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A big pig?

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GeorgesHuman

GeorgesHuman

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George is my pig in the avatar. I was wondering if he looks overweight or just a cuddly piggie?

I have just got a new baby pig who loves playing with George, but it has really highlighted how unfit George is, when the baby is zooming around and old Georgie is just looking at baby like he's mad!

George has never been one to run around, even when he was a youngster, but he does plod along and proves he can run in his free range time because he chases me while i'm trying to do housework! Naughty George! The thing is, for the majority of the time he sits on his bum, even when he's able to run the length of my living room and kitchen, he doesn't want to bother most of the time, and a lot of the time he even curls up on the rug for a little snooze. Does my Georgie require a cut down on his favourite treats or is he a normal sized piggie? I have no other pigs to compare him to because baby elliot's belly is still rather slender (although his cheeks are very chubby!)

Thanks for your advice x
 
As regards exercise, my boys Fitz and Roy barely move when in the cage- when out Roy will investigate and run around, but Fitz tends to only move if there's the promise of food! Meanwhile Charlie, who is only 5 months, does full speed laps round his cage for ages.

What does he weigh?
 
Hello Hellsbells,
Thanks for your reply. I weigh him weekly and it's usually around 2.5 lbs. His belly scrapes the floor though, he has a biiiiig bum and I can see his roll of flab when he lies on his side, which looks very cute! He is lovely to cuddle but I do worry about my old boy sometimes!
 
My adult boars range from 1200g to 1460g, so George is 2.5lbs which converts to about 1133g? Which sounds about right to me :)


When you say 'cutting out his favourite treats' as long as he is given healthy snacks, veggies, hays, herbs etc you dont have to cut anything out, but if you are giving him the snacks that are commercially made with lots of additives and sugar then they are not good for piggies at all :p

I like to scatter little pieces of veggies around my living room with lots of tunnels so forage around to keep active.
 
I can understand what you mean. Wanting him to get exercise, my big bum blossom is v lazy,of course it doesn't help that she's had a poorly foot and on medication. Vet said today she was quite big, 1.2 lbs and I was probably over feeding them, not unlikely! On a low calcium diet, set amount of dried food and fresh grub daily, then he said perhaps they weren't getting enough exercise.....finally got my tools out and built an extension to their existing run. BUT...... Do they want to play out? No. So tomorrow lots of interesting stuff going inside the new run, hidey holes and favourite food hidden to encourage them to search out....might spur some running!

Fingers crossed and good luck getting him to move around.
 
Some adult piggies can be rather couch potatoes... My Nerys will move for food, but not much else if sha can help it!

George doesn't sound overweight at all.
 
awww... bless him....
my two older piggies are very lazy.. just tend to sleep and eat... but my 2 middle girls roughly 6 months... are complete nutters.... even the baby whos coming up to two weeks is a mental one that runs round lodes... :)
i think its just age really... i think they must just calm down...x
 
He sounds like he is within the 'average' weight range for a pig. One of my sows is actually a little bit heavier, and she's a girl! You don't mention how old he is... I find age is a big factor in how much they run around. Linney (the bigger sow) is about two and a half and is happy to trot to the veggie pile and then back home during free time. My younger sow, Sundae, will be a year old next month and is more apt to run laps around the room during free time, while Linney sits there and watches her as if to say: "Why on earth are you doing that?" Linney used to run around like that when she was under a year too- as she has gotten older she has turned more into a couch potato.
 
George is gorgeous x) he's just been a lazy piggie :))

My girls are now 2 and don't run around as much, depends on their moods rolleyes I do make Velvet do extra exercise for her health tho... just make her do a few more laps in playtime.

You can't blame him for looking at Elliot and thinking..........@) :(|)
If you're really worried just encourage him to follow you around a bit, but if he doesn't want to........ i'd not push it.
 
Reading through these threads, some of the piggies remind me of our big girl Panda. Shes weighed regularly so I know it's not a health issue but she weighs in at 1500g - I know she's large but until I converted it into pounds its 3.3lbs it didn't register. She has plenty of floortime and plenty of hay and forage aswell as a good selection of veggies. She just isn't an active pig, when she lies down her front feet dissapear under her dewlap. She visited the vets about 3 weeks ago and the comment I got was 'she's a big girl' but the vet didn't seem overly concerned about her size.
 
Midge&Panda said:
Reading through these threads, some of the piggies remind me of our big girl Panda. Shes weighed regularly so I know it's not a health issue but she weighs in at 1500g - I know she's large but until I converted it into pounds its 3.3lbs it didn't register. She has plenty of floortime and plenty of hay and forage aswell as a good selection of veggies. She just isn't an active pig, when she lies down her front feet dissapear under her dewlap. She visited the vets about 3 weeks ago and the comment I got was 'she's a big girl' but the vet didn't seem overly concerned about her size.
Click to expand...

1500g isnt that big...!
thats not obese... thats just at the top of the normal range... :)
bless her
x
 
My piggies were at the vets and it turns out they weigh exactly the same and are both a healthy weight! Nibbles is nearly five and a bit of a lazy lump but Nutty does full speed laps round the run and is only one and a half. I guess its just down to their personality but really I think a lot of piggies look a little on the tubby side!

Amy, Nibbles and Nutty
 
We recently got new younger pigs and have been reminded of how active and sprightly they can be.
Putt our 5 year old hardly ever runs and will walk sedatly around her cage and run (should be called a sit) only moving for food. Cookie and Treacle on the other hand are mad and like to race each other round doing laps!
I really think its probably an age thing, we had just forgotten how much more energetic pigs are when younger and Cookie and Treacle did take us by suprise.
 
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