Tiny piglet squeals of delight!

by Meg on April 21, 2008

Please get a hold of these TINY SQUEALERS. No I mean it, literally, pick one up, it will seriously squeal.

Elizabeth J., nice mini-bacon-bit-action goin’ on there.

{ 130 comments }

1 Alice 04.21.08 at 6:33 am

Oh my GOSH! They are sooo tiny!

It doesn’t sound like delight though…..

2 Trisha 04.21.08 at 6:34 am

Loving the piggies and eye capsules!

But, et, hem… not so sure I am a fan of Meg’s sub-title about bacon…seems inappropriate to take joy from their cuteness and then eat them…IMHO

3 Sara 04.21.08 at 6:45 am

Possibly the most adorable piglets ever seen. Spotty + tiny=my heart bursting into a jillion pieces from the cuteness.

(and more reasons that I don’t eat meat=it’s just too cute.)

4 Poohbear 04.21.08 at 6:48 am

So tineeeehhh! Mama’s grunting at the end is kind of cute, too. OK, am adding to the list of cute animals I don’t want to eat.
BTW, Richard Austin is a fab animal photographer who’s been featured on CO in the past. Check out his website!

5 Kim 04.21.08 at 6:50 am

I want two handfuls of piggy, too!!!

6 fish eye no miko 04.21.08 at 7:13 am

Whoah, I didn’t know piglet were so tiny! KAWAII!

7 Lucy 04.21.08 at 7:26 am

Bebeh piggios!! Absolutely redonk.

8 Michelle 04.21.08 at 7:28 am

eye capsules. snout krinkles. bendy-wire tails. teat wrassling. omg they’re killing me!

9 Guido 04.21.08 at 7:54 am

Boobies!

10 Mu 04.21.08 at 8:00 am

Speaking of squealing…I’m squealing, right now! I love pigs, they are so amazingly cute. And these ones are so small. If only they stayed that small and I would have one for a pet, they are just so adorable and sweet.

I want.
My heart hurts so much in this want. I just want a tiny, teeny little, perpetually small piglet.

*sighs*

11 berthaservant (no longer berthaslave) 04.21.08 at 8:22 am

This reminds me it’s been a while since I’ve seen the movie “Deliverance” or listened to the White Album.

Love the piggehs snuggling the camera and the one between the feet.

12 Lone 04.21.08 at 9:07 am

Well govna’, Ive finished up your best leather shoes. Bright as noon day shine on water they is. As being such a regular patron of mine and all I eve’n used myo finest pink piglets on the tips. Right sooty they is now but they’ll clean up nicely and be fresh for the ‘morrow.

13 Hon Glad 04.21.08 at 9:07 am

Gloucester old spot? they put the squee in squeek.

14 Subhangi 04.21.08 at 9:11 am

AWWWWWWW! I could only see the first one or two seconds, but the bebeh pigglings are SOOOO PWECIOUSH!!! SQUEEEEEEE!

15 pounce 04.21.08 at 9:34 am

Wow, they’re perfectly sandwich-sized! *kronsche*

16 Elsewhere 04.21.08 at 9:36 am

Please, don’t call them bacon… and don’t eat them. Even when they’re big.

17 Subhangi 04.21.08 at 9:38 am

SQUEEEEEEEEE!!! SOOOO TINY!!! They’re like kittens! And the squealing and the sleeping … oh dear Lord. Seriously DED.

18 sas 04.21.08 at 9:53 am

Unhand me sir! Just because I am leetle does not mean you can manhandle me!!

Oink!!

Now which one went to market??

19 Gail 04.21.08 at 10:00 am

@lone: LOL!!!
@berthaservant: Great Beatles reference—took me a minute to make the connexion……

Such CUTE bebehs!!!!! Can I call “matchingks”???

20 Sarah 04.21.08 at 10:35 am

At first I just thought they were quite cute. Then I saw how small they were in human hands and I absolutely went to pieces! They are like… like… like PIGLET KITTENS!
Now THAT is the perfect combinayshons.
Domestic pigs wouldn’t even exist if people didn’t eat pork. We would never have started to keep and breed them. If you want to enjoy the cuteness of piglets without risking the charge of a wild boar parent, you kind of have to accept that yes, that’s what they are for.

