National Pig Day

February 27, 2012

In 1972, two sisters (Ellen Stanley and Mary Lynne Rave) decided that pigs should have their own holiday. That’s why National Pig Day is celebrated on March 1 every year. Pigs often get a bad rap as filthy creatures with insatiable appetites, but they are also known to be intelligent, clean, social animals. Here are some interesting tidbits about pigs:

• A female pig that has had piglets is called a sow, if she has not had piglets she’s a gilt.
• An intact male pig is called a boar, while an altered male pig is called a barrow.
• Pigs are ranked as the fourth most intelligent animal, following chimpanzees, dolphinsm, and elephants.
• Pigs roll around in mud to cool themselves and protect their skin from the sun.
• A pig’s tail can be curly or straight.

For more information about pigs, try one of our databases, such as Amazing Animals of the World or Grzimek’s Animal Life.

Tess T.
Blue Springs North Branch