Miniature pig

The first mini pig breed developed in the United States was the Minnesota Miniature, which emerged in the 1940s.A. E. Dettmers, W. E. Rempel, R. E. Comstock: Selection for small size in swine. In: J. Anim Sci. Volume 24, 1965, S. 216–220.A. E. Dettmers, W. E. Rempel, D. E. Hacker: Response to current mass selection for small size in swine. In: J. Anim Sci. Volume 33, 1971, S. 212–215.

In the 1960s, Vietnamese Pot-bellied pigs that grew up to {{convert|200|lb|kg|order=flip}} were sent to zoos in Western cities[https://archive.org/details/fieldguidetopigs0000puki A field guide to pigs], John Pukite, 1964 and were used for medical research in the fields of toxicology, pharmacology, pulmonology, cardiology, aging, and as a source of organs for organ transplantation.{{cite journal | pmc = 2687522 | year = 2009 | last1 = Sachs | first1 = DH | last2 = Galli | first2 = C | title = Genetic Manipulation in Pigs | volume = 14 | issue = 2 | pages = 148–153 | journal = Current Opinion in Organ Transplantation | doi=10.1097/mot.0b013e3283292549 | pmid=19469029}} These comparatively smaller pigs were easier to work with than larger pig breeds, which typically reach weights of {{convert|600|lbs|kg|abbr=on}}.[https://www.g-e-h.de/rassebeschreibungen/50-schweine/303-deutsche-landrasse Deutsche Landrasse], Gesellschaft zur Erhaltung alter und gefährdeter Haustierrassen e.V. (GEH)

Beginning in the late 1960s at the Institute of Animal Breeding and Genetics (Institut für Tierzucht und Haustiergenetik) at the University of Göttingen, Germany, the Göttingen minipig was developed by crossbreeding the Minnesota minipig, the Vietnamese Pot-Bellied pig and the German Landrace pig.Bollen, PJA & Ellegaard, L.(1996). Developments in Breeding Göttingen Minipigs. In Tumbleson & Schook (eds.) Advances in Swine in Biomedical Research. New York: Plenum Press

In the mid-1980s, the Bowmanville Zoo in Ontario imported breeding Vietnamese Pot-Bellied pigs to Canada, which became the foundation for the pot-bellied pig in North America. The breed is known for its small stature, swayed back, and pronounced pot belly. Because of custom laws, only their offspring could be sold in the United States. U.S. zoos were the main target for the offspring.{{Cite web |title=Swine and the City: Pet pig named Frannie stops traffic in NYC |url=https://nypost.com/2023/03/10/pet-pig-named-frannie-stops-traffic-in-nyc/amp/}}{{Cite web |title=Oink in the city: East Village residents bond over their pet pigs |url=http://nypost.com/2020/06/30/east-village-residents-bond-over-their-precious-pet-pigs/}}{{Cite web |title=Family pleads for help as city aims to ‘dispose of’ pet pig |url=http://nypost.com/2017/01/31/family-pleads-for-help-as-city-aims-to-dispose-of-pet-pig/}}

Up to five additional imports were made in the following 10 years. To track the pedigrees, the Potbellied Pig Registry Service, Inc (PPRSI) was created to preserve these bloodlines and establish a breed registry in the United States. This registry was dissolved in the late 1990s.{{cite web|title=History|url=http://www.miniaturepotbelliedpigregistry.com/history.html|publisher=Miniature Potbellied Pig Registry Service, Inc.|access-date=4 February 2013}} Today, most pot-bellied pigs are seldom to never purebred, as the pure breed is critically endangered.

Miniature pigs have been used for medical research, including toxicology, pharmacology, experimental surgery, pulmonology, cardiology, xenotransplantation, orthopedic procedures{{cite journal |title=Trochlear wedge sulcoplasty, tibial tuberosity transposition, and lateral imbrication for correction of a traumatic patellar luxation in a miniature companion pig: A case report and visual description |journal=Frontiers in Veterinary Science|year=2020 |doi=10.3389/fvets.2020.567886 |pmid=33521073 |doi-access=free |last1=Høy-Petersen |first1=J. |last2=Smith |first2=J. S. |last3=Merkatoris |first3=P. T. |last4=Black |first4=K. E. |last5=Faivre |first5=C. M. |last6=Miles |first6=K. G. |last7=Tatarniuk |first7=D. M. |last8=Kraus |first8=K. H. |volume=7 |page=567886 |pmc=7838352 }} and aging studies. Mini pigs are mainly used for biochemical, anatomical, and physiological similarities to humans. They are also quick to develop, making it easier to breed and have more genomic background compared to other animal models of toxicology. Today, more than 60,000 pigs are used for scientific research.Bode, G., Clausing P., Gervais, F., Loegsted, J., Luft, J., Nogues, V., & Sims, J. (2010) The utility of the minipigs as an animal model in regulatory toxicology. Journal of Pharmacological and toxicological methods, 62(3), 196-220.Svendensen, O. (2006). The minipig in toxicology. Experimental and Toxicologic Pathology, 57(5), 335-339.Dolgin, E. (2010). Minipig, Minipig, let me in. Nature Medicine, 16(12), 1349. For example, scientists are working on studying the possibility of utilizing pig hearts for human heart organ transplants, and work has been done to genetically modify the tissues of pigs to be accepted by the human immune system.{{Cite journal|last=Cooper|first=David K. C.|date=2017-03-08|title=A brief history of cross-species organ transplantation|journal=Proceedings (Baylor University. Medical Center)|volume=25|issue=1|pages=49–57|issn=0899-8280|pmc=3246856|pmid=22275786|doi=10.1080/08998280.2012.11928783}}

