Teacup Pigs For Sale Or Not?

If you had $1100 to blow on something frivolous, what would it be? Would it be a pig? That is some pretty pricey pork! However, that is the going rate for one of the newly touted, "Teacup Pigs."

The recent appearance of Jane Croft on the NBC Today Show has sparked people's interest in these little pink, pug-nosed cuties. Ms. Croft said that she sells around five or ten a week in Great Britain, but the morning of the Today Show interview, she had over 500 inquiries on her website. They interviewed remotely with her sitting the floor of what appeared to be a barn with tiny little piglets climbing all over her. They were literally teacup size, just like little toy Chihuahuas or another little glamour dog you would carry in your purse a la Elle Woods!

The fervor is spreading about teacup pigs; celebrities are acquiring them. Rupert Grint from the Harry Potter movies bought two piglets from Ms. Croft. She wants to sell them in pairs because they are very social, and they don't like to be alone. They are available in the United States, now too, according to advertisements.

However, let's do a fact check. Are there really teacup pigs for sale? Can you buy a pet that will look like those precious little piglets on the Today Show? The truth is, if you read the facts, unless you travel to India and find a rare Pygmy Pig, you will not be able to find anything remotely like that. Those are baby pigs that are shown in pictures in the palm of a hand. Like kittens, puppies, and babies, they will grow.

Pig experts will tell you that miniature pigs will still grow to the size of a cocker spaniel. And, the will weigh somewhere between 60 and 175 pounds. Nancy Shepherd, breeder and Author of "Pot-bellied Pig Parenting," tells us that pot-belly pigs are miniature pigs because a regular sow could weigh 800 pounds! She basically asserts that there are no micro-sized pigs, and she is joined by others who are well-educated in pig husbandry. If a pig is healthy, it will not be a teacup pig.

Priscilla Valentine, a pig advocate, travels around doing presentations about pigs. She is concerned with the safe and humane placement of pigs who were adopted with the hope of being a small little pet. These animals often end up abandoned when they continue to top the scales at well over a hundred pounds. Ms. Valentine and her husband had attempted to find smaller pigs over a 16 year period to make their set-up for presentations much less back-breaking. She also asserts that a teacup pig is an illusion. She suggests that it is totally impossible to predict a pig's size. Since pigs breed before they are fully-grown, a parent's size is not an indicator of the potential growth of an offspring. She suggests that you adopt an adult, fully-grown potbelly pig that is the size you desire.

Ms. Shepherd and many other experts agree that a pig that is artificially maintained as a teacup size pig is not healthy or well-nourished. There can be serious problems with internal organs, which were not intended to be housed in such a small little body. Some unscrupulous breeders will even suggest you withhold food to get the size pot bellied pig that you want.

If you are indeed looking for a pet potbelly pig, you can find one in the same size range and a mid-sized house dog, but you should consider some things before you make a purchase. These cute little noses and eyes remind us of Miss Piggy, but this pet might turn out to be a whole lot of pig. Are you zoned for a farm animal, regardless of its size? What if it does grow much bigger than you expected? Are you gone from home often for extended periods of time? Pigs are considerably cleaner than people would think and can actually be litter-trained like a cat. However, they are very needy for attention, and they get lonely and bored. If you don't have the attention to give this smart animal, maybe you need a cat instead of a pig.

Resources:

Nancy Shepherd, Pig O' My Heart Potbellies

Priscilla Valentine, Teacup Pigs or Porkbarrels.

Mike Celizik, Adorable Teacup Pigs Are Latest Hit with Brits,   TODAY.