21 l 04.21.08 at 10:38 am

Go Vegan!

22 miltoncat 04.21.08 at 11:21 am

Peeeeglet!

23 nads 04.21.08 at 11:30 am

Maybe this isn’t a good place to tell my horrendous story, but these piggies looked just like my grandfather’s pig Rosie that I helped raised when I was five. Bottle fed, bathed, the whole bit. Except, being five, I had no idea what fate awaited my little pink friend. For some inexplicable reason, my father decides it would be funny to tell me- mid-Sunday pork roast dinner- that Rosie is on my fork. And my parents wonder why I’m a die hard vegetarian now.

24 jana 04.21.08 at 11:36 am

i want one.

25 Meowsers 04.21.08 at 11:36 am

How about the part where one is sleeping in that lady’s arms?

Sarah- they ARE like piglet/kittens! Adorable!

26 Meowsers 04.21.08 at 11:37 am

I don’t get the Beatles reference? ‘Splain please…

27 woofysma 04.21.08 at 11:49 am

Ding Dong! Dinner bell! And, there’s a spigot for everybody.

28 ButtaRumCake 04.21.08 at 11:58 am

@woofysma – LOL’ing @ spigot!!!!!!!

29 Kristin 04.21.08 at 12:05 pm

EYE CAPSULES!! x_x

30 metsakins 04.21.08 at 12:08 pm

rule 14, yay!

31 acelightning 04.21.08 at 12:45 pm

Meowsers – there’s a song called “Piggies” on the White Album.

What completely blew my mind was when the piglette was between the man’s feet, and his *shoe* was bigger than the piggy.

And I bet they all go “Wee, wee, wee!” all the way home ;-D

32 DKN 04.21.08 at 12:54 pm

PEEEEEEEEEEEEEEGS!

That was a good b-day present, thanks meg!

33 Juno 04.21.08 at 1:08 pm

“Squeal of delight” my arse! Put me down! PUT ME DOOOOWWWWNN!!

34 Kendra 04.21.08 at 1:11 pm

How can piggies be so tiny and cute? It’s simply redonkulous!

35 gizmo 04.21.08 at 1:19 pm

mmmmmm, bacon!

[drools]

36 Bookish 04.21.08 at 1:21 pm

Nads- that is horrible!

If piglets only stayed this cute and this small, I would need one as a pet. Adorable!

37 Hillary Rettig / The Lifelong Activist 04.21.08 at 1:21 pm

Yeah, seriously – go vegan. It makes no sense to squee over them and then slaughter and eat them. You can get faux ham, bacon, etc. in the deli section of the supermarket. Try it!

38 dailyhamster 04.21.08 at 1:46 pm

They’re like little squeaky toys! You pick one up and squeeze gently and you are rewarded with a cute little squeal.

39 temperance 04.21.08 at 1:52 pm

ah, meg- ya lil’ minx. you just had to make the bacon-bits comment, didn’tcha? i think that’s called stirrin’ the pot.

not that you needed to- farm animals seem to have about the same effect as babies around here.

40 Sands 04.21.08 at 2:00 pm

Ah well, I see the disapproving bunnehs and I think, “Mmmmm, lunch.”

41 Furbabies 04.21.08 at 2:06 pm

Belly up to the milk bar boys! This first rounds on me. What kinda piggies are they?

42 Theresa 04.21.08 at 2:11 pm

SNORT! SNORT! SNORTLE!

43 jen 04.21.08 at 2:36 pm

omg i didnt realize how small they were until human hands entered the picture! good grief i could fit all three in my handbag…..not that i would do that…no that is NOT a squeal from my prada!

*runs off, cradling squealing purse*

44 Ermine Violin 04.21.08 at 2:43 pm

I would eat one of those – but you know, not in the “it’s ham!” kind of eating way – but in the “get in mah belleh you’re too cute” kind of way – so I could carry one around forever!

OMG – just too cute.

45 beccy 04.21.08 at 2:52 pm

Bacos > Bacon. Just so you know ;)

Loving the music! Anyone know what is it?

