Tusks and Hooves

Most people are unaware pigs have tusks. You know those white things sticking out of Pumba's mouth on The Lion King?  Those are a pigs first form of self-defense. A pig will quickly whip his head to the side to take out any threats, and, trust me, you don't want to be on the receiving end of the head whip. A pig's second form of defense is hooves, as in running away.

Piggy parents must take tusks and hooves into consideration when scheduling an appointment with the vet (or they must take care of them at home).  Some families decide to take no action on the tusks, as it is a natural part of the pig.  Most don't like the look of the tusks or don't want their baby to accidentally gut them, and they choose to have the tusks trimmed (tusks can't be surgically removed because they are part of the jawbone and there are too many risks involved).

We've had four pigs in our family, and each had their first tusk trimming between the ages of 2-3.  Our first pig, Jake, had the unfortunate experience of the vet not waiting long enough after giving him a sedative before trimming his tusks.  We learned exactly how loud a pig could scream that day - nearly 120 decibels (louder than a jet).  Not only was Jake scared, but he could have accidentally inhaled tusk clippings during the process.  It broke our hearts to witness this, but we didn't know what else to do.  This was in 1995 - I am happy to say that since domesticated pigs are more mainstream today, vets know how to better take care of them.  Tusk trimming now usually involves anesthesia, so the pig has no clue what's going on during his sweet dreams.

Pig families must take care of the hooves.  They can't decide not to trim them and expect their baby to be okay.  Hooves can grow too long and cause pigs not to walk correctly - who would want that for their piggy?  Some pigs allow their families to trim their hooves at home.  Other pigs get a trip to the vet for a pedicure.  Whoever trims the hooves must be careful not to cut too much or they'll hit flesh.

Perrin had his annual exam on Monday.  We chose to take him to a new vet because of how the old vet chose to trim his tusks and hooves in the past.  You don't want the vet to trim the tusks too close to the gum line because that area could get infected - Perrin's vet last year was so afraid of this he only took off the very tip of the tusks, which still left quite a bit of tusk protruding from Perrin's lips.  Besides being too expensive to have to do several times yearly, it isn't good for Perrin to have extra procedures done.  Also, the vet last year cut Perrin's side hooves (what are these called?) too much and Perrin bled from one of his pinky hooves.  Poor baby.

Perrin was woozy after his appointment on Monday, but he wasn't bleeding, and he had no problem with eating his dinner.  The vet tech gave me a baggy containing Perrin's tusks - maybe they would make a good ivory earring set for my sister this Christmas...