Rock pig: This little fellow is the envy of his mates
Meet the petite piglets of Pennywell Farm.
This little piggy played the guitar, this little did someballet and this little piggy sprouted wings and flew.
They might be mini porkers but this collection of micro pigssure are mighty cute. Time for a break: This pig looks to be getting a bit too tired as he rolls a strawberry The squeally tiny youngsters have all been born and raisedover the years at Pennywell Farm in Buckfastleigh, Devon.
Fuzzy, friendly, and small enough to hold in the palm ofyour hand, these teacup pigs are also naturals at posing for the camera.
And they have now been immortalised in a new 2013 wallcalendar by photographer Richard Austin.
Richard has been a professional newspaper photpgrapher for more than a quarter-of-a-century and has won numerous awards for both sport and news.
Thirsty work: There's no tea left after these two get stuck in
Sweet: This pig seems to have found a new friend
However it is his love of wildlife that prompted him into shots such as these, and he went on to have his own TV show, 'Richard Austin's Animal Magic, which won Royal Television Society’s Regional family entertainment programme of the year in 2007.
However, so popular are the creative shots, the calendars have sold out from the photographer's own website.
But fear not, they are still available to buy on Amazon.com
True love: These two better be careful not to get trapped though!
Eager: This bunch are looking forward to opening December's presents
An internet sensation: The piggy-back ride that formed a unique friendship between the lonely twosome
We have all enjoyed the odd piggy-back ride and it seems there's no exception, even if you are a monkey.
This Japanese macaque called Miwa-chan has has become an internet sensation and had more than 11 million hits since he decided to hitch a ride on his porky friend Uribo.
The pairs antics were filmed at the Fukuchiyama Zoo, near Kyoto, Japan, by keeper and vet Akihiro Nihonmatsu.
Holding on tightly: Miwa-Chan goes on a piggyback ride into the wild at Fukuchiyama Zoo
The two are now so popular a book featuring Miwa-chan and Uribo has been written by Akihiro and is read by millions of Japanese children.
Miwa-chan had to be hand-reared by keepers at the zoo after he was rejected by his birth parents.
And bizarrely Akihiro and his team found a surrogate friend for the social monkey in the shape of a baby Japanese wild boar.
The pair hit if off immediately with Miwa-chans favourite position being gripped onto the back of his piggy friend - aping the behaviour in the wild where the youngster would hold on to his mother.
Since his first ride on the back of Uribo both the monkey and the pig have grown up together and have now had their own shared enclosure built for them.
Akihiro, 39, said when the monkey and the pig arrived they were both lonely so putting them together as youngsters was the natural thing to do.
He said: 'Uribo still lets Miwa-chan ride his back to this day as the little monkey has never grown out of it.
'They now have an enclosure they share together and they are very happy at the zoo, I don't think they have an idea how famous they are, but all the publicity helped pay for their upkeep.
'Miwa-chan actually was attacked by a raccoon in the zoo last year and needed 30 stitches so he wasn't able to ride on Uribos back for a while.
'But it was really touching how Uribo missed him and it's amazing to think two animals not related and different species can become such good friends.'
The popular twosome: The pairs special moments were captured at the Fukuchiyama Zoo, near Kyoto, Japan, by keeper and vet Akihiro Nihonmatsu
Chilling out: Babe the pig is the ultimate beach bum, spending his days sunbathing and taking cooling dips in the Caribbean Sea
Not many people would be envious of a pig’s life.
Penned into a dirty pigsty, just waiting to be turned into bacon is no one’s idea of fun.
But Babe the pig has got it just right - for him it’s more of a charmed life.
A walk on the wild boar side: babe takes a stroll with his neighbours, Luke Abbott and Mona Wiethuchter - the only other inhabitants on the island
Babe lives on his own private island in the Bahamas and even the most dedicated beach bum would be envious of his hedonistic lifestyle.
The 12-year-old tamed boar spends his days strolling on the beach and taking a swim in the waves - although he has to be careful not to get in the way of predatory sharks which also cruise the island.
Pork scratchings: After a cooling swim, Babe enjoys being rubbed down with a special broom
Babe shares the island with just two other inhabitants, videographer Luke Abbott and his partner Mona Wiethuchter.