46 marsheeeee 04.21.08 at 2:57 pm

Ok. That’s it. No more bacon for me. Or pork chops, pork roast, or hot dogs. Eeeesh. They are adorable!

47 chanpon 04.21.08 at 2:59 pm

OMG! So freakin’ adorable. Either they are really tiny or that woman has giant man hands!!

48 Theo 04.21.08 at 3:02 pm

Beccy — sorry, but Bacos are full of lose and PLEH.
Try toasted walnuts & crumbled Bleu cheese; you’ll never go back.

49 NutherDeb 04.21.08 at 3:16 pm

The EYE CAPSULES!!! And the NOSE WRINKLES!!!! Too cute!! I’m ded!!

50 Nancy 04.21.08 at 3:37 pm

Love them!

51 Little Tart (formerly Ponygirl) 04.21.08 at 3:42 pm

HOW CAN THEY BE SOOOOO TINY!?!?11?!

Sorry for yelling but..COME ON! [in Gob voice]

52 Suzette 04.21.08 at 3:56 pm

Delish!

53 loveMaegan 04.21.08 at 4:27 pm

how can people eat something so cute and sweet?!?!?!

54 HeebyJeeby 04.21.08 at 4:30 pm

These are not ordinary pigs, these are Pennywell Miniature pigs, and they will be pets. They are bred on a farm that is the equivalent of a petting zoo, in England.

It took about 30 seconds of searching to find that out. C’mon people, we’re all on the internet here, if you want to know, just go find out…

55 velvetslippers 04.21.08 at 4:43 pm

These are beautiful animals, and very intelligent. My heart aches because I am sure they are destined for slaughter. It is hard to just see cuteness.

56 velvetslippers 04.21.08 at 4:44 pm

Now I have read more comments and I am relieved to know they are not going to be bacon!

57 boyzmom 04.21.08 at 4:50 pm

OMG!!!! I need one!

58 Cockatoo 04.21.08 at 5:00 pm

WANTWANTWANTWANT

59 harlemgrrl 04.21.08 at 5:19 pm

What I learned from this video is that if I wait until after they’ve hit the breakfast bar, handle them slowly, and gently kiss the schnoze, I can quietly stick a wee piglet in my jacket. Squealing will commence when she sees her new room and meets my 2 cats.

Thanks CO!

P.S. But Theo, Bacos are *vegan* and since I don’t eat the real thing find the fakeness rather fun. Sometimes :: burp ::

60 BumbleBee 04.21.08 at 5:31 pm

Gotta love the British and their pigs…i’m British and a pig-lover…so love me. And i’m vegan too – all my life. Although i still found the bacon-bits comment funny! Gaaaah – i want a piglet please. i can has?

61 alison 04.21.08 at 5:35 pm

I love those tiny pigglers! Is it really true? They’re miniatures – destined to be pets? Hurray! I’ll take a dozen!

62 Gwenny 04.21.08 at 5:44 pm

So frickin’ cute! I want one! It’s a real hog-fest at Mom’s tho, huh? Teeny prosh!

63 Theo 04.21.08 at 5:48 pm

True, bleu cheese isn’t vegan… hmm. Pine nuts and capers, maybe?
(both still toasted, though)

64 harlemgrrl 04.21.08 at 5:59 pm

Howz bout toasted pine nuts and crumbled tempeh that’s been marinating in liquid smoke? Actually, I think I’m going to try that for dinner. Pah-sickie! Thanks, Theo :0)

65 Shay 04.21.08 at 6:25 pm

TINY PIGLET SAYS: I AM NOT A BACON BIT!!!!!!!!!!!!

66 Theo 04.21.08 at 6:42 pm

For the record, I would not try a Liquid Smoke pa-si-kie even if I was Anthony Bourdain and they were paying me to do it.

67 Michelle 04.21.08 at 7:04 pm

lol@theo’s “liquid smoke” comment. Soooo true. pleh.

[You're telling me this is something you've thought about?? - Ed.]

68 Suzanne 04.21.08 at 7:14 pm

Do they realize the irony of using Klezmer music in the background???

69 A thinker 04.21.08 at 7:31 pm

baby piglets = teh kyootest thing ever. When they grow up, not so much so.

