Ziggy the Traveling Pig
Many who spend their free time exploring and traveling choose to take their companions with them. Whether it’s a spouse, significant other, or pet, traveling always seems to be a little more exciting when shared with others. ‘Man’s Best Friend’ doesn’t always have to be a dog though! Ziggy is a 250 pound pig that travels the world with her owner and calls the outdoors her playbox.
Photo: Facebook/Ziggy the Traveling Pig
“It was love at first sight,” says owner Kristin Hartness when she saw Ziggy while perusing the internet for teacup pigs. In fact, he’s overgrown his expected adult weight by 225 pounds at this point. According to National Geographic, some breeders have been using this kind of bait-and-switch for the past 15 years. Since 1998 the number of mini-pigs has grown from 200,000 to over a million in both the United States and Canada.
Regardless of the surprise for Hartness, their bond has not faltered; in fact, it’s grown stronger over the past four and a half years. Ziggy traveled with his owner to her home in the Caribbean, and much to her surprise, the pig would take excursions to the beach without her even knowing.
“Sometimes when I’m not at home, people would tell me that they saw Ziggy playing in the beach, and then he would come home and pretend like nothing ever happened,” Kristin said.
And the fun doesn’t stop there! Ziggy is quite clever, opening the refrigerator and digging into shelves in the house. But that’s no surprise, as pigs are one of the smartest domesticated animals out there. In fact, he’s house trained and well-behaved, especially when there’s a sticky bun involved.
When it was time to leave St. Johns and continue their adventures in America, Kristin and Jay rented a private plane (because no commercial airline would take Ziggy) so their boy could travel with them. Trading the white beaches of St. Johns for a motorhome, Ziggy and his parents are now embarking on an adventure around the US, and along the way Ziggy got a new moniker. He’s not just Ziggy the Pig anymore, he’s now Ziggy the Traveling Pig.
Do you have a companion that accompanies you on all of your travels?
