Sometimes pigs settle right in. We sold a six month old to a family with two young boys and it was sleeping with them by that evening. A 4 year old female who had lived outside all her life was watching TV on the sofa in less than a week. Other times it takes a little longer. If you do it right, pigs will attach themselves within a few days.

The first few days are critical and are more intense than the first few days with a puppy or kitten. Put in the time and you will have a great pet.

Be prepared. They may squeal in the first few days. They have left everything they know and they have no idea there is another safe world out there. You have to be prepared for some ear splitting noise the first couple of days. Fortunately, once they settle in, you will seldom hear that ear splitting noise again.

Keep them in a small space. A bathroom is great. You can use a dog X-pen for a young pig. DON’T use a closet unless it has some light. Pick everything up off the floor and remove cloths that might be in reach and put a baby gate across the door and a closet will work. Spend as much time with your pig as possible the first few days.  

Tammy likes to say “traumatize you pig as much as possible.” What she means is that the pig will naturally be afraid of you. It doesn’t know you. Sit in the small area with it. Lure it with small treat, Honey Nut Cheerios are great. Reach out and pick the pig up. It may scream. Don’t put it down. It’s afraid. Talk to it. Pigs are very smart and will respond to your voice. Hold it and comfort it. Be sure the back legs are supported and it will quickly settle down. It may settle for a while, the start struggling again. If it does, hold it until it is quiet again, then turn it loose. Repeat this as often as possible. Even if your pig is going to live outdoors, use the same indoctrination and you will have a pig that settles in and enjoys human contact. We have found a couple of days is usually enough.

Good training treats are Cheerios (Buy the store brand, pigs don’t know the difference.) Gerber puffs, Baby yogurt drops with fruit, or small crackers. Stay away from high sugar treats, pigs get addicted just as fast as children. Babies less than about 3 months old aren’t very adventurous with food. After three months they will begin to eat things like fruits, vegetable and pig treats. Pig treats are usually too hard for them to chew as babies. 

They may get snappy with treats. Rap the nose and say NO, the same as you would with a dog to discourage the behavior. If the pig is young, try longer treats that don’t put your finger in such close contact with teeth until the pig learn about fingers. Try things like carrots, small crackers or bread sticks and enforce the “Gentle” command. This works best if you are working with only one pig at a time since they have come from a litter and are used to pushing for food from the moment of their birth.