70 A thinker 04.21.08 at 7:35 pm

@Teho: “Bacos are full of lose and PLEH.”

lol.

71 Martha in Washington 04.21.08 at 7:56 pm

Can’t decide which bit I liked best…the snorgle with the nice lady, the tiny grunts, the sleepy cuddled piglet or the smallness of size. My brain hurts trying to decide. Did anyone else think “Harry the Dirty Dog” when the babies were first spotted? (Sorry)

Pig Trivia–piglets always suckle from the same spiggot and the oldest gets the spot closest to Mom’s head.

72 nads 04.21.08 at 8:22 pm

@Martha- so then does the littlest get the one closest to Mom’s butt? Just wonderin’.:)

73 jmuhj 04.21.08 at 8:24 pm

Yes, I. GO VEGAN seconded.

74 Khadija 04.21.08 at 8:28 pm

ooooh supercute haram porcelet :)

75 De 04.21.08 at 8:42 pm

This reminds me of my childhood on the farm, always trying to sneak in the pens and steal a piglet to cuddle without it squealing and alerting the mother of what I was up to. Granted, I could have had my grandfather grab one (as the mothers always trusted him) but I liked the challenge of catching a piglet on the fly.

76 Aby 04.21.08 at 9:18 pm

Pigs are friends … not food!

77 Sara 04.21.08 at 9:27 pm

I haven’t eaten pigs since 1990. An proud of it! Pigs should be respected not ingested! I’ve lived 20 years without pig in my body. Don’t you dare tell me you need to eat pigs for your health! That’s simply not true.

Ask yourself why you continue to eat pigs… I dare you to find a respectable answer!

78 Theo 04.21.08 at 9:32 pm

Don’t make me quote “Pulp Fiction”, Sara…

79 Babs 04.21.08 at 9:39 pm

Hee, they’re so very wee! Didn’t care for the end of the vid, tho – they were just acting like a bunch of little pigs.

80 Sarah 04.21.08 at 10:12 pm

I accept that I’m an animal, and part of a food chain. I feel fine about eating meat. I wish that vegans and vegetarians didn’t have this idea that ‘animals are cute!’ is an argument that convinces everyone that eating them is wrong.
I think they’re cute AND delicious.
And we would never have got to the point of breeding or keeping pigs as pets if we hadn’t first kept them for food. Be realistic.

81 Sarah 04.21.08 at 10:20 pm

This is exactly why I don’t eat bacon!

82 Theo 04.21.08 at 10:27 pm

Let’s see, there’s Sara, and Sarah, and ANOTHER Sarah… I believe I’m experiencing a little cognitive dissonance…

83 nads 04.21.08 at 10:35 pm

Hmmm…i just read the exact above post on another picture on this site. Spam-a-lot??

84 Rose 04.21.08 at 10:52 pm

Sarah, there are many more reasons to reduce one’s consumption of animal products besides the fact that animals are cute. Animal agriculture is the perhaps the most significant source of water pollution in our country and one of the leading sources of pollution in general (UN FAO’s “Livestock’s Long Shadow”). One can make as much of a difference becoming vegan as driving a hybrid car (“Diet, Energy and Global Warming”, Eishel and Martin, U Chicago). It takes 435 gallons of water to produce one pound of beef (this stat is actually from the Cattleman’s Beef Board!). Slaughterhouses abuse their workers, who have an extremely high rate of job morbidity (_Fast Food Nation_, and others). Meat is only so cheap because of huge agricultural subsidies, which we pay for (in the US in 1996 2.8 billion dollars was paid to subsidize feed grains [USDA 2006 Fiscal Year Budget]); animal agriculture lobbyists wield much power to keep the status quo in place. The Center for Consumer Freedom, owned by tobacco, alcohol, animal agriculture, and fast food/restaurant conglomerates, puts out a lot of anti-soy, pro-junk food propaganda. Talk about being part of the food chain is a moot point–is driving to a store and buying groceries natural? It’s best to do what is most compassionate and logical–saying we’re just part of the food chain is ignoratio elenchi, in my opinion.

Plus, if this video helps people see that animals feel like we (and our pets) do and can suffer and feel pain, all the better. Plus, I am not for the breeding of piglets, even if they are cute; speak for yourself! There are enough homeless cats and dogs (and farmed animals!) out there to rescue and adopt instead.