It is a remote island, measuring three and a half miles long and half a mile wide, 40 miles from the busier capital island of Nassau.
Babe came from a small group of wild boars which have inhabited the island since the 1930s when a breeding pair were brought to the island by travellers.
Thirsty work: As if he isn't pampered enough, Babe received a daily treat - one can of the local beer
Island paradise: Mona began taking Babe for regular strolls along the beach after the boar started piling on the pounds
When he was a day old, Mr Abbott, 27, started hand-feeding the piglet. Since then, Babe has been tame and although he lives in the island’s dense vegetation with a handful of other boar, each morning he leaves them and trots out of the bush alone ready for his daily ritual of laidback beach life.
Rash decision: Although he loves the water, Babe has to be careful to avoid predatory sharks that sometimes patrol the waters around his home
Best of friends: The cute meerkat and micro pig - named Timon and Pumbaa after the cartoon characters in The Lion King
It could be straight out of Disney's classic The Lion King - but this adorable couple are the real-life Timon and Pumbaa.
The cute meerkat and micro pig - named Timon and Pumbaa after the cartoon characters - have struck up the most unlikely of friendships.
Having been born within weeks of each other in Worcestershire, the black micro pig and fuzzy haired meerkat became best pals after seeing each other through a chicken wire fence dividing their pens.
Give me a kiss: Timon and Pumbaa play around with each other after becoming close pals at Tropical Inc, an education animal display company based in Dunhampton, Worcestershire
After a hesitant first meeting the hairy hombres hit it off and couldn't be separated.
And workers at Tropical Inc, an education animal display company based in Dunhampton, Worcestershire, immediately noticed a more than striking resemblance to the famous characters
Kelly Shambly, 24, an animal career at Tropical Inc, said: 'They are just like their namesakes - they have a real care free philosophy.
'They are both newborns and haven't settled into their roles within the litter yet so they are just running around enjoying themselves much like the mantra of the film.
'They showed great interest in each other from the start, almost like they were meant to be friends.
'At the time they still hadn't been named, but we soon realised we couldn't call them anything else once somebody pointed out they were just like the pair from the film.'
Miniature rascals: Kelly Shambly, 24, an animal career at Tropical Inc poses with Timon and Pumbaa
In an incredible real-life parallel to the cartoon characters, Timon is an outgoing and self-absorbed meerkat.
Kelly added: 'There was a little chicken wire fence between them and Timon was desperately trying to find a way through to get to Pumbaa.
'He is really outgoing and always looking to explore the world. He's interested in anything new, and having a big pig next to him was obviously an exciting thing.
'Pumbaa is definitely more reserved and slopes about the place in an unenthusiastic manner much like pigs often do.
'All they do each day is playfully run around. They are very cute together.
The original Timon (left) and Pumbaa (right): Pictured in the 1994 film The Lion King
'It is an extremely odd friendship, but it is great to see two animals paired together who would never get the chance to ever meet in the wild.'
Kelly, who helps run Tropical Inc, has been helping rear the young pair ever since their births around nine weeks ago.
She added: 'We take the animals to people who would not normally get the chance to get so close to different and exotic animals.
'We've put on parties for all ages - from toddlers to 70-year-old's birthday parties, but everyone loves Timon and Pumbaa equally.
'There hasn't been a time when someone hasn't mentioned the resemblance of them to the characters.'
-Pigs stolen from U.S. animal confinement operations -Authorities believe higher hog prices are behind thefts -Iowa and Minnesota farms suffer total theft of 910 pigs
By Mark Duell
Missing: A 'well-organised' pig theft operation may be why more than 1,000 hogs have been stolen from Midwest farms in the past few weeks (file picture)
Next time you cook some bacon in your kitchen, just think about the journey it might have been on before ending up on the frying pan.
A ‘well-organised’ pig theft operation may be why more than 1,000 hogs have been stolen from Midwest farms in the past few weeks, officials say.
Many thefts are happening at large animal confinement operations in Iowa and Minnesota, with pigs hauled off by the hundreds in trucks.
Such thefts in huge numbers are fairly rare - but the pigs are probably being sold to slaughterhouses as prices have increased in the last year.
