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GardeningCook
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Re: Pigs on the Farm

imafan26 wrote:Pigs are intelligent animals. The Vietnamese pot belly pigs are sometimes kept as pets here and can be leash trained and house broken. One city council woman had a pet pig that weighed over 600 lbs in her suburban home. It caused quite a stir at the time since it is unusual to have a pig as a pet.
Yes, pigs are extremely intelligent. In fact, many years ago one young woman from Long Island, NY, entered her pet pig in a dog show obedience class for fun & it beat the pants off of every dog.

But oh brother - don't get me started on the Vietnamese Potbellied Pig debacle. Those poor things. What most people who buy them without researching first don't understand is that nine times out of ten they do NOT remain cute little tiny things. They can top out at 250+ pounds. And if intact, can mature with nasty temperaments.

A few miles away from us there used to be a "Pig Sanctuary" that took in abandoned "pet" pigs - farm types, Vietnamese Potbellies, & Micro Pigs - & it was a very sad sight. We visited during one "open house" they held, & while the pigs were relatively well-cared for, the sheer number of abandoned former pig "pets" was extremely sad to view.

Once again another admonishment to NOT take on any pet - livestock or otherwise - unless you've done serious research, know what you'll be up against, & can commit to lifetime care.

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sweetiepie
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I have heard of that happening to more backyard chickens too. They get old and quit laying and people don't know what to do with them.

My kids said in Hawaii when they visited that there were chickens running around all over because of that. I don't know for sure. It is sad. One doesn't see things like that in ND, that I am aware of. It is so much a farming community that if someone doesn't want an animal, usually a rancher or farmer will take it in.

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GardeningCook
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Yes - it is true that parts of Hawaii do suffer from a feral chicken problem.

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sweetiepie
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LMFAO Marlingardener, LMFAO , sorry I keep telling my daughter that her horse would be better as a mule as least it could pull my milking wagon.

I agree on the chickens, I have heard some horror stories and for that reason, I don't give mine away either. Mine might carry something that doesn't bother them but kill off someone elses. I don't want to worry about that.

imafan26
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Most of the 'abandoned' chickens were not the layers, but the fighting chickens. In Hawaii it is illegal to fight them but not to own them. Sometimes the owners let them go rather than be confiscated. Sometimes they let them go because they are too small to fight, other times they just let them go period. There are a lot of them around. Many of the chickens are abandoned with the cats in feral colonies and people come and feed both the chickens and the cats. It is not a good situation for any of them.

Back to the pigs. You are right if anyone adopts any pet , they need to be committed to taking care of them once they are no longer in the cute stage. BTW the council woman kept her pet until she died of old age.



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