Note the ADA stance: “Vegetarian diets offer a number of nutritional benefits, including lower levels of saturated fat, cholesterol, and animal protein as well as higher levels of carbohydrates, fiber, magnesium, potassium, folate, and antioxidants such as vitamins C and E and phytochemicals. Vegetarians have been reported to have lower body mass indices than nonvegetarians, as well as lower rates of death from ischemic heart disease; vegetarians also show lower blood cholesterol levels; lower blood pressure; and lower rates of hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and prostate and colon cancer.” Even reducing one’s consumption of animal products can help a great deal.

Vegetarian diets have a staggering enormous environmental impact–and being a vegetarian or vegan is truly NOT an extreme position, regardless how many obnoxious vegans you may meet.

85 Annie 04.21.08 at 10:54 pm

Well you could just go vegitarian and still eat your cheese and eggs (Recently joined the vegitarian crowd but for health reasons)… altho it is a lot harder to eat them when you have them hanging around at your house. And pigs are really like dogs.. they are smart and social.

86 Liz 04.22.08 at 12:01 am

Oh my! This is arguably the most adorable farm-related post ever! I just keep coming back to CO, over and over again to bask in their cuteness. Squeeeeeeeee!

87 Gail 04.22.08 at 1:16 am

Ooh, I missed the Klezmer music!! (Now that I listen, maybe just a little Klezmer-ish…)Great catch, Suzanne!!!

LOL at the Liquid-Smoke Pasickie!

88 Matty 04.22.08 at 1:42 am

BACON!

Little baconators.

They’re cute when they’re little, but when they get the size of mommy there…

Bacon and Pork and Sausage!

89 Aesthetica 04.22.08 at 2:15 am

great references, berthaslave!

the deliverance one made me a bit squeamish, though.

*squeeeeeeeeeeeal*

90 Melisma 04.22.08 at 2:51 am

Oh, they are adorable. Want to snorgle.

berthaservant, you made the Beatles reference, but I was thinking about how there’s a Pink Floyd song called “Pigs”…

Everyone talking about whether or not to eat meat: this is a very emotional issue, so let’s make sure we stay respectful. I’m relieved there’s been no drama thus far, as I just had a big dose of it elsewhere.

91 jazmella 04.22.08 at 3:40 am

Awww!! Just one of the many reasons why I’m vegetarian/close to vegan.

Gosh, these little piggies are so adorable, my heart exploded whilst watching this video! :-)

92 ashagato 04.22.08 at 3:54 am

berthaservant, my much-older brother used to sit me down on the counter and play the white album for me when i was a wee one. i loved little piggies, but especially a young boy named rocky racoon! one day his woman ran off with another guy…

93 rubber duck 04.22.08 at 3:58 am

I usually never ever say this…but…I JUST DIED!

And, people, just look at them – you can see they’re not ordinary pigs! They’re clearly miniature pet pigs. Not that ordinary piglets aren’t cute as well but the size of these is too tiny, plus their face is different from ordinary piglet (in my opinion not quite as pretty, either, as ordinary piglet, but the minuscule sixe certainly compensates that ;) )

94 ashagato 04.22.08 at 4:00 am

please don’t not-eat animals just bc they’re cute! less cute animals deserve respect and freedom from pain as much as any living being.

95 ruber duck 04.22.08 at 4:01 am

(whoops – that was “size” of course)

96 Total Puppy 04.22.08 at 5:04 am

RUBBER DUCK: Thanks!! I don’t have anything that interesting to say about the piglets…except that
the song “All Things Bright and Beautiful” comes to mind…

97 Xhrixx 04.22.08 at 5:05 am

Watching the little pigglies nursing at the end of the video, noticed that Mama Pig had 8 teats showing on the upside. That must mean she has 16 altogether. Is this standard? I remember my kitty only having 8 total. Sixteen seems like an awful lot, but what the hell, I only have 2!

98 LisaL 04.22.08 at 6:17 am

Oh.. MY… GOD…. Piglets are just too freaking cute to handle! I’m about to explode just thinking about it!!

