As you prepare a nurturing environment for your pig, it’s important to know which senses you should be catering to.
So what senses that pigs rely on? Pigs rely mostly on their sense of smell and sense of hearing. These two senses compensate for their poor sense of sight.
As you read on, you’ll find more specifics about the senses that pigs use the most and learn how to create an environment that caters to their strengths and weaknesses based on their senses.
How Reliable is a Pig’s Sense of Smell?
Pigs are natural foragers, so you can just imagine how heightened their sense of smell is. After all, that’s how it is, right? What an animal does not have much of, it compensates in another way. In this case, pigs do not have a great eyesight, but their keen sense of smell more than makes up for that.
If you’ve owned a pig before, own one now, or have been reading about pigs in general, you’ll know that pigs just love rooting. Seasoned pig owners would often provide a rooting box for their pig so that they can happily dig around in a bunch of things and find whatever tickles their fancy.
When pigs root, you’ll see that pigs use their leathery snout. This is where their nostrils are. The pig’s snout may look tough, but this part of their body is actually very sensitive. This is what pigs use to dig through anything to look for food.
In a way, this also shows their sense of touch (on their nostrils, at least) working together with their sense of smell. Not only are they smelling their way through obstacles and treats, they are also feeling their way around using their snouts.
You can try letting your pig enjoy scavenger hunts in your yard to see just how keen its sense of smell really is. Try hiding food all over the place. Leave some out in the open, but you can try hiding a bit of apple under an overturned bucket, or a few Cheerios under a small rock. Observe your pig go around and find those in a snap as it relies on its sense of smell to find every treat there is out there.
How Reliable is a Pig’s Sense of Hearing?
A pig’s sense of hearing is highly sensitive, which means that they are also easily traumatized when they are exposed to loud and abrupt noise for a long period of time. They are also easily startled by sudden loud sounds and can become highly stressed.
This is one reason why pig’s do not like being shouted at. Aside from the fact that they are emotional animals that easily get hurt when spoken to in an angry manner, their sensitivity to loud noises also makes being screamed at deeply traumatizing for them.
This makes it important to be very gentle and quiet when moving around your pig.
Always speak in gentle, hushed tones. Avoid slamming doors or banging on objects as well. When you enter a pig’s presence in a loud and noisy manner, they may associate the trauma with you as their handler, which can negatively impact their trust in you.
This also explains the behavior that pigs display when being brought to slaughter. Some would say that they become highly stressed when they “see” that they are being led to a slaughter house.
In reality, it’s not what they see at all. It’s actually about the sounds that they hear.
When being led to slaughter, pigs hear the squealing of other pigs, as well as the sound of clanging metals. It’s these sounds that create an unbelievably stressful and traumatic experience for the pigs, and not really the belief that they’re seeing they’re being led to slaughter.
Is a Pig’s Sense of Sight Just as Reliable?
Part of a pig’s charm are their eyes that look as if they’re squinting right at you, the same way a person with poor eyesight would squint their eyes. The truth is, pigs really do have poor eyesight!
Pigs have color vision deficiency, which is more popularly known as color blindness. This means that they are unable to distinguish certain colors. This is because their eyes do not have the right cone cells that distinguish the different colors we normally see. Some experts believe that pigs have blue and green frequencies though, so it’s possible that they are able to see some color, but not as extensively as people can.
Their panoramic range is around 310°. They also have a binocular vision of 35° to 50°.
Experts also believe that pigs have no accommodation, which means that they have a hard time focusing their vision. It’s the same thing that happens to people with astigmatism.
Considering their monocular, short-ranged vision, you’ll notice that pigs would often stop in the middle of walking around, especially when there are shadows on the ground. They often see these shadows as physical barriers blocking their way.
This is also why pigs have the tendency to move towards places that are brightly lit. Because there are less shadows there, they feel like there are less barriers and more space for them to move around.
Knowing that pigs have a lot of limits in terms of eyesight, it’s best to remember this fact in creating an environment that your pigs will thrive in. This will also help you understand a lot of their behaviors better.
Pig Behavior Based on The Strength of Their Senses
Now that you understand the sense of sight, sense of hearing, and sense of smell of pigs, you can start assessing their behavior based on the triggers present around them.
You have to be able to tell when your pig is stressed. Make sure you are observant enough to notice anything off in its behavior. This can tell you that there is probably something you’ll need to change.
For example, do you notice that it is agitated and has a hard time sleeping? Look at its surroundings and check if there are odors it may not be enjoying. Pigs are naturally clean animals, and they hate it when the area where they sleep and eat are dirty. This is not just about having stuff lying around, but also about unwanted smells. After all, their sense of smell is amazingly powerful.
Look for unwanted noise as well. If your home is near a busy road and a lot of noise can be heard at the place where your pig is sleeping, it could be the culprit that’s causing your pig to become stressed. You may want to give it the quietest corner of your home.
You should also understand that a pig needs to adjust to a new environment. If your pig is fairly new in your home, ask the breeder or seller what kind of environment your pig used to have before being transferred to your place. Any difference could be causing them stress, too.
Pigs are also very playful and social, so don’t just leave it in its corner the whole day. Don’t let it get bored. Sometimes, your pig acts out not because it is stressed by the noise in your house, but because it isn’t busy enough. There are a number of ways that you can keep your pig busy.
For great ideas on activities your pig would enjoy, read this article.
What if your pig has already been stressed by its environment and is starting to show signs of withdrawing from you?
Make sure you don’t force your pig to get out of its stupor in a snap. It’s a process that requires patience. Pigs need to trust their owners or handlers before it starts to take interest in the things you expect it to do. So if your pig is not as responsive in your attempt to keep it from getting bored or anything like that, consider giving it some space first and making small steps each day to establish a connection.
Pigs are highly emotional, so this is one behavior that you can use to your advantage.
When your pig sees that you regularly take the time out to provide for its needs, like giving it water and food, it will eventually see you as a source of nourishment. Again, avoid being noisy or abrupt in approaching your pig when doing this. You want your pig to recognize you and your voice, but you also don’t want any negative stigma to go with it.
Talk to your pig in gentle and soothing tones. You can also give it treats like popcorn or bits of fruit when it displays a behavior that you want it to repeat.
Don’t force it to be affectionate to you. You can’t just grab it and cuddle it; this adds to their stress. Make your presence known everyday, but wait for the pig to warm up to you. From there, you can give it a short scratch behind the ears. Eventually, it’s going to ask for belly rubs. After that, it should let you snuggle to it every so often.
Related Questions
Can pigs look upwards?
It is physically impossible for pigs to life their heads and look up to the sky. Their neck muscles prevent them from doing so. If they really want to see the sky, they would either have to lie down or look at the sky from its reflection on water.
Do pigs bond with humans?
The moment a human earns a pig’s trust, the pig can start to bond with the human concerned. They are highly affectionate and emotional animals and love it when their owners or handlers give them attention.
Do pigs remember their owners?
Pigs can remember the humans they frequently come in contact with. They have amazing memories and can even find their way home over great distances. They can also remember places where they found food before, and will go back to those spots in hopes of finding more.
