I Played With Mini Pigs For An Afternoon, And It Made My Year

Anybody that knows me knows I have a mildly alarming obsession with mini pigs. If you look at my Facebook page, my friends tag me in every adorable mini pig story on the internet or repeatedly post the same links on my wall (I have been tagged in the Rihanna “Work” mini pig mash-up at least 18 times). Being that I love them so much, and dream of the day that my apartment is large enough for me to house a sweet little pig of my own, I constantly research breeders and farms in the area in the little free time I do have. That’s when I stumbled across NY Teacup Piggies.

Laura and Greg Anderson have been breeding under NY Teacup Piggies for 12 years and are responsible for some very happy city-dwelling and farm-living (and some even Instagram famous) teacup pigs. When I read that they actually do “piggy parties,” meaning they come to you with a couple of these sweet angels for you to meet and play with, I almost cried tears of joy. Once I got the go-ahead that I was allowed to transform the NYLON studio into a piglet playpen for an afternoon, I prepared for my dreams to come true.

This is Oinkert. He is the sweetest angel I have ever had the opportunity to cuddle.

In case you weren’t sure what pure joy looks like, here’s an example below (that's me trying not to cry).

They’ve also bred some pretty big deal pigs as well. If you don’t already follow Pearl’s Pig Tales, both Pearl and Ruby have come from NY Teacup Piggies and live happy, adorable lives in their “pastel dreamland.”

However, I’m not here to tell you about how adorable and sweet these piglets are, and how sitting in a pen holding them and feeling their tiny little snouts from my hand brought tears to my eyes and basically made my 2016. NY Teacup Piggies has also been making a meaningful difference in the world of teacup pigs.

While there has been a lot of hype about teacup piglets thanks to social media and celebrity pets (ahem, Miley), this has caused some less than reputable farms and breeders to scam customers into thinking their piglet won’t grow to be above 30 pounds, with some of them growing to be a whopping 400 pounds or more. Not all families have the means (or desire) to take care of a pig that size. That’s where Greg and Laura come in to save the day. Since 2011, they’ve been rescuing pigs from families that were misled about their pet pig’s adult size. Instead of these pigs being abandoned, not given to a proper home, or (sadly) being put down, they rescue them and make sure to find a safe, new home, with 10 percent of their piglet sales going to their rescue facility. 

I’m thankful for meeting Laura (and Oinkert and Titan) because it’s hard to find a reputable piglet breeder that really cares about the well-being of their animals and others. My dreams of becoming known as “that girl with the pig” in the city are getting closer, and I will definitely be adopting my sweet little baby from NY Teacup Piggies.

If you’re looking for your daily dose of piglet cuteness, you can follow NY Teacup Piggies on Facebook and Instagram.