99 Raemie L. 04.22.08 at 9:12 am

Fuzzeh eye-capsules! I liked the part with the leetle pig’s nose touching the lady’s nose.

100 Mandy 04.22.08 at 12:26 pm

These guys are going to be pets, fortunately, but when I eat most meat, it doesn’t look like what it was. So it doesn’t bother me. In denial… out of sight, out of mind.

101 demolitionwoman 04.22.08 at 2:14 pm

my first thought:
i wonder if piglets have their own version of “fresh puppy” smell? mmm…fresh puppy…

102 Cranky Pumpkin 04.22.08 at 5:45 pm

Let’s only eat ugly things! Like grubs! And worms! And human babies! Not cute things like pumpkins and alfalfa sprouts! OMG!!

103 brinnann 04.22.08 at 6:17 pm

Cranky Pumpkin, sounds to me like you’re just trying to save yourself. ;)

But I guess this means no more Twinkies: http://mfrost.typepad.com/cute_overload/2007/03/totally_twinked.html

And a good bit of veggies and fruits, too: http://mfrost.typepad.com/cute_overload/2007/01/oh_you_did_not_.html

Toast is out as well:
http://mfrost.typepad.com/cute_overload/2005/12/hello_wtf.html

Oh, and pa-sickies: http://mfrost.typepad.com/cute_overload/2005/11/an_ice_cream_st.html

104 Theo 04.22.08 at 7:43 pm
105 brinnann 04.22.08 at 7:49 pm

OMG, it has it’s own glossary entry! Go Teho!

106 Emmerly 04.22.08 at 7:54 pm

I squealed myself. Oh the teenies!

Rose–fair points. I’d disagree that the food chain argument is a “moot point,” though. True, going to a supermarket is not natural, but humans are still biologically omnivores, or?

And I’m of the opinion, which you also acknowledge, that eating less meat also accomplishes many of those health and moral goals. I like meat, I was vegetarian for a few years, but I craved turkey one Thanksgiving and boom. I think moderation works, at least for me, better than absolutism. Which is why veganism baffles me. I understand the moral arguments behind it, and I respect them, but when you won’t eat cake because it has eggs in it, it starts to get ridiculous for me.

107 brinnann 04.22.08 at 7:57 pm

No cake? Say it isn’t so, Emmerly!

But srsly, I think there are cake recipes that don’t use eggs, and you can replace the butter with oil.

Question: What’s wrong with eating butter & drinking milk? Why is that a vegan no-no?

108 Emmerly 04.22.08 at 8:26 pm

I believe the idea is, no animal products, period. I think because of the cruel means by which, e.g., milk and eggs can be obtained. Vegans feel free to correct and expand, in as non-preachy a way as possible? :)

I am inevitably reminded of a Simpsons quote. “I’m a level 5 vegan. I don’t eat anything with a shadow.”

109 Heather 04.22.08 at 8:40 pm

Goodness gracious! I tell you, the universe MUST be a CuteOverload fan.

Just one more reason I haven’t touched a dead pig product in over 20 years. Whew! I feel GREAT about that. And see, I’m still alive and healthy, no dead pigs needed!

brinnann – milk and cheese from factory farms is an incredibly cruel practice. In order for mamma cow to produce all that milk, she must be constantly pregnant. They usually take her male baby cows away from her, throw them into a tiny crate for a few months and that’s where veal comes from. Ya, can you imagine? You give birth and someone comes along and steal your baby from you, then artificially inseminates you so you can repeat the process again. Over and over until you can’t produce anymore, then you become steak. It’s a bad business. Stay away from it! Soy milk becomes more yummy as time goes on. Give it a try :)

110 brinnann 04.22.08 at 8:49 pm

Heather, can you tell me about eggs? We have chickens, and most hens don’t hatch their eggs. They lay them then leave them. I think we’ve only had them sit on a batch once or twice in my 27 years of life that I can remember. I understand not eating it if it could possibly become a chicken, but most eggs never will.

111 Heather 04.22.08 at 9:05 pm

Hey brinnann. Well, from what I know (anyone correct me if I’m wrong), the eggs that are purchased in stores generally aren’t inseminated. I’ve seen fertilized eggs for sale, maybe twice in my life. The reason vegetarians tend to steer clear of eggs is because it too is a very cruel process – well the factory farmed eggs are at least. The chickens are kept in the tiniest cages possible and are often starved when they don’t produce enough eggs (apparently starving a female chicken will force her the lay more eggs?).

