Pig

PIGS IN HISTORY

Domestic pigs probably descended from one species--the Eurasian wild boar (Sus scrofa), which can still be found in Europe, Asia, and Africa.

Domestication of the pig coincided with the formation of the first permanent human settlements. The oldest known sites of pig domestication were established as early as 9,000 years ago in Iraq, Jordan, and Turkestan, with some evidence for domestication even earlier in China.

The first domestic pigs in Great Britain existed as early as 2,800 years ago.

In ancient Egypt their flesh was not eaten. Pigs were instead kept as scavengers. They loosened the soil by their rooting and so prepared it for planting. They were also used to trample down the seeds after sowing and to thresh the grain at harvest time.

War pigs (herds of pigs lit on fire) were useful anti-elephant weapons in ancient warfare.  The Romans used them because their squeals scared the war elephants into fleeing and trampling their own armies.

In the Middle Ages a rabbit was worth sixpence but a pig only fourpence.

On January 9, 1386, a sow was convicted by an ecclesiastical court of murdering a young child and hanged in Faliase, France. The executioner was paid ten sous and ten deniers for his efforts in dragging and then hanging the pig.

Illustration from Chambers Book of Days depicting a sow being tried for the murder of a child

Christopher Columbus introduced the pig to America from Europe.

Around 1784, a pig was exhibited in London under the title "The Learned Pig." The pig was taught to respond to commands in such a way that it appeared to be able to answer questions by picking up cards in its mouth. It was said to be able to spell words and solve arithmetical problems.

Illustration of the Learned Pig - 1785.

Yorkshire pigs are the world's most popular breed. They originated in Britain in the late 18th and early 19th century.

The Danish Protest Pig originates in North Frisia in Southern Schleswig in the beginning of the 20th century, when Danes living in the area under Prussian rule were prohibited from raising the Danish flag, so they bred a pig to look like the flag instead.

Danish protest pig. Photo made bei Axel Krampe

The first pig to fly was taken up in a wicker basket attached to a Voisin biplane belonging to Claude Moore (later Lord) Brabazon in 1909.

A heroic Pennsylvania pot-bellied pig named Lulu became a media sensation in 1998 after her owner suffered a heart attack. Lulu saved her owner's life by squeezing through a doggy door, pushing open a gate and lying down in the middle of a nearby road until a motorist stopped and followed her back to the house.

In 2001, councilors took the place of pigs in the traditional pig race in Arklow, Co Wicklow, Ireland because of the foot-and-mouth outbreak.

There is a Guinness World Record for the longest dive by a pig. Miss Piggy, owned by Australian Tom Vandeleur, leapt 10ft 10in, (3.31m) measured from the end of the board to where the snout enters the water) into a 34in deep pool in Darwin on July 22, 2005.

BEHAVIOR

Pigs are split in to two main types, lop-eared and prick-eared- the former are more docile and the latter more alert.

The pig is rated the fourth most intelligent animal. Only apes, dolphins and elephants are smarter.

In the old days, sea captains kept pigs on board because they believed, should they be shipwrecked, pigs always swam toward the nearest shore.

Pigs are often thought to be dirty, but actually keep themselves cleaner than most pets. They are seen laying in mud because they do not have sweat glands and constantly need water or mud to cool off.

Domestic pigs will quickly adapt to living in the wild if set free. They become extremely aggressive, and their physiology will change and resemble that of feral swine (bristly hair, tusks, increased muscle mass) within a matter of months.

Pigs may oink in English but in French they go "groin, groin", in Polish they go "chrum, chrum", and in Mandarin Chinese, they go "Hu-lu, hu-lu".

DISTRIBUTION AND REPRODUCTION 

There are more than 180 species of pigs, found on every continent except Antarctica.

They come in just about any size and color, have an average lifespan of 20 years and litters from two to 12 piglets.

Domesticated Pig and piglets

Around 60 per cent of the world’s two billion pigs live in China.

In Denmark, there are twice as many pigs as people.

DIET

A growing pig will munch its way through 2.2 to 3.3 lb of pig nuts a day, plus any extras sent its way.

By the time they are six months old pigs will have increased their birth weight by 7000%.

Pigs suffer from anorexia.

RELATIONSHIP WITH HUMANS 

No other animal gives us more by-products than the pig.

Domesticated pigs, called swine, are raised commercially for meat. A 130lb pig will yield up to 110lb of food providing sausages, bacon, joints and fillet as well as liver, kidneys, tongue, cheek and trotter.

After English firefighters saved piglets from a barn fire in February 2017, six months later the farmer sent them sausages made from the piglets as a thank you gift.

The average American will eat the equivalent of 28 pigs in their lifetime.

The ears are a popular treat for dogs.

Their bristly hairs are also used for brushes.

In 1997, it was reported that farmers in Laos had successfully completed trials using pig manure as a snail repellent on rice crops.

For those who wish to treat pigs as pets, they can learn around 150 tricks- double the number of the average dog.

George Clooney had a pet pot-bellied pig called Max, which he looked after for 18 years before it died on December 1, 2006.

Horror film star Boris Karloff had a pet pig called Violet.

Approximately 40 people are a year are killed by pigs in North America.

FUN PIG FACTS

Pigs can run a 7.5 minute mile.

Piggy banks get their name from a clay called pygg from which jars were made for saving money.

Fluorescent green pigs were first bred by Chinese scientists in 2006.

Sources Daily Express, Daily Mail, Comptons Encyclopedia, Didyouknow