Anybody Have A Pot Belly Pig As A Pet?

[ashade1]

Hey guys! So our rescue was contacted about taking in a pot belly pig, one of the miniature ones that people keep indoors. I don't know anything about them... any tips? I know they should be spayed/neutered because of hormones and they can be litter trained...
The person that has her took her off of someone who was going to use her as dog food but she can't keep her...

 

[ashade1]

Pictures of the pig.

 

[talkingpeanut]

How old is the pig now? They don’t stay very mini...

 

[Kat0121]

How old is the pig now? They don’t stay very mini...

No they sure don't. We went to look at one at a rescue once and he was far from mini.

 

[ashade1]

Not sure on the age... They don't know as they took her in a hurry when the person said dog food...

 

[ashade1]

I am going to call my vet Monday morning and see if they do pig spays and if they don't if they can refer me to someone who does... I hate to think how much that costs...

 

[Norachan]

I found this.

Should I Spay Or Neuter My Mini Pig?

I wasn't even sure pigs could be spayed (Large animals such as cows and horses usually can't be.) It looks like lot of people have pet pigs though. I guess a pig spay is fairly similar to a large dog spay.

 

[kashmir64]

I have heard that you can only neuter the males. But, that is in hogs so it may be different than PBP.
The only experience I have with pigs was my friend's hog. She used to feed him vegetables. Corn, tomato, zucchini etc..

Edited to add: I also know that pigs can catch most human viruses. Like colds, so be careful when you handle him.

 

[rubysmama]

Wow. Poor (not so) little guy. Good luck with him.

 

[Sarthur2]

Dr. Jeff on TV spays pigs frequently.

What are you feeding him?

 

[LTS3]

I wasn't even sure pigs could be spayed (Large animals such as cows and horses usually can't be.)

You'd be surprised to know what other pets can be neutered or spayed. I had a male gerbil neutered so he could continue to live with two females (not sure if they were litter mates or not). Large male farm animals can be castrated but I don't know if spaying a female is worth the trouble of surgery and recovery.

A cousin of mine had a mini pig for awhile. I'm not sure what happened to the pig. My cousin now lives in the city so I'm guessing she had to rehome the pig.

Diet is important to a pig. You don't want a pig that winds up like this How Maybelle the Pot-Bellied Pig Got Her Groove Back - Animal Rescue League of Boston

I think even a mini pig would need some time outdoors in an enclosed pen to play and excercise and root around in the dirt and grass and just do normal pig behavior.

 

[Sarthur2]

Here's another informative link:

Spay and Neuter - American Mini Pig Association

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Expect that she could go as much as 200 pounds when grown. "Mini" is a relative term.