Our new baby pig and itching (#2 question)

Question
QUESTION: Hello, we are proud new owners of a mini mini vietnimese
pot belly and she is a sweetheart. I have 2 very playfull
jack russells and was wondering if they can be together to
play yet or go outside to pee together - or if Tinker Bell
will bite, she is only 6 weeks old (about 6 pounds) and
likes to 'nip' at our clothes - mostly my hubbie and the
kids, not me really. This is concerning me because I have a
1 yr old child, will she stop (is this just the same as
puppy play?)Thanks so much! Hope to hear back soon.

ANSWER: The "nipping" behavior you describe is typical of piglets who were weaned early. It's important to discourage this behavior now, by pushing her snout away and saying No! in a firm voice.

Pigs and dogs sometimes get along badly together. They don't speak the same "language". Dogs are predators, they have a natural instinct to hunt and attack prey.. you can observe this every time your dogs run and play together, jumping on each other and nipping. Pigs, on the other hand, are prey. Their natural instincts are to fear anything that might eat them! Sometimes the ordinary, natural movements of a pig will trigger the wrong behavior in a dog and the results are usually disastrous - for the pig. Even a small dog can seriously harm an adult pig, ripping off the ears, gouging out the eyes or tearing the snout.

JRTS are high energy dogs and you describe yours as "playful". I suggest using a great deal of caution if you let the three of them together. Start out by keeping the dogs on a leash, and teach them that the pig is not a play toy. Never leave them alone together until you are absolutely sure they will be Ok. I have to be honest - some dogs never reach the point where they can be trusted around a pig.

Pigs don't reach adulthood until age 2. At that point, many pigs go through an "I must be top hog" phase, where they try to bully other animals and children and position themselves as the "alpha" animal. When this happens, you might have to start keeping the pig and dogs separate again.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks so much for all the great info! I just have one more
thing to ask:) When ever we have Tinker Bell out of her Pen
all she wants to do is SCRATCH! If she is unable to get to
a scratch point she throughs her self around and kind of
'bucks' is there anything i can do to make her not so
itchy? (crems , oils?) Thanks!

Answer
Has she been treated for mange? If not, your vet can provide medication. It must be given twice, 2 weeks apart. The medication kills the live mange mites, but has no effect on the unhatched eggs. The first dose kills the existing mites, the second kills the new mites before they have a chance to lay more eggs. In severe cases, a third dose might be necessary.

Any non-greasy skin cream suitable for human use is fine for pigs. Pig skin is so close to human skin that it's used for skin grafts on humans. Pigs do not lick themselves the way dogs and cats do, so there is no danger of the pig eating the lotion off their skin. Some good quality, inexpensive lotions are Corn Huskers, Udder Cream and Bag Balm. Many people prefer to use Avon Skin So Soft on their pigs, because they believe the scent has some insect-repellent properties (Avon says this is not so). An inexpensive home-made lotion is plain glycerin diluted with water or scented water (like rose or orange), or with a drop or two of safe scented oil (use something approved for human consumption, the stuff made for potpourris can cause skin rashes).