In Lechang, Guangdong Province in December last year, local residents actually saw the "once-in-a-century" spectacle - pigs would actually "go up the wall"?!
It is said that there is a big fat pig of about several hundred catties wandering leisurely on the tiled house more than two meters high, even if someone pokes it with a bamboo pole on the side, it is still unmoved.
According to the description of the owner of the fat pig, this pig should have witnessed the process of the other three pigs being slaughtered and received stimulation, in order to be able to save his life, he actually jumped on the roof of the house two meters high, which is really breathtaking.
Not to mention how strong the pig's desire to survive is when it encounters the problem of life and death, what is shocking should be that the pig has such a strong ability?
How long can the "second senior brother" live?
Different pigs have different lifespans in different captive conditions. In general, the lifespan of pigs in closed captivity is generally 0.5 years.
The lifespan of pigs is also customized according to the rules of the market, and if the price of pigs remains high, their lifespan will be extended to 0.6-0.8 years. If the price of pigs is significantly below the break-even point, their lifespan will be shortened to 0.4-0.5 years.
In addition, the stocking pattern of pigs, breeds, etc., will also affect their lifespan. The life span of pigs in the stocking mode is generally 0.8~1.1 years. Native pigs grow slowly and are also valued by farmers and have a longer lifespan, while hybrid pigs have a higher growth rate and have a shorter lifespan.
The life span of some breeding pigs is 3~4 years, but some free-range farmers are reluctant to eliminate breeding pigs prematurely, in which case the life span of pigs will be extended to 4~6 years.
But have most of us ever thought about how long we humans can live if we don't kill pigs and let them grow?
According to records, the average domestic pig can live to be 20 years old, and their 20 years old is equivalent to 80 years old in humans.
Like the "star" among pigs that we have heard of, "Pig Strong", died in 2021 and lived for a total of 14 years, which can be said to be the "old man" among pigs.
Not to mention the pig's strong and long lifespan, it itself persevered in the ruins of the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake for 36 days and still survived, which is already remarkable.
Pig Strong is a kind of pig between domestic pigs and pet pigs, and the living habits of different pigs are also different. Wild boars exercise a lot every day, and domestic pigs should be relieved to raise fat, pet pigs are eaten all day long, so the life span of each pig is also based on life habits, and pigs are strong as such a breed is considered a high-lived pig.
In addition to the strong pigs, there is a slightly less well-known case, which is also the real situation of high-lived pigs.
In 2003, there was an old man named Gao Shengtuo, who wanted to raise a pig to pass his boring time because he was old. Subsequently, he bought a small piglet weighing 45 pounds through the people in the village.
Under the careful care of the old man Gao Shengtuo, the pig grew bigger and bigger, and his life became happy because of the arrival of this pig, but he never thought that this pig would be called the "pig king" many years later.
In the next 9 years, under the careful care of the old man, the pig slowly rose to more than 1,000 kilograms, and its body slowly became fat.
The pig's fat size made it extremely sluggish, and the pig's breathing and eating became extremely difficult due to the accumulation and squeezing of fat.
But the old man still loves the pig and feeds it regularly. The pig also gradually became spiritual, and when it saw the old man coming, it would lean its body towards the old man to show goodwill.
Although the old man really regarded the pig as his own child, the old man's neighbors and the old man's family thought that the pig's behavior was very "weird", and not only pointed at it, but also persuaded the old man to slaughter and sell it.
But the old man insisted on his own ideas, and insisted on taking care of the pig despite the wishes of his neighbors and family to slaughter it.
But later, because the pig's food gradually increased, and his own money was not enough for him to eat. In 2007, the old man reluctantly sold the pig.
The pig was originally sold to the butcher, and just as the butcher was about to kill the pig, the pig suddenly showed a fierce light, which frightened the butcher and did not dare to do it again, and sent the pig directly to Lianfeng Temple.
Generally speaking, ordinary pigs are almost slaughtered into pieces of meat after they grow fat, and they rarely survive for more than 3 years. However, this "pig king" has lived for 9 years.
On June 27, 2012, the pig finally died of natural causes, and when it was time to die, the villagers even went to take care of the "aftermath" for him.
Although the lifespan of this pig is not long compared to other pigs, its life can be regarded as a legend.
The secret behind longevity
Although the lifespan of different breeding pigs is different, the pig itself also has some tips that can help it achieve a high lifespan.
