Farming Base (farmingbase.com) is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. This site also participates in other affiliate programs and is compensated for referring traffic and business to them.
Pigs are often demanded as a companion or for various purposes including food (pork, bacon, gammon) and skin. The pigs make great agricultural and environmental pets.
Miniature or small pigs are either kept as a pet or raised for meat. They produce delicious meat that is being eaten around the globe as “bacon”, “sausage”, and ” pork chops”.
Small pigs are adored for their curious, social, and extra friendly nature. There are some countable mini pig breeds that are spreading across the globe on a large scale. Most of the small pig breeds mentioned below are good pets and flavorful meat producing creatures.
- American Mini Pig
- Juliana
- Meishan
- Kunekune
- Ossabaw Island Hog
- Miniature Pig
- Mulefoot Pig
- American Guinea Hog
- Pot Bellied Pigs
- Gottingen Mini Pig
Small Pig Breeds
American Mini Pig
American mini pigs evolved after years of cross-breeding various pig breeds of the world. This 15 to 20 inches mini pig makes a perfect pet for all pig admirers. They are even-tempered, intelligent, friendly disposition, and easy to train.
The American mini pigs have strong, proportionate, and straight legs. Because of their small compacted body, they are also called by cute nicknames; “teacup pigs, pocket pigs, micro-pigs”.
Like most of the pig breeds, well kept American pigs can usually live more than 20 years. American mini pigs have an appreciation for zucchini, cucumber, carrots, pumpkin, and peppers.
Juliana
Juliana is another small pig breed that is known for it’s spotted coat. It looks quite similar to the large hog or feral pig. Like, the whole compacted build, Juliana has small erect ears.
The Juliana pigs may have white, silver, rust, red, black, and cream color. The spotting gets less visible as the coat grows longer. The weight of Juliana pig greatly depends on the bone structure, health, and length but the body weight usually remains below 40 pounds.
The life expectancy of Juliana pig is generally 18 years. These pigs have extremely sensitive skin so require more care than any other pig breed.
Meishan Pig
Meishan pig miniature pig breed that is named after a province in China. They can be identified by the wrinkled black skin and large drooping ears.
The Meishan pigs are always in demand because of their tender flavorful red meat pork. This pig breed is admired for superior lard, fat quality, and succulent meat.
The Meishan pig is super hardy. They are mostly kept and raised because of their flavorful meat, less demanding nature, hyper-productivity, prolificacy, and ability to live on a rough diet. The life expectancy of this pig breed is up to 15 to 20 years.
Kunekune
Kunekune is considered the smallest of all miniature pig breeds. The kunekune pig breed is blessed with black, white, brown, gold tip, cream, and tricolors. The kunekune pig breed got the recognition it deserves in the 19th century. This cute black and white pig breed is becoming rare.
Kunekune like all small pet pig breeds is known for their docile and friendly nature. The kunekune pig is well covered with long, short, straight, or curly hair. Kunekune pigs do not do well indoors as their natural habitat is woodland and pasture.
Kunekune is true grazing pigs so they prefer grass over food scraps. The female kunekune are excellent mothers that become fertile within six to seven months of their age (but can only be impregnated after 5 months of reaching puberty).
Ossabaw Island Hog
The ossabaw island hogs are believed to be the descendants of Spanish pigs that represent the spanish heritage quite well. These pigs have got heavier coats, upright ears, and prominent long snouts. The ossabaw island hogs are found in black, spotted black and white, red and tan color.
Like most almost all pig breeds, the ossabaw Island Hogs are hardy and excellent foragers. Because of their resilience, sustainability, and wildness outdoor farms suit them well.
Ossabaw Island Hogs survive their entire summer and spring on leeches, earthworms, fiddler crabs, and insects, etc whereas in winters they look for roots and tubers to fulfill their food requirements.
Miniature Pig
The miniature is categorized as the world’s smallest pig because of their extra small compacted body they are also referred to as Micro Pig, Pygmy Pig, and Dwarf Pig.
The perked-back ears, pot belly, chubby figure, swayed back, short snout, well-rounded head, thick hair, short neck, tail, and legs are their prominent identification marks. The miniature pigs are much easier to raise and keep than the other small pig breeds. They are cute white pig breeds with black upper bodies.
Besides being domesticated, the miniature pigs are also raised for medical purposes as well. They are usually used in toxicology, pharmacology, pulmonology, experimental surgery, orthopedic, xenotransplantation, orthopedic procedure search. Moreover, they are also great pet.
Mulefoot Pig
This domestic pig breed got this name because of their intact uncloven hooves. The Mulefoot pigs can be recognized by their long snouts, erect floppy ears, and short shiny ears. Moreover, they are blessed with bright, clear and expressive eyes.
The swons belonging to this pig breed are dedicated mothers as they take good care of their babies until they reach maturity. The Mulefoot is mainly kept for it’s leaner meat.
The Mulefoot hog population is now in a critical stage as the annual registration number has dropped down to 200. The majority of the Mulefoot pig population is living and entertaining the pig admirers of Missouri.
American Guinea Hog
American Guinea Hog is a small domestic pig breed that originates from the United States of America. The American Guinea Hog, besides their obvious name, also got referred to as ” Pineywoods Guinea”, “Guinea Forest Hog”, “Acorn Eater”, and “Yard Pig”.
The American Guinea Hog have black coats, curly tail, upright ears, and a sturdy body. Guinea Hogs are either raised as a companion or for meat. One Guinea Hogs can reward you with 60 to 80 pounds of pork.
The domestic pig breed can live up to 10 to 15 years if their requirements are being fulfilled. With all the rewards, the Guinea Hogs can be bought for more or less $250.
Pot Bellied Pigs
Mini Pot-Bellied Pigs are smart, curious, charming, affectionate, intelligent, companions but they can not be tamed or handled easily. Pot-Bellied Pigs are probably the only domestic pigs that do not like being carried or held by humans.
The Pot-Bellied Pig does not go against the general pig behavior they do get attached to people they live with but it requires some time. Pot-Bellied Pigs have straight tails, long snouts, and upright ears.
The Pot-Bellied Pigs eat all kinds of food scraps including eggs, frogs, snakes, fish, and grasses. Their gestation period lasts up to 114 days. The Pot-Bellied pigs normally bless our farms with six piglets.
Gottingen Mini Pig
Gottingen Mini Pig is the smallest pig breed that is adored for it’s supernatural small size. Besides, keeping as pets they are also raised for biomedical research.
The Gottingen Mini Pig is the first pig breed that was recognized as a ” miniature pig” in Europe. The fully mature Gottingen Mini Pig can not go above 10 to 12 inches in height.
Gottingen Mini Pig is mostly praised for its docile nature and well-characterized health status. They are much easier to handle than all small animal breeds.
