Meet the pig
Pigs are among the smartest farmed animals. They learn their names, play video-game-style joystick tasks, and use mirrors to find hidden food.
Friends and family
Pigs live in family groups led by mothers and aunts, and sleep snuggled nose to nose.
Mother pigs build nests from grass and straw before their piglets are born, and sing to them while feeding.
How they talk
Scientists have catalogued more than 20 pig sounds, from happy short grunts to alarm barks.
- Short happy grunt: Contentment — often while eating or greeting a friend.
- Loud squeal: Fear, pain or protest. Piglets squeal to call their mother.
How clever are they?
Pigs use mirrors to find food they can only see as a reflection, and learn new tasks faster than most dogs.
What they feel
Pigs are optimistic or pessimistic depending on how they live — a scientific sign of mood.
Superpower: Super sniffer
A pig's nose is so sensitive it can find food buried 25 cm underground.
👀 See the world through their eyes
Smell
Pigs smell in far more detail than us — their world is mostly made of scent.
Sight
Pigs see less detail than we do and can't look up easily.
🤓 Did you know?
- Pigs can learn their own names in just a few weeks.
- Pigs have played simple joystick video games in research labs.
- Pigs roll in mud because they can't sweat — it's their sun cream.
- Whether pigs truly feel what another pig feels is still being studied.scientists are still studying this
Living alongside people
Over 700 million pigs live with humans at any moment. Most are raised indoors for meat; sanctuaries show what pig life looks like with space and family.