I see absolutely no reason a domesticated farm animal that is treated with care and respect can’t be a producer for human edibles. Notice I repeat the words “factory farmed” which is a whole different ballgame. I’m not vegan or even vegetarian. But such products are a luxury in my house. We purchase from local free-range farms that we personally visit, and it costs a pretty penny, so we try to appreciate it.

112 brinnann 04.22.08 at 9:14 pm

“The chickens are kept in the tiniest cages possible and are often starved when they don’t produce enough eggs (apparently starving a female chicken will force her the lay more eggs?).”

I see your point, I didn’t think of that because ours run around on about half an acre. Also, if anything, feeding a hen more makes her lay more. But then again, we’ve never had underweight/underfed chickens. Ours get lots of extras, like leftover bread, chips, crackers and such.

113 Gail 04.22.08 at 10:54 pm

THANKS, TEHO for the lovely addition to the Glossary!!!

114 cyoootie pie 04.23.08 at 12:18 am

Oh they are so adorable!! such snorglable cuties!

Does anyone know how many more months until they’re slaughtered for bacon and pork roast?

oh, sorry, I forgot… none of you eat meat.

115 hypocritCutie 04.23.08 at 12:23 am

OMG it is so sweet and I just want to cuddle it… Yum yum tasty bacon!

So what if there a major disconnect in my attitude somewhere? (By the way, I just ate your cat and it was delicious with a light bernaise sauce.)

116 riolinda 04.23.08 at 12:26 am

itty bitty oinkers! awww…

117 Reality is a b*tch 04.23.08 at 12:27 am

Here Meg this is for you… it’s fine if you want to refer to an animal by it’s slaughtered name, but, if you’re going to do that, you should have the gumption to at least watch what you are refering to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqks5Ltzp0o&feature=related

118 Daphne Moss 04.23.08 at 12:42 am

The above video doesn’t show the real killing … at least I didn’t see it, but I doubt people appreciate its posting.
Most people would rather not think that what they eat is slaughtered in this way.
If you had to kill a pig before eating it, or you could choose to eat vegan, I think more people would be vegans…and then they’d know that you don’t miss much at all, would probably be thinner and have more energy and be guilt-free.
At least, that’s what happened when I gave up meat and animal products (except free-range eggs).

119 JulieRaven 04.23.08 at 3:07 am

Heather– From what I what I understood, even Free Range/Organic Farms need to use hormones (not insemination) to keep a heifer producing milk. When I was out on one of Heifer Ranch International’s branches, I asked if they used any chemicals at all for their animals (they’re strictly organic and kill the animals for meat right there on the farm after raising them on their own, grow their own vegetables and most of their own fruits), and they told me that they do use hormones to keep the female cows in heat so that they can milk them fairly often (not too often) so that they can sell the milk as a Farmer’s Market product as needed and to feed the campers.

And chickens are never underfed, but rather they are overfed. The rest of the factory-farm conditions are true, though. Teeny cages, etc.

But as I see it, moderation is best, and always support anything local (except maybe local drug trade. Whatever your cup of tea is though :D )

120 spb 04.23.08 at 3:32 am

Thank you Heather and Brinnann for both the information and the respectful tone of your conversation. It is greatly appreciated.

While I am not necessarily a vegetarian, I try not to eat meat that often, nor eggs unless they are free range. But alas I do have dairy products a lot. Maybe I’ll have to rethink this.

121 spb 04.23.08 at 3:34 am

And JulieRaven too (her comment came up as I was typing mine).

122 spb 04.23.08 at 3:36 am

Oh and the little “bacon-bits” were soooo cute. And teeny! (I never eat pork anyway.)

123 spb 04.23.08 at 3:43 am

Actually there were other commenters up there also that added to the polite and informative discourse. Sheesh. I must give credit where credit is due.

Thank you all.

Ok, I’m done. Night, night.

