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Mammal. Pigs may have been domesticated as early as 10,000 B.C. They have four toes on each hoof but walk on only two toes on each foot, so they appear to be walking on their tiptoes. Wild pigs are fast runners, good swimmers and strong fighters when cornered, using their tusks as weapons. They are mainly active at night. Because they do not have sweat glands, pigs cool themselves in hot weather by rolling around in mud or water. Many experts regard pigs as the most intelligent of domesticated animals. They are capable of problem solving and learning new skills quickly. |
| Scientific
Name |
Lifespan |
| Sus scrofa |
12 to 27 years |
| Diet |
| Omnivore. Bird eggs, snakes, grasshoppers, mice, roots, shrubs, weeds, tubers, and fungi. |
| Predators and Threats |
| Mountain lions, coyotes, dogs, and humans. |
| Habitat |
| Domesticated; found nearly everywhere except Antarctica. Wild habitat is generally moist forests, swamps and shrublands, especially oak forests and regions where reeds are abundant. |
