Our Little Piggies Stay Home.
Our wonderful Tomo, a big pig into big snuggles!
The curly tail.
The oinky snout.
That sassy pig sashay!
What’s not to love about pigs? At Tamerlaine, we have too many piggies to count on our toes. And while we love them, we so wish we lived in a world where they didn’t need to find sanctuary.
Prehistoric Pigs
Angelica, Cardamom, and Saffron are three lucky girls born into a natural life at Tamerlaine. We rescued mom, Juniper, when she was still pregnant.
Ancient fossils show that pigs were wandering around wild and free as long as 40 million years ago. In fact, wild boars weren’t domesticated until about 9,000 years ago into the pigs we know, love, and desperately want to protect. Today, wild boars are the most widespread large mammal across the continents. And still, domesticated pigs outnumber them by far—in 2020, there were over 264 million domesticated pigs, aka industrial pigs, living at any time.
Pigs were domesticated as a food source. They can be black, pink, brown, or a mix of all those colors. Like human moms, mama pigs nurse their piglets and take care of them until they are big enough to venture out—if they could.
Researchers have proven that pigs are one of the smartest animals, right up there with dolphins and chimps. They’re also very social animals. Just like us, they’re much happier living with a good friend or two. Or more! And they’re pretty picky about who they pick for a BFF, too. And the rumor’s are true: they DO love a good mudwallow, followed by a sunbath.
Would it surprise you to know they love a good belly rub? That’s just one surprise. Pigs are FULL of them!
But did you know…
…that despite all those lovable qualities, 98% of the pigs in this country never get to see the sun, nor to wallow in fresh mud. They don’t get to pick their friends, or raise their babies. They live in dark, filthy factory farms. When males are about 6 months old, they are killed for people to eat. Females have it even worse: they’re kept alive and suffering, usually in crates too small to turn around, until they are too weak to birth more babies. It’s a horrible life. Around the world, over 1.5 billion pigs are killed and eaten by people each year. Many of the pigs here at Tamerlaine came from factory farms like these, or from small “humane” farms, while others were abandoned as pets. “Potbelly pigs” are thought to be great pets, but they grow much larger than people expect them to.
The good news is, you can be an animal rescuer without ever stepping foot on a farm. How? Next time you go to the market, let your wallet speak for animals.