At least 700 hogs have been stolen recently from facilities in Nicollet and Kandiyohi County in Minnesota, officials said.
In Mitchell County, Iowa, around 200 hogs have been stolen from farms. But no arrests have yet been made and no stolen pigs have been found.
Officials say they believe thefts in their own states are linked, but have not determined if the thefts in Minnesota and Iowa are connected.
The buildings where the hogs are kept at large animal confinement operations generally have side curtains raised and lowered for ventilation.
The thieves can gain entry by cutting through those and through netting that keeps birds out, investigators say.
Stolen: Many thefts are happening at large animal confinement operations in Iowa and Minnesota, with pigs hauled off by the hundreds in trucks (file picture)
The facilities involved also are in isolated locations.
‘Not many people drive by and this time of year they're surrounded by corn,’ said Nicollet County sheriff's investigator Marc Chadderdon.
He said it's not unusual for trucks to pull up to the facilities at all hours of the day and night to deliver feed or collect hogs ready for slaughter.
The thieves in Minnesota seem to be targeting specific facilities based on their location and the type of hogs they have, he added.
Mr Chadderdon said the thieves appear to be conducting surveillance first. The hogs stolen in Minnesota were all market ready at around 250lbs.
‘They wanted ones ready to be sold,’ Mr Chadderdon said. ‘There is a higher profit margin if you don't have to feed them.’
About 150 hogs, valued at about $30,000, were taken from Nicollet County - and 560 hogs were taken from Kandiyohi County, valued at $100,000.
Expensive: Such thefts in huge numbers are fairly rare - but the pigs are probably being sold to slaughterhouses as hog prices have increased (file picture)
This time last year their hogs were selling for around $125 - but their market price has gone up to around $200, reported CNN.
‘If you're taking 500 of them, it's quite an operation - you're not going to do that by yourself,’ Mr Chadderdon said.
‘I've been here 17 years and we've had a couple or a half dozen stolen but nothing of this volume and not of this sophistication.’
Mitchell County Sheriff Curt Younker said three farms operated by Iowa Select Farms were broken into in recent weeks.
None of the buildings were locked, he said. In addition, one or two individual farmers also reported hogs stolen, the sheriff said.
He said most stolen hogs go directly to a processor who deals with the same people most of the time.
The animals taken from Mitchell were younger hogs that weigh around 50lbs, valued at about $50 per head - with an estimated loss of $10,000.
Seeing double: Babe was born with the odd double snout two months ago in China
Meet Babe, the pig who was born with not one but two snouts. And while it might sound like a joke, it's no laughing matter.
The two-month-old - part of a litter born on a farm in Deshengtang, Jilin province, northern China - can use both his mouths to eat and appears otherwise normal, say his owners.
Farmer Li Zhenjun and his wife Yu Wanfen named the piglet Xiaobao - or 'Babe' in English - after the movie about an extraordinary talking pig.
Struggle: Yu Wanfen says the piglet has trouble eating as his head is so heavy
Li explained: 'The mouths aren't much of an advantage because his head is very heavy and he gets pushed around by the others.
'I'm feeding him with a bottle now and he's doing very well.'
No longer taking home the bacon: Ms Croft, with one of her micro pigs, has now been declared bankrupt after 'industrial espionage'
The UK's first micro pig breeder has been declared bankrupt after she claims a Facebook hate campaign by other breeders destroyed her business.
Jane Croft, 43, set up Little Pig Farm two years ago, selling her pint-sized porkers all over the world for up to £1,200 each, as animal lovers rushed to have one of the petite pets.
But after buying some full-size pigs mistakenly thinking they were micro breeds, and having to offer refunds to furious customers left with a huge animal, she became the victim of a vicious online campaign.
Pretty porkers: Some of the adorable oinking pigs turned into full-sized animals, and Ms Croft had to offer refunds to furious customers
She says her Little Pig Farm business in Christchurch, Cambridgeshire, was destroyed by the poisonous comments and was declared personally bankrupt at King's Lynn County Court in Norfolk on Friday.
The former investment banker initially enjoyed phenomenal success, appearing on numerous TV shows and rubbing shoulders with celebrities as many A-listers snapped up the adorable oinking animals.
