OINK OINK!!

What is the first thing that comes to your mind when the word pig is being mentioned? Dirty? Fat? Maybe to food connoisseurs, Roasted Pork? Pork Chops? Probably to most girls, their ex-boyfriend. Pigs have been around our lives one way or another, whether it be looking at them at the zoo, or watching them on TV or even in cartoons. Well most of us have a stigma that pigs are dirty and disgusting because they roll and have a ball of a time in pools of mud. So why do our fat pink friends love the mud so much?

Pigs are a genus of even-toed ungulates within the family Suidae. There are many species of pigs such as the Palawan Bearded Pig(Sus ahoenobarbus), Indo-Chinese Warty Pig (Sus bucculentus), the Wild Boar(Sus scrofa), the domestic pig(Sus scrofa domestica) etc. They have a snout for a nose, small eyes and a small tail which may be curly, straight or kinked. They are pretty fat, have short stunted legs and coarse hair. Unlike us humans, they have four toes on each foot and use the two large middle toes for walking, above that they go OINK! But most importantly their favourite pastime is to roll around in mud!

youtube video:”Happy as a Pig in Mud”

So why do our fat pink friends like to roll in mud?

Firstly pigs, like dogs, do not have sweat glands. Hence, it is a bio-thermal response for pigs to roll in mud or water to keep themselves cool on dreaded heated afternoons. Secondly, mud is preferred over water as mud is actually a “defensive mechanism” for pigs. It helps prevent parasites, lice and mosquitoes from attacking the pigs. Above that it also acts as a natural sun block to keep the scorching sun off their bodies.

Keeping cool, Keeping the irritating bugs away. It’s the muddy truth! Pigs love their mud baths!

And like Porky Pig always says,”That’s all folks!”

Nelson, Robin. (1971). Pigs/ by Robin Nelson. p. cm. – (First step non fiction. Farm animals). Lerner Publications Company A division of Lerner Publishing Group Inc. 241 First Avenue North, Minneapolis, MN 55401 USA. URL:http://books.google.com.sg/books?hl=en&lr=&id=Wz-ENJHWisIC&oi=fnd&pg=PA24&dq=why+do+pigs+roll+in+mud&ots=u_8O6bhFGd&sig=8XsS72PiumxLxr9vtK4vaP5tLck#v=onepage&q=&f=false

Kagan, Maya (no year), Why do pigs roll around in the mud?. whyzz. Retrieved from: http://www.whyzz.com/why-do-pigs-roll-around-in-the-mud

Happy as a pig in mud!(2009), youtube video. URL:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQNfsZoKXgM&feature=related