124 Gail 04.23.08 at 5:16 pm

Even free range hens have problems: the chicks are sexed at hatching and the males are dumped into sacks to be incinerated. the sexers are paid by the quantity so they work fast. The rate of pay is poor and so usually done by lower economic workers. The chicks suffer in agony becausse they can get broken legs, wings, and are thrown fast into the sacks – many are smothered to death under the bodies of others before the shift is over. then the sacks are emptied into incinerators – and whichever are still alive are then burnt to death. These are babies, for heaven’s sake – how cruel is the profit motive!

In intensive farming the female baby chicks then have their beaks sliced off with a hot electric wire, so that they don’t peck each other in the stressful crowded conditions. It is similar in pain ot having your fingernails riped out of your nailbeds (Professor Marius Barnard’s observation – he was the brother of the late Professor Chris Barnard of first heart transplant fame.)

Cakes don’t need eggs to rise – you only need a reaction between an alkali (baking powder or bicarbonate of soda) and an acid (orange juice, or lemon juice, or cider vinegar, to make the batter lift. See vegan society sites for recipes.

Also think of salmonella, and then the potential food poisoning from chicken.

Truly, go vegan.

125 Gail 04.23.08 at 5:26 pm

Too many typoes in my previous message – my sincere apologies!

‘riped’ = ripped
‘ot’ = to

Forgot to mention that the beak slicing is also done at breakneck speed by largely unskilled labourers: there is no anaesthetic application, and these babies cannnot drink or eat because the pain is totally unbearable. The death rate from dehydration and starvation and blood loss is horrific. How these farmers can sleep at night beggars belief.

The chicks are also thrown into sacks or crates before being shoved into small cages with sloping wire bottoms so they can’t perch and have to keep moving backwards – extremely exhausting. The floors are sloped to facilitate the rolling foward of eggs laid at a later stage to the front of the cage for easy collection.

126 jjr 04.23.08 at 5:45 pm

Hi all–everyone’s already provided so much useful info on farming practices etc., which is great–just want to jump in and add, what someone above was referring to re hens being starved in factory farming, this does in fact exist, though it may seem counterintuitive. It’s a practice related to forced molting; here’s a link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forced_molting

127 Theo 04.23.08 at 5:59 pm

*** NOTE FROM THE MODERATOR ***

A number of comments have been unpublished.

Cute Overload has nothing against vegan/vegetarian lifestyle choices. However, please don’t post graphic descriptions of the various disturbing/unpleasant aspects of the livestock industry. Likewise, please don’t include links to graphic video, photos, etc. Remember, the name of this place is Cute Overload. You can get your message across without resorting to this kind of behavior; it’s kinda like using foul language at a family dinner. There’s a place for it, but this isn’t it.

Heck, you can feel free to post links to other forums that ARE the right places for this sort of discussion. It might be a good idea to provide a little description along with your links, though, especially considering the strong feelings folks have on the subject. You know, something like Here Be Dragons (and they be ridden by angry vegans with video cameras).

Thanks.

128 jjr 04.23.08 at 6:22 pm

Hi Theo. I’m guessing this will not be posted, but I mainly wanted to respond to your last post (and don’t know how/where to e-mail you): I actually just wanted to point out that the link I submitted was to the Wikipedia entry for forced molting–a common and legal farming practice–which was brief, neutral in tone, and didn’t contain anything more graphic than most Wikipedia descriptions–nor were there any photos or videos in the article. And it did answer someone’s question posed earlier that went unanswered. So I really didn’t think it was likely to stir up controversy, it was about providing information. (However, as dozens of posters have already pointed out, yes, I do understand it’s your site and up to you guys what you choose to publish and what not to.)

[OK, I checked the link & re-published your comment, but I'd still call it borderline... - Ed.]

129 Evan Waters 04.23.08 at 7:34 pm

They sound like little Tauntauns.

130 Daphne Moss 04.24.08 at 3:32 am

And I am at a loss to see why my comment was one of those removed. It had nothing graphic in it, just referred to the fact that I thought few people would be swayed by video showing pigs headed for slaughter.
Yes, it’s not my site, so whatever, but when you caption tiny baby pigs as bacon, you’re asking for coomment…and then censoring what you’ve solicited even when it’s mild.
What is up with that??

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