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Domestic Pig Pet With A Little Kid
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swineherds. In industrialized nations, domestic pig farming has shifted away from the traditional pig farm to large-scale intensive pig farms. This has resulted in lower production costs, but significant animal welfare concerns.
Pigs are particularly valued in China and on certain oceanic islands as their self-sufficiency allows them to be turned loose, although the practice is not without its drawbacks. With managed rotational grazing techniques, pigs can be raised on pasture in an environmentally sustainable manner much like grazing sheep, goats and cows without high grain inputs.
• As pets
Asian pot-bellied pigs, a small type of domestic pig, have made popular house pets in the United States beginning in the latter half of the twentieth century. Domestic farmyard pigs have also been known to be kept indoors, but due to their large size and destructive tendencies, they typically need to be moved into an outdoor pen as they grow older. Most pigs have a fear of being picked up by the stomach, but will usually calm down once placed back on the floor. Pigs are rarely used as working animals. An important exception is the use of truffle pigs – ordinary pigs trained to find truffles.
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