get so fat that they have a lot of health problems. You have to make sure they get exercise, which may be as simple as giving them free roaming room in the yard. They can also be taught to walk on a leash.

I have a friend who has a house pig, he is a potbelly and is as tall as her lab but a lot more solid. He is housebroken and lives in the house, but does tell them when he needs to go out. If you rub his side he flops over, legs-up, for a belly rub. It’s pretty funny.

He also loves to dig holes by the water tubs to make his wallows. Very messy, but funny and he has a good time. My friend does not actually give the pig any extra food in the summer, he grazes and is in good weight. In the winter she gives him just a small amount.

My horse is absolutely terrified of the pig LOL.

#13

I liked the idea of pigs as pets. Until I knew more pigs! Aside from farm pigs, I have also known potbellied house pigs.
They may be smart, but they are not necessarily friendly - certainly less so on average than dogs. They also have bristley skin that is not nice to snuggle up to. And when the least bit upset they SCREAM. loudly. for a while. over the least little thing.
Before getting one as a pet, I would suggest spending some time with a full-grown adult pig, preferably the parent of your potential piglet.

BTW my mom had a pig as a pet. In a tiny house in a town. “Porky” (she was a little kid!) appeared after her father came home late one night. :winkgrin: Porky slept behind the old stove - until he got so big he was moving the stove. Shortly after he was banished to the little yard, he disappeared. And they started having pork chops…

#14

One other serious thing to consider is vet care. Not every vet clinic will treat them. In our large animal clinic all of the vets will see them on emergency or routine stuff such as shots or feet trimming. Only one of them will do the more complicated stuff such as neutering. I do not know anyone in the area that will spay a female. Our small animal vets will not, but they might let the one large animal vet use their OR. They are very sensitive to certain drugs and anesthesia so health issues are not to be taken lightly. As someone else said - they are bigger and stronger than expected. We had a little guy in recently to have his feet trimmed, who was at most a year old. It took three of us to hold him and the screaming deafened me for the afternoon. This is a pig who is very well taken care of, very well handled and socialized and lives in the owner’s house. He however was a BEAST for us to handle.

#15

A friend of mine has a house pig. Abbydp brings up many a great point. She rescued hers off of craigslist and is now finished growing at around 30 pounds (please don’t ask me the breed.) It is housebroken, gets along with the dogs and cats, but belches and screams bloody murder when you put a harness on it to take it to the vet or walk it. Only one clinic in the area was able to spay her, and the emergency clinic will not be of use to her if she needs it. It was a fun novelty once she rescued it; and we still collect up all of our scraps in doggy bags for her after going out to eat, but Penelope has convinced me to never have one.

#16

My pig

She is the coolest pet I own. She is about 35 pounds. You need to find a honest breeder, mine is a Juliana. They need to be fixed, puberty at 3 months was a complete shock and pain. She is snugly, wants to sit on your lap, and loves attention. House broke from day one. She is crate trained. Se sits, comes when called, and will do just about anything for a treat. You have to watch their food intake. They will eat anything, your guest need to understand they shouldn’t feed them. Doesn’t smell. They are noisey and loud. They only time she isn’t grunting or squeeling is when she is sleeping. She gets fed every 12 hours and will let you know when it has been 12 hours. They do not understand “dog” you need to be very careful around dogs, the pig does not respect their space or understand their body language. There can be judge food issues. But I love mine to death. I can’t attach any pics but send me your email and I’ll send you some.

#17

They do screech a lot, loudly. Pigs, I think, like to hear themselves talk. When they are not screaming, they are muttering to themselves.

#18

[QUOTE=Hippolyta;6547920]
Pigs, I think, like to hear themselves talk. When they are not screaming, they are muttering to themselves.[/QUOTE]

As much as I like pigs I have a husband who fulfills this role, so I don’t need another grunting, farting, muttering screaming creature to share my life:)

#19

I have a friend who is a vet. Mostly equine, but somehow other stuff gets in the mix. She got a call to euthanize a LARGE house pig- people had raised it in an apartment and were going to get evicted if pig didn’t go away FAST. Sad for the pig, but she has a rather hilarious story about how the pig decided he didn’t want to get caught, he was chased all over the apartment, squealing to beat the band, he was stronger than her, etc. After 45 minutes of trying to catch and subdue the pig, the score was: Pig, 1; vet 0.:lol: Told said people to find someone else to do the deed, and she left.

#20

I’d have shot the damn thing then eaten it.
Waste of good bacon to use euthanasia solution…

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