By Micah Stevens
Baby Pig at Wheeler Farm. Photo by Micah Stevens
Table of Contents
Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………page 3
Pigs Past………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….page 4
Wild Pigs………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….page 5
Pig Parts…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………page 6
Piglets…….………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………page 7
Pet Pigs……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………page 8
Glossary…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..page 9
Sources………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….page 10
Many people think pigs are dirty, smelly, sloppy or otherwise unclean animals. Some people
even think that a pig will, “eat like a hog.” The reason for this is that they don’t know what pigs
actually like.
Playful pig at Wheeler Farm
Primitive Pigs
The Wild boar is the animal
which all domestic pigs come
from.
It is believed people started
domesticating pigs about 8,00013,000 years ago they were often
raised for their meat such as
bacon, ham, and sausage. Their
hides were also used to make
shields and their bones were
used to make tools and weapons.
In Rome, they were used as war
pigs because war elephants were
frightened by their squeals.
Fun fact
A wild boar can
weigh as much
as 900 pounds!
Now there are about 300
The Wild Boar was the ancestor of domestic pigs
different breeds of pigs, but
they all have the same characteristics. They have a heavy round body and a
snout they also have four hooves and a tail.
Pigs Past
Wild pigs (hogs) brought by the early Spanish
explorers now have spread across the United States.
The reason for this is that wild pigs are very
adaptable, and can live in a variety of places, either
hot or cold without dying. This is why there are so
many of them.
Wild pig in the snow.
A sign of wild pigs invading your territory is
damage to crops, soil, fields, and trees. Some of this
damage is done because the wild pigs search for food,
and once they find it, they root up the soil and take
the food for themselves. Another sign of wild pigs is posts, pigs will rub on
posts so that they can itch themselves.
Fun fact
Young wild pigs are born
with a pattern of light
stripes along their torso
Damage to a farm done by pigs
Pig Parts
There are many different kinds of pigs but they all
have a round body, a snout and feet. Pigs have four
toes on every foot. At the end of each toe there is a
hard hoof. However, even though they have four
hooves, the only ones used for walking are the two long
middle ones. Most pigs also have a long wiggly curly
tail.
Pigs have good hearing; however they have small
eyes and bad eye sight. Adult pigs end up with a total of
44 teeth. The teeth used for crushing are the rear teeth.
Pigs also have good smell.
Diagram of a pig’s body
A pig’s snout is
made of tough cartilage. The cartilage is covered
with pores. Even though pig’s snouts are for
good smelling abilities, they are also a great
digging tool. In France some
people use pigs to dig up
Fun fact
truffles.
Some pigs have
long eyelashes
Pigs are used to dig up truffles in France
Piglets
A Boar and a gilt must be at least six months old to mate. The female farrows a litter of six to
fifteen piglets. Once the female has babies she is called a sow.
For the first three weeks when the pigs
are babies they drink milk from their mother. At
this time the piglet’s two sharp tiny teeth called,
“wolf teeth” are cut. The reason for this is so
that the piglets don’t hurt their mother. When
they stop nursing they are weaning.
The piglets will soon copy their mother.
Soon the way their mom eats is the way the
piglets eat. The piglets may even start rooting
with their snouts, they also will eat the food
their owners bring.
A litter of piglets can be between six and fifteen siblings
Fun fact
The smallest
piglet in a litter is
called a “runt.”
Pigs will grow very fast. When pigs are six weeks old they are
weaned and weigh 35 pounds. That is ten times more than they weigh at
birth. By the time they are six months old they aren’t babies any more.
Pet Pigs
Pigs are very hard to take care of because of
their specific needs. Before getting a pig you need
to know how to take good care of them.
Pigs are tidy creatures and would always
want to be clean. Pigs should be given a clean
place to live they should also have a pool or
source of water available.
When it gets too hot, pigs need to moisten
their skin otherwise they will become sick. They
need to roll around in water to
Fun fact
Dwarf breeds of
pigs can do fun
tricks
lower their body temperature. This is
Pet pigs can be hard to take care of
called wallowing, if there is no water
available they need to wallow in wet sloppy mud.
Pigs are omnivores. Pigs will eat pretty much anything, such as roots,
nuts, and plants. Some farmers feed their pig’s corn and soy bean meal with
added vitamins and minerals. Older pigs can drink 3-5 gallons of water per a day.
boar
A male pig
domesticating
to tame an animal
farrows
to produce a litter of pigs
gilt
a young female pig
omnivores
animals that eat both plants and meat
piglets
baby pigs
snout
the nose of a pig
sow
a female pig that has already given birth to a litter of pigs
truffles
edible fungi
weaning
when a baby stops drinking its mother’s milk
Pictures
Cover and Introduction Page Picture: Micah Stevens
Boar Picture: http://www.brownbeartaxidermy.com
Boar in the snow: http://spiritanimals.wikia.com/wiki/Rumfuss
Source Damage to Crops: www.lsuagcenter.com
Diagram of Pig’s Body: www.exploringnature.org
Truffles in France: www.davidlebovitz.com
Mama pig: www.clublexus.com
Pet Pig: www.offercorner.info