Ms Croft's success was so great that published a best-selling book, This Little Piggy, and her website shows her with pop star Robbie Williams, TV stars Vanessa Feltz and Ricky Tomlinson and sporting heroes Andrew Flintoff and Jamie Redknapp.
Ms Croft said today her successful business had been destroyed by a hate campaign by other pig breeders on Facebook.
Pint-sized pets: After mistakenly buying the wrong breeds and selling them as micro pigs, many customers found themselves with massive animals instead of the tiny ones, pictured
Micro pigs, which weigh just 9oz when they are born, have become so popular over the last two years they are almost impossible to get hold of.
Victoria Beckham is said to have two pint-sized pigs and Paris Hilton, Katie Price and Charlotte Church are also fans.
Dannii Minogue and David Tenant were also recently photographed with micro pigs.
At two years old micro pigs are fully grown and weigh in around 40-65 pounds and are around knee height at 12-16 inches tall.
The pigs can live for up to 18 years, but make popular pets as they are low maintenance, quiet and surprisingly clean.
Appalling cruelty, including cigarettes being stubbed out on the faces of pigs, has been revealed in secret filming inside a slaughterhouse.
The footage of pigs being burned, punched and smacked across the head with sharp paddles was captured by animal welfare campaigners.
They reveal the shocking truth of the casual brutality inside one of the country’s biggest abattoirs.
Scroll down for video (Warning: Graphic content)
Beating: Abattoir staff are seen striking pigs with sharp paddles - even when the animals were severely injured.
The secret filming took place at an Essex slaughterhouse run by Cheale Meats, where up to 6,000 pigs are killed every week
Despite the clear evidence, the Government, through the Food Standards Agency, has refused to prosecute those involved.
The decision has been condemned by Animal Aid, which carried out the secret filming. It says it is evidence that ministers are putting the commercial interests of the meat industry above welfare.
More...Eight million animals face death to test your toothpaste and washing-up liquid (... but don't blame the manufacturers, it's all down to Brussels meddling)
The secret filming took place at an Essex slaughterhouse run by Cheale Meats, where up to 6,000 pigs are slaughtered every week.
In 2001 the outbreak of a disastrous foot and mouth epidemic which swept through the country was first identified among 27 pigs sent to the plant from the north-east of England.
Brutal: The video opens with several incidents of staff stubbing out cigarettes on pigs' faces
Today, the firm’s website proclaims: ‘Be proud of higher welfare, buy British pork.’
The filming, which took place on secretly installed cameras over four days in March and April, suggests that animal welfare was the last thing on workers’ minds.
Staff were seen stubbing their cigarettes out on the faces of pigs on three occasions, while one of the men landed a punch on the face of a pig which was walking by.
Three seriously injured pigs were forced to crawl through the building to meet their death. Staff were seen pulling the animals by the ears, pushing and kicking them.
Before slaughter, pigs should be stunned using electrified tongs. The tongs should span their brains and render them immediately unconscious.
The filming showed that workers often failed to stun the animals correctly, leaving them screaming in pain. Others were pushed and prodded with electric rods.
Torment: Incorrect stunning, as shown here, leaves pigs in terrible pain
All of these are clear breaches of animal welfare laws. However, the food and farming ministry Defra believes it cannot prosecute based on undercover film footage.
Last year Defra had to drop a similar case against an abattoir in Torquay which had been caught out by Animal Aid footage, after its lawyers determined that there was 'not a realistic prospect of conviction' in a case reliant on hidden-camera video.
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is responsible for investigating breaches of welfare and hygiene laws at slaughterhouses - however, Defra is responsible for prosecutions. In this case, the FSA has not even passed on the footage to Defra for a potential prosecution.
The FSA has written to Animal Aid stating: ‘Defra is not prepared to commence prosecution proceedings where the initial allegation is based on CCTV footage gained without the consent of the relevant Food Business Operator.'
A Defra spokesman added: 'It would be totally irresponsible to prosecute when we know we'd lose,' saying that there were 'very strong legal grounds' not to prosecute hidden-camera cases.
This is rejected by Animal Aid, which points out that the legal principle that allows prosecutions based on secret filming has already been established.