First of all, it has to do with the pig's diet. Pigs are omnivores, which allows their stomachs to digest many minerals, animals and plants. In particular, their intestines contain a variety of digestive acids and enzymes that help digest minerals, materials and feed.
Omnivorous, wide range of diets and not picky eaters are also one of the reasons why pigs can live for a long time.
Next, the pigs have a shorter growth period and develop rapidly, which means that they have a higher capacity for fat deposit. In particular, pigs will quickly deposit a large amount of fat in the body after six months of age, indicating physiological precociousness. At the same time, pigs have a strong ability to digest feed and convert it into fat.
Don't underestimate these fats, they have a similar nutritional role to carbohydrates, mainly providing caloric energy. Pig fat provides 2.5 times more energy than the same weight of carbohydrates or protein.
In addition, fat also has the effect of regulating the palatability of diets, lubricating the stomach and intestines, and promoting digestion.
It can be seen that sometimes pigs that we look fat are also a protective mechanism for them, so that they can have a longer life.
The secret behind the pig
Perhaps in the eyes of most of us, pig is an ingredient to eat. But many people may not expect that pigs are not only full of treasures, but also the they pull out is also very useful.
It is said that in ancient times, a man had a poisonous sore on his head, which was not cured for many years. Later, the man met an old Chinese medicine doctor, who asked him to use the pig manure in the pigsty to treat this poisonous sore.
At first, this man didn't believe it, but he really had no choice, so with the attitude of a dead horse as a live horse doctor, he got some pig manure in the pigsty, dried it and applied it to the poisonous sores. After that, what was surprising was that the poisonous sores on this man's head were really cured!
Let's not talk about the authenticity of this story, there is indeed such a thing in the "Compendium of Materia Medica". In the "Compendium of Materia Medica", it is called "pig zero", saying that it is sweet, non-toxic, and can also detoxify.
Although this may be due to the extremely poor level of medical care in the past, there is no condition to force it to do so. But nowadays, it is not obsolete to study how pig manure can cure diseases and extract or synthesize the kind of components in pig manure.
Don't look at the lazy appearance of pigs, they are actually very smart, and their IQ can be ranked in the top 10 of the animal kingdom. It is said that the average IQ of pigs is about 70~85, which is equivalent to the intelligence level of young children about 3 to 5 years old. In addition, pigs have complex social skills and are able to build and maintain relationships in groups.
After all, biologist Charles Darwin once said that pigs are no less intelligent than dogs. Such a statement can now be proven in a number of places as well.
Experiments at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom have shown that in many cases, pigs are more resourceful than dogs.
To do this, they did an experiment in which scientists put pigs and dogs in a cold room and taught them how to turn on the heat by pressing a button. After testing, they found that it only took one minute for the pig to learn the action, while it took two minutes for the dog.
Moreover, many domesticated pigs in the United States can not only watch the door, unlock, close the door and hold the keys for their owners, but also help their owners deliver letters, retrieve things, and even run in an orderly race.
There is a couple in Maryland, USA, who have a little white pig for their children to play with. The children later got along with it very well. However, what is even more shocking is that this pig has been trained by its owner and has quickly learned many skills such as dancing, rolling, diving, pulling a cart, opening the door, and holding newspapers, which is even more powerful than a human.
In some places, pigs have even become sniffing helpers for the local police because of their own sensitive sense of smell.
The military and police departments of some Western countries train pigs to engage in various activities based on their sensitive sense of smell. For example, let it sniff out mines in the combat zone, and achieved unexpected results.
In May 1987, it was reported that the then Federal German police station in Hildesheim domesticated a police pig named Louis, and that officers liked to take Louis with him to solve crimes whenever they searched for drugs or explosives in Saxony. Luis the police pig has a genius who can help officers spot suspicions. If the contraband is buried in the ground, it will dig hard with its large, long mouth until the buried object arches out.
In addition to this, pigs have many characteristics that seem useless but are actually very useful.
For example, pigs can swim and catch fish. There is an island in the South Pacific Ocean, where a herd of pigs often swims leisurely in the shallow waters. They arch their mouths in the water and use them to catch fish.
Later, the pigs here spend most of their time in the shallow waters on the reef, feeding mainly on sea cucumbers, conch shells and other small mollusks, as well as catching some fish to eat.
In this way, pigs are really not as ordinary as we think, and even like a "big guy" hidden in the world. In this way, it is believed that many people's love for pigs will be "on the next level".