MSPCA Launches Enrichment Program For Adoptable Pigs

MASSACHUSETTS—The eight adoptable pigs that sit and snort waiting for a new home now are having a lot more fun as MSPCA-Nevins Farm just launched an enrichment program for them.

The program lets the animals explore, root and play in exchange for food and treats, encouraging natural behaviors that pigs naturally express and that keep them physically and mentally sharp.

The program was piloted in January and is the brainchild of Isabelle "Issy" Cless, intake and adoption coordinator at Nevins Farm who has an affinity for pigs and their extraordinary intelligence, according to the announcement.

"Many people don't know that pigs are thought to be as cognitively complex as dogs and, when given the option, prefer to explore and 'find' their food vs. eat from a trough," said Cless, who started the program, which now runs five days per week.

At the heart of the enrichment program are custom-made puzzles and toys-some that sit on the ground and others that hang from fences-all of which encourage pigs to use their wits to find and release the treats inside, according to the announcement. One game, called the "pizza-roo," includes compartments for treats such as carrots and fruits, and the pigs use their snouts to turn the cover and uncover the treats.

Cless (and the pigs) rely on a fleet of volunteers who slice and chop the vegetables and fruits that fill the various containers before the animals dig in. Other toys resemble bird feeders-long plastic cylinders with openings of various sizes through which fruit, vegetables and grains can be teased out by hungry snouts.

"The pigs absolutely love the stimulation and fun that the toys bring to feeding time and we love seeing them engage with their food in such a healthy way," said Cless in a statement.

One of the primary benefits of the enrichment program, which also includes "click for treat" positive reinforcement training often associated with dog training, is that it makes the pigs more attractive to potential adopters.

Interested? Go here. Questions about specific pigs can be directed to farmadoptions@mspca.org.

Photos via MSPCA