Autumn Acres Mini Pet Pigs

Episode: 26 / December 6, 2022

Pet Pigs and Their Kitchen Shenanigans

We all know that pigs are intelligent but what you might not know is that pigs can learn a bad habit in 1 event. If you are in the kitchen preparing dinner and your piglet comes over and lightly roots on your leg. You bend down and give them a scratch on the head and then you make that one single mistake where you take a piece of the food you are preparing and give your pig a bite. What did you just teach your pig? You taught them that when you are standing at the counter preparing food that food actually belongs to the pig. So what does this mean for you? Pigs are driven by food so now they associate you standing at the counter with food as a gift to them. Every single time that you are standing at that counter you are nothing but a treat or food dispenser to them. So now they see you at the counter they know that if they come over and push that button on your leg they get food. Now if you don’t move fast enough or understand what they are asking for things can escalate quickly. They become frantic for food. This frantic behavior can turn bossy and even aggressive. Then when anyone comes in the kitchen they will now start demanding food.

How can we change this behavior if it is already pretty ingrained into our pig? First, we need to be realistic because this will take time. Pigs do not unlearn these bad habits overnight. So what do we need to do?

We need to change the way we view their food and our food. From now on our food is our food and pig food is for the pig.
Pick a place that you are going to feed your pig. They will eat all of their meals and snacks and most of their treats in this place every time. It is best to keep them out of places where people eat food.
You may need to restrict access to the kitchen if your pig is aggressive in the kitchen. You need to be prepared.
Think about when and where your pig becomes aggressive. If that’s in the kitchen then you will need to make sure that they are not in the kitchen when you are ready to prepare food.
Give them a snack in their crate or take them outside to get them away from the situation that causes them to be aggressive.

How do we prevent this behavior?

NEVER feed your pig from the counter, your plate, the table, your bowl, the fridge or the couch. Anywhere that you eat food in your house, never share your food with your pig. This will prevent your pig from seeing you eat and thinking that means that they are going to eat also.

Key takeaway: Always feed your pig in a designated area so they don’t become food aggressive.

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