How Much are Pot-Bellied Pigs: Can you Afford?

So the pot-bellied pigs have caught your eyes as well? Pot-bellied or teacup pigs are considered true pet pigs. They are hardly raised for meat or any other reason except as a wonderful companion. The growing appreciation of this cute little creature encouraged me to dedicate an article to the cost of owning a pot-bellied pig. So without further ado, let’s see how much you can expect to have to keep a pot-bellied pig.

How Much Does It Cost to Get One Pot-Bellied Pig??

The miniature pot-bellied pigs, which are often admired and wanted as a pet, can either be purchased from professional pot-bellied organizations or breeders. They are generally not expensive; the well-reputed breeders are offering these miniature Pot-Bellied Pigs at prices around $600 to $800. However, adopting this miniature pig is even more economical, adoption can cost $100 to $200.

If we try to see the whole situation from a monetary point of view, the pot-bellied pigs can make the most economical pets. So, both adopting and purchasing a pot-bellied pig from a breeder is not at all expensive but is owning a pot-bellied pig affordable or not? The actual story starts from here. So, let’s move ahead and see 

How much does is the upkeep cost to own a pot-bellied pig?

Beneath the small compacted body, the pot-bellied pigs are just regular pigs. Their needs, requirements, and upkeep cost are pretty much similar to their fellas. Since this article is being published to give you a detailed idea. So let’s discuss the all possible costs you have to bear in a year to own a pot-bellied pig.

Feeding cost

The first unavoidable cost I would like to discuss here is “feeding cost”. Like all the pig population, the pot-bellied pigs need corn, soya meal, oats, farm grain-based feed, and healthy food scraps to live a balanced life.

Moreover, overly pampered pigs also eat cheerios, shredded wheat, and dried bananas as occasional treats.

The maximum amount of money you have to set aside for food must be at least $400 per month( if you are planning to raise on superior grade food but if you are fine with offering food scraps quite often the total monthly feeding cost can be minimized to $115 to $200).

Neutering cost

Neutering is a one-time cost mostly the pigs that are offered for sale are already neutered. The aspiring pig owner may or may not have to bear the neutering cost.

Neutering is a surgical procedure that prevents pet animals from reproducing. It’s mandatory because it has a reputation for bringing a positive behavioral change in pet pigs. This surgical procedure is usually performed in a return of $100 to $150. 

Veterinary cost

According to the US National Library of Medicine, Pigs are messy eaters so they don’t bother what they should and should not be eating. Most pet pigs because of their weird eating habits mostly become a reason for the surprising vet visits.

However, the healthier pigs that are kept on a strict diet hardly get sick. One or two checkups in a year are enough to keep this little creature fit and healthy. The total annual veterinary cost can be expected up to $100 to $150.

Training cost

A lot of you might be questioning ” pig and training?”, “training and pig?” Yes, it’s absolutely necessary to train the pig to adapt to the environment.

It’s not that easy to raise pigs as a pet because they are naturally quite aggressive towards humans and their fellow animals. Various enormous pigs have attacked and eaten humans and animals.

Pot-bellied pigs can attack and have some behavioral issues but they are just not that giant enough to eat a fellow living thing. To turn the pig into an acceptable pet they are made to pass-through a few weeks of training. Such training can cost somewhere around $200 to $600 per month depending on the reputation of the training center.

Basic accessories cost for raising pot-bellied pig

To own and raise a pig you must have to order a few basic accessories like feeding a pot, waterer, bed, potty pads, odor remover, blanket, and a cozy cave.  All these accessories are readily available on Amazon at the below-mentioned  prices;

• Feeding pot: $36 to $150
• Waterer: $39 to $50
• Bed: $20 to $60
• Potty pads: $29 to $39
• Odor remover: $19 to $44
• Blanket: $29 to $40
• Cozy cave: $85 to $150
• Toys: $20 to $30

There are several other accessories as well but we have decided not to include pig luxuries like pig wipes, pig feeder, main and tail shampoo, pig record diary, etc. If you are interested to spoil your pig with all these luxuries you can check the latest price on Amazon.

The first year of adoption is generally quite heavy on the pocket whether the animal you are adopting is a pig, horse, donkey, goat, or any animal that can be kept as a pet. Whereas, the rest of the years would not cost more than a few thousand dollars a year.

Since we are talking about the cost you must have to bear to own a pig, it becomes mandatory to discuss how you can get one? Or where do you get the pot-bellied pigs from? Dogs, cats, and other regular pets can be bought or adopted without any strict hunt but for pigs like pot-bellied, you have to survey the market.

Where to Purchase pot-bellied pig?

So, now that you have decided to have a pot-bellied pig as a pet let’s help you in finding one. Pot-bellied pigs can be bought from the following resources;

• Online livestock exchanges: Online livestock markets can be of great help if you are finding a pot-bellied pig. The online livestock exchanges are offering all kinds of regular and rare animals at the best possible prices. Pot-bellied pigs are rarely available in local pet stores so you must have to check in the online livestock exchange for this purpose.
• Local farms: Pigs are often raised at farms. The livestock keepers take pride in having exceptional breeds on their farms. Pot-bellied is, no doubt, hard to find but they are still not that rare that they can not be found on the local farms. So, do check local farms even if it’s obvious or sounds stupid.
• Pet sanctuary: Pet sanctuaries are made by animal admirers. The animals found at the pet sanctuaries are often rescued from inhumane living conditions. The pet sanctuaries are not solely developed for profit but rather to rescue from poor living conditions and to hand over them to the animal admirers to have a better lifestyle.
• Friends or acquaintance: Pigs are probably the most common pets so finding them at a friend’s or acquaintance’s place would not be surprising. You can easily adopt the pot-bellied pig from a friend or acquaintance but only if they are willing to give up for adoption. They may offer the pet without any monetary exchange and what if you get the accessories as well? Do ask your friends or acquaintance if they want to set up their pig for adoption or if they know anyone selling locally?

Lastly, I hope you find this article helpful. This article is solely based on my knowledge if you want to get an accurate idea it’s better to ask an existing teacup pig owner.