Breath

Question
QUESTION: I'm getting a mini pig this week and I'm concerned about litter training him. I would like to but I'm a little worried about the smell. Is it going to be bad if I clena the box once or twice a day and change the litter a couple times a week. Also what kind of toys do they like to play with.
Thanks,
Jake

ANSWER: Pig urine does not have much smell, but urine soaked litter will smell as it starts to mold.

Pine shavings are the best litter. Pigs tend to eat kitty litter and it's deadly. Some pigs have survived eating plain clay litter, but the chemicals in "clumping" and odor-treated litters damage the internal organs by poison and adhering to them like cement. Shredded newspapers are an inexpensive alternative, but need to be changed more frequently than pine shavings.

Pig feces should not smell. Feeding pigs the wrong foods will cause smelly feces. Dog food in particular causes nasty smelling feces.

Pigs are particularly fond of toys that make noise. Cat toys on a sturdy rubber string are fine for young piglets but not for older ones that can break the string. Dog toys that make noise when pushed around are good, but rawhide toys are hard on pig's digestive systems and produce smelly feces. Toys for human infants are fine, too, and often available cheaply at garage sales and flea markets.

Harness training and teaching a few simply tricks are essential. It teaches both owner and pig how to communicate with each other.

I strongly recommend Priscilla Valentine's book Pot-Bellied Pig Behavior and Training. She covers a lot more than I can discuss here, and will be a valuable reference in the future. She really understands how pigs think and why they act the way they do. It's available from Amazon or her website www.valentinesperformingpigs.com

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

QUESTION: I plan to order the book you recommended this week, but until it arrives I may have a few more questions. About feeding, the person I bought him from set me up with some food to start with. It consist of pig pellets mixed with whole corn and told me to feed him a small handful in the morning and let him graze in the evening. I have not taken him outside yet, I checked out harnesses but they are too big for him because he is only 9 weeks old. I bought a large exercise pen for dogs that I keep him in at night and when I'm at work I plan to buy another one for outside but the first one cost a pretty penny, so it will be a week or so before I can get another one. I've been feeding him the pig food in the morning and a small portion of shredded lettuce and broccoli slaw mix "dry" in the after noon and a slightly bigger portion at night. For treats I use grapes and pieces of apples "very sparingly". Do you think there is anything wrong with these feeding habits? I don't want to over-feed him but I don't want him to go hungry either. Please let me know if I'm doing ok with his feeding habits.
Thanks,
Jake

ANSWER: The corn is not good, it's very fattening. It makes me wonder what the other pellets are - animal pellets all look pretty much alike to me.

Good nutrition is important for a piglets long term health, so personally I'd get a bag of pot-bellied pig food right away and toss the pellet/corn mix.

The rule of thumb is 1/2 cup of pot-bellied pig food per 20 lb of piglets per day. Plus veggies or grass or such. Things like cucumber and iceberg lettuce have very few calories so you can offer quite a large portion. The broccoli slaw is a good nutritional choice.

Cheerios are another good training treat. Just one cheerio at a time! Your pig will actually enjoy just one more than a handful. When there's a lot of food, pigs tend to concentrate on gobbling it all. When there's just a single Cheerio, they can concentrate on the lessons.

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

QUESTION: My mini pig has very smelly breath, what can I give him to help with this problem. I believe the mini pig food contributes to this. 10 minutes after he gets done eating it is so bad I don't even want him sitting on my lap. There has to be something that I can give him that will help with this. Please help. Thanks.

Answer
This sounds like a dental problem. Pigs have two sets of baby teeth and one set of adult teeth. The tusks are actually part of the jawbone.

He may have a baby tooth that needs to come out, or something impacted in his mouth. The smell after eating is because eating disturbs whatever is wrong, releasing the odor.

Pigs jaws don't open very wide, but try to get a finger inside his mouth and feel around for swollen bumps, loose teeth, or impacted material.

If you can't find anything, he may have an ulcer or other digestive problem, and will need to see a vet.

Bad food can also cause bad breath. Mazuri marks each bag with the date it was manufactured and bagged, and is supposed to have a shelf life of 9 months. So if a bag is dated a year ago, it's expired and too old to use. Other manufacturers may also mark a date on the bag, or try checking the manufacturers website or emailing them for information on the shelf life of the food.

Finally, a temporary fix is peppermint. Any sort of peppermint like Life Savors, or Mentos, or Starlites. One and only one peppermint candy just as the breath starts to get bad. But be warned - your pig will expect a peppermint candy after meals for the rest of his life!