Ding Dong! Pig at the Door!

A December 28th excerpt from Facebook:

I opened my front door this morning to go get something out of my car, and Pig was standing on the front porch, as if he had been waiting for the door to open! So I invited him in, and we walked through the house to the back door (grabbing a couple of dog biscuits on the way), and out to the backyard. He is a funny guy.

Pig does like to come in every once in a while, but he loves being outside where he can root around and not get into any trouble. When he was little and living in the house, his rooting skills were so powerful, he would turn over furniture, open cabinets, and make quite a mess. Outside, he roots around in the grass for hours, and sometimes plays chase with the cats. Boots the kitten has jumped on his back a couple of times during one of these games. One day, I went out and called for Pig, as I couldn't see him from the deck. I saw movement out of the corner of my eye, and saw him, running down the hill next door, with a couple of horses in pursuit. He ducked under the barbed wire fence (as much as a pig can duck) and made it to safety. He LOVES his mealtimes (he IS a pig, after all), and I try to make his meals colorful and balanced nutritionally. He gets a cup of pig feed, topped with sliced apples, carrots, some raisins, some lettuce or other leftoever veggies, and a couple of dog biscuits, twice a day.

The Anatomy of a Piggy Pirouette

Pig has no neck. This is, I suppose, completely normal for his species, and I believe this fact to be the major component of the phenomenon we call the "piggy pirouette". Pig can be out in the yard, rooting around, when a loud noise such as a passing car will frighten him. Because he can't turn his head as we can, to look behind him, he will make a sudden, 180-degree turn with his entire body, seeming to pivot on his front feet and swinging his backside around. If the offending noise is really loud, he may make a second 180-degree turn. He then runs - fast - in a circle. If I could figure out how to get it on him, I'd make him a piggy tutu and videotape this feat of barnyard ballet. . . but I will just have to add an un-costumed video later. Stay tuned. . . .

My husband has always been the one to train our dogs, and he was the one who trained Pig to sit. He and Arwen, our Golden Retriever, that is. Arwen responds to the American Sign Language command "sit" and Pig, being a very intelligent pig indeed, took his cue from her and learned this trick quickly. My son taught Pig to go up and down the steps to the deck, by leaving a trail of doggie treats on the stairs (reminiscent of E.T. and Reese's Pieces). My next goal for Pig is to teach him to shake hands, and I still want to train him to paint.