Despite images like this, showing a pig bleeding to death as a worker looks on, the Government will not prosecute the abattoir
For example, prosecutions are being brought against workers at a care home who were secretly filmed by the BBC’s Panorama programme mistreating vulnerable residents.
Head of campaigns for Animal Aid, Kate Fowler, said: ‘Since we first began investigating English slaughterhouses, we have been pressing everyone involved – regulators, industry bodies and the Government – to act decisively to end the cruelty.
‘At first, they appeared contrite and promised action but now their words ring hollow.
‘If Defra won’t prosecute these flagrant breaches of the law; if the vets can’t or won’t act to stop the cruelties; and if the slaughterhouse owners look the other way, who is there to stop animals from being abused at the most vulnerable time of their lives?
‘It seems that all involved are content to keep quiet and to allow these cruelties to continue. So much for the UK having the best welfare standards in the world.’
Violent: Staff were filmed using force to move the pigs around the slaughterhouse
A spokesman said the footage at the slaughterhouse was obtained through trespass, while the Panorama filming was not.
He said: ‘Animal cruelty is unacceptable, and we vigorously pursue action against accusations of cruelty wherever we can.
‘It is wholly disingenuous to draw comparisons between this case and that of filming in a care home, because this video evidence was obtained unlawfully through trespass.
‘As the RSPCA has found in previous cases, this would get it thrown out of court and do absolutely nothing to help reduce the suffering of animals.’
The FSA said it has taken action to end the cruelty at the plant.
It revoked the licence of one slaughterman identified in the footage, while another slaughterman’s provisional licence had already expired and has not been renewed.
The organisation has also increased monitoring at the plant to avoid any repeat.
They took to it like a pig to mud: A hen welcomes the pair home after they decided island life wasn't for them
Pigs can't fly - but this pair of homesick Tamworth boar crosses can certainly swim. They took to the water like pigs to mud after they were put out to pasture on the uninhabited island of Longa off the North West Scottish coast.
Named Mary and Truffle by their owner, James Cameron was startled to discover they had returned home the day after he left them and their swim across the sea was caught on camera.
Holidaymaker Jay Goss, 31, watched in amazement from his parents' seaside cottage at Big Sands in Wester Ros.
In the drink: At first Jay Goss thought they were otters until he spotted their snouts
At first he thought they were otters but soon realised they had snouts. He said: 'The sea was a mill pond and the two wee chaps swam 1.5km to the mainland. It was incredible. They reached the shore and were shivering and nervous.'
He called Mr Cameron to tell him he had the two pigs but he thought it was a joke at first.
He said: 'We have six piglets, or weaners, at the moment and we decided to put two of them out to Longa.
'We normally put sheep over to the island and we thought the pigs would like it. There is plenty of rooting material and fresh water.
'We put them out at 6pm on the Thursday evening and on Friday about 8pm I got a call to say "Your piglets have just swam back home".
'I thought it was a joke at first and that somebody was pulling my leg because people had been thinking it was quite a story that the pigs were going to Longa. My initial reaction was 'Aye, right'. But it was true.'
Sparking interest: It wasn't just people on the shore that were fascinated by the piglets, these two birds took a bit of a shining to them too
Home is where the hog is: Family pet Cesira loves ice cream, pictured here with owners Marina Squicciarini, husband Ali and son Joel
When it came to choosing a pet, one family went the whole hog.
The Squicciarini family from Lecco, Italy adopted piglet Cesira she was just two months old and the smallest piglet of the litter.
But after a diet of pigging out on biscuits, ice cream and sweets Cesira has ballooned to just over 14 stone.
Father Ali, wife Marina and their children, Joel, 13 and Rebecca, 17, saved Cesira from the chop.
She was one of 20 pigs bred for meat, but the family fell in love with the little piglet and bought her home.
But the pet porker has now grown into a 14-stone hog, she sleeps in her own kennel of the balcony of the family's flat.
Piglet: Cesira was the smallest of the litter when she was born
She enjoys daily walks, pigs out on around 3kg of fruit and vegetables a day and enjoys treats of biscuits, sweets and ice-cream.
