Pet Carnivals

Just the other day I was watching animal planet and saw a short clip about miniature pet pigs. I’m not talking about you’re regular potbelly pigs which grow to between 60-175 pounds (this past weekend we actually saw a full grown pot belly pig at the Super Pet Adoption. I’d estimate he was closer to the 175 pound range. The image to the left is that big guy). These little guys are as small as 15 pounds…full grown! They are called “Royal Dandies” and they are pot belly pigs. It took 23 years of breeding small pet pigs to get the Royal Dandies and “Dandie Extremes”.

I must be destined to live on a farm or maybe in a past life I was a farm animal. After watching the episode on Royals Dandies on Animal Planet I was convinced that my next pet would be a pig. Maybe it was just animal planet, but they sure made them seem like appealing animals. Here’s some of the information about the Royal Dandies:

Miniature Pet Pigs

Royal Dandies and Dandie Extremes sound like they make great pets. If you’re interested in a Royal Dandie then visit the website for detailed information about these mini pet pigs. Here are a few things I found after browsing the website:

• Royal Dandies are raised to live indoors
• Price: Royal Dandies (29-39 pounds) are $2,500 – 3,400
• Price: Dandie Extremes (15-29 pounds) are $3,500 – 4,500
• Monthly Expenses: “Dandies are not expensive to take care of.” It didn’t look much different than the cost for raising a dog.
• Dandies will use a litter box, potty pads, or dog door (Funny aside…one of the other unusual pets on animal planet was the giant guinea pig who had to sit in a bucket of water when having to eliminate)
• From the website: “There is no big secret or mystery to owning a pig for a pet. The two main differences between a dog or cat and a Dandie is that you will laugh a lot more with a pig and wonder how you ever survived before you had it!”

Once again go to the Royal Dandies website to find the details. Above are just some of the points I thought were interesting after reading through the pages on the website.

Pigs As Pets

I’ve never actually owned a pig as a pet I’m just in an online research mode to find out more information about the mini pet pigs and pigs as pets in general. From what I’ve seen the Royal Dandies are the only miniature pigs available (it’s even written on the website). So, I’m guessing if you’re in the market for a small pot belly pig then you’re going to have to visit the Royal Dandie website or take a trip out to Yachats, Oregon.

I also came across another great site that details information about pot belly pigs and whether or not you’re the right person to be a pig parent. Check out the Pig O’ My Heart Potbellies website for more information. Here are a few points I came across after reading their site:

• A lot of what’s mentioned here is very similar to the way a dog behaves.
• An interesting fact mentioned is that pigs are considered fifth most intelligent animal. The list goes man, monkeys, dolphins, whales, pigs.
• I thought it was funny that pigs that share a bed with people are said not to “hog the bed”…ha ha!

Pig Sayings and The Truth

• “Sweats like a hog” – pigs are incapable of sweating.
• “Dirty as a pig” – pigs are very clean and if given the opportunity will toillete in only one corner of their pen.
• “Stink like a pig” – pigs have absolutely no odor.
• “Eats like a pig” – True -well one of them had to be true. By the way, I have two labs and I think the new saying could be “eats like a lab”

One important point I came across on several sites was to never impulse buy any pet including pigs.

Advantages and Disadvantages For Pigs As Pets

Advantages:

• They seem very similar to your regular indoor dog
• Clean and odor free – contrary to what many believe
• Non-allergenic in most cases – they mention very little to no shedding
• Easily trained
• No Destructive Puppy Phase
• Low Maintenance
• Small Size (Royal Dandies and Dandie Extremes)

Disadvantages

• Are you zoned to have a pig?
• You may have to travel far for a vet who knows how to treat a pig
• Pigs can become spoiled and manipulative. – many dogs and cats can act this way as well.
• Pigs require a commitment of time and energy from their owners. – no different then any other pet.

I was also wondering what current issues may be arising with the outbreak of the swine flu. I’m sure people have questions and I wonder if it has affected sales of the Royal Dandies and Pot Belly pigs in general.

Overall pigs as pets don’t seem all that different then owning a dog or cat. It sounds like mini pig training would be very similar to puppy training.  Would I get a mini pet pig? I don’t know. Right now I have three dogs and that’s too much in my small place. As I mentioned earlier I think I should be on a farm or at least live on a large property that can accomodate several more pets. For now, it’s just something to think about. Maybe down the line a Royal Dandie is in my future.

What about your? Do you own a pig as a pet? Are you considering purchasing a Royal Dandie?

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