Cesira is even house trained, uses a litter tray, has learnt to wake Marina and Ali each morning by pulling at their duvet and enjoys watching TV with the family in the evening.
The Squicciarini family even take Cesira on holiday with them and said she enjoys nothing more than to roll around in the sand, while the family relax on the beach
One of the family: Cesira is house trained and sleeps in her own kennel
Piggy in the middle: Cesira even gets on with the family's rabbit
Piggie in the middle: Felix, on of two theraputic pigs works his magic in a senior care facility
A Dutch physiotherapist who uses two miniature pigs to help treat his patients, claims the animals are amazingly effective for both physical and emotional problems.
Daan Vermeulen brings porkers Felix and Rudi to meetings with his older patients and they also trot along to the children's ward to meet kids who suffer from emotional or behavioural problems.
Daan explained that the pigs encourage pensioners to move about and also foster greater social interaction among patients.
Stretch those hamstrings: Medical pig Felix has proved a big hit with seniors as well as kids.
Doing his rounds: Felix knows his way around the hospital wards
He claims they stimulate curiosity, activity and even alertness which helps them shrug off some of the negative effects aspects of growing older.
Daan said: 'This generation associates pigs strongly with their youth.
'It's a reunion with an animal one once knew well but hasn't thought of in many years.'
'Dogs certainly have good qualities but if I'm walking along one side of the street with my pig and you're walking along the other side with your dog, then everyone will look at me. That's the advantage of a pig.'
Bacon and legs: Physiotherapist Dan says the pigs encourage pensioners to get about
Walky porky: Physiotherapist Daan Vermeulen takes Felix for a walk
Home time: With his duties done Felix heads off to enjoy a well earned rest
'Superfarm': The planned complex would keep the pigs indoors 24 hours a day
A gigantic ‘pig factory’ where 25,000 sows and piglets will be housed in vast metal sheds round the clock is being planned.
The controversial complex will send 1,000 pigs to slaughter every week – enough to make 56million sausages a year.
The industrial-scale farm planned for Foston, Derbyshire, would be one of the largest of its kind in the UK.
Animal campaigners warn that it could drive hundreds of traditional family farms out of business and herald a wave of American-style ‘mega-farms’. There are also concerns about the welfare of animals raised in such artificial conditions.
Plans for the 30-acre complex have been submitted to Derbyshire County Council and are now open for consultation.
The company behind the farm, Midland Pig Producers, owns 30 farms in eight countries and produces more than 100,000 pigs a year.
It came under fire earlier this year for threatening opponents who criticised the plans with a hugely expensive libel action.
It says the factory will not smell, and that the welfare of the animals will be a priority.
Plans for the UK’s first mega-dairy housing up to 8,000 cows in Nocton, Lincolnshire, were shelved in February after protests.
The Soil Association, which campaigns for organic farming, said hundreds of farmers could be driven out of business if mega-farms came to Britain and flooded the market with cheap milk and meat.
Policy director Peter Melchett said: ‘Developers claim they’re meeting public demand, but it’s wrong to say the British public are demanding that cows must be kept inside throughout the months they are milked, or that mother pigs should spend their entire lives shut up inside a factory.’
Simon Pope of the World Society for the Protection of Animals said: ‘We know from America that the real cost of food produced in factory farms is poor animal welfare, pollution and the economic death knell for thousands of small scale farmers.
‘That cannot be something we sleepwalk into accepting here. If we do, it’s difficult to see how the British countryside and our traditional rural communities will ever be the same again.’
A spokesman for Midland Pig Producers said: ‘In order for UK farming companies to compete with meat imported from abroad – which is not produced to the high UK welfare standards – they must be economically effective.
‘We have repeatedly stressed that animal welfare is our top priority and our plans for the Foston site are to the highest possible specification. These plans have been inspected by some of the most highly respected animal welfare groups who have not raised any objections.’
Rock pig: This little fellow is the envy of his mates
Time for a break: This pig looks to be getting a bit too tired as he rolls a strawberry
Sweet: This pig seems to have found a new friend
Rock pig: This little fellow is the envy of his mates
Time for a break: This pig looks to be getting a bit too tired as he rolls a strawberry
Sweet: This pig seems to have found a new friend