Miniature pigs are occasionally kept as companion animals, and some have been bred specifically to be marketed for this purpose.{{r|cabi|p=652}}

Pigs have been used in various types of animal-assisted therapy.{{Cite news|last=Ross|first=Jane|date=2019-11-11|title=World's first airport therapy pig hogs the limelight at San Francisco airport|language=en|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-california-therapy-pig-idUSKBN1XL1M7|access-date=2021-01-30}}{{Cite web|last=Baskas|first=Harriet|title=San Francisco airport introduces first 'therapy pig'|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/flights/todayinthesky/2016/12/05/san-francisco-airport-introduces-first-therapy-pig/94983676/|access-date=2021-01-30|website=USA Today|language=en-US}}{{Cite web|title=Therapy Pigs Thunder and Bolt Are Happy to Trade Belly Scratches and Hugs for Smiles|url=https://people.com/pets/therapy-pigs-thunder-and-bolt-tampa-hospital/|access-date=2021-01-30|website=People|language=EN}}{{Cite web|last=McKnight|first=Pat|title=Mini pig trains to work as therapy animal|url=https://www.leadertelegram.com/country-today/country-updates/mini-pig-trains-to-work-as-therapy-animal/article_424480d3-bc33-575e-b11b-c833d21656b1.html|access-date=2021-01-30|website=Leader-Telegram|language=en}}{{Cite web|date=2020-01-29|title=Therapy pigs are here to help humans|url=https://www.kidsnews.com.au/animals/therapy-pigs-are-here-to-help-humans/news-story/f7a3136711d0a0f2be3fa06d65719d0a|access-date=2021-01-30|website=KidsNews|language=en-US}}{{Cite web|last=Daniel|first=Kathryn|date=2018-02-19|title=Therapy pigs in Northwest Florida trained to help veterans suffering from PTSD|url=https://weartv.com/news/local/therapy-pigs-in-northwest-florida-trained-to-help-veterans-suffering-from-ptsd|access-date=2021-01-30|website=WEAR-TV}}{{-}}

Among the naturally-occurring traditional breeds of miniature pig are the following:

class="wikitable"
style="width: 120pt;" | Local name(s)	style="width: 120pt;" | English name if used	style="width: 120pt;" | Country	style="width: 400pt;" |. Notes	style="width: 40pt;" |. Image
Ashanti Dwarf{{r|val|p=206}}		Ghana		style="height: 60px;"|
Bakosi{{r|val|p=206}}		Cameroon		style="height: 60px;"|
Bamaxiang{{r|val|p=181}}		Guangxi, China		style="height: 60px;"|
Chin{{r|val|p=189}}		Myanmar		style="height: 60px;"|
Cuino		Mexico	possibly extinct{{r|val|p=239}}	style="height: 60px;"|
Ghori{{r|val|p=173}}		{{ubl|north-east India|Bhutan|Bangladesh}}		style="height: 60px;"|
Lon Co		Vietnam	central Vietnam{{r|val|p=188}}	style="height: 60px;"|
Lon I	"Vietnamese Pot-bellied"	Vietnam	traditional breed, formerly numerous, now gravely endangered	160px
Ras-n-las		Guam{{r|cabi|p=606}}		style="height: 60px;"|

Among the modern breeds created specifically for laboratory use are the following:

class="wikitable"
style="width: 150pt;" | Name(s)	style="width: 120pt;" | Country	style="width: 400pt;"| Notes	style="width: 40pt;"| Image
Clawn	Japan	bred from 1978 at Kagoshima University from Landrace x Large White, Göttingen Miniature and Ohmini{{r|crc|p=7|cabi|p2=580|val|p3=193}}	style="height: 60px;"|
Froxfield Pygmy		United Kingdom{{r|val|p=115}}	style="height: 60px;"|
{{ubl|Göttingen Minischwein|Göttingen Minipig}}	Germany	bred in the early 1960s at Göttingen University from small Vietnamese pigs and Minnesota Miniature; white variant developed by crossing with German Landrace{{r|val|p=151}}	160px
Hanford Miniature{{r|val|p=151}}	United States		style="height: 60px;"|
Munich Miniature{{r|val|p=151}}	Germany		style="height: 60px;"|
Ohmini	Japan	bred from the 1940s from Chinese pigs and Minnesota Miniature{{r|val|p=193}}	style="height: 60px;"|
Yucatan Miniature{{r|val|p=238}}			style="height: 60px;"|
Yucatan Micropig{{r|val|p=238}}			style="height: 60px;"|

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{{reflist|45em|refs=

Valerie Porter, Lawrence Alderson, Stephen J.G. Hall, D. Phillip Sponenberg (2016). [https://books.google.it/books?id=2UEJDAAAQBAJ&hl=en Mason's World Encyclopedia of Livestock Breeds and Breeding] (sixth edition). Wallingford: CABI. {{isbn|9781780647944}}.

Friederike Köhn (2011). [https://books.google.it/books?hl=en&lr=&id=ugzMBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA7 History and Development of Miniature, Micro- and Minipigs]. In: Peter A. McAnulty, Anthony D. Dayan, Niels-Christian Ganderup, Kenneth L. Hastings (editors) (2011). The Minipig in Biomedical Research. Boca Raton; London; New York: CRC Press (Taylor & Francis Group). {{isbn|9781439811191}}.

Valerie Porter, Jake Tebbit (illustrator) (1993). [https://archive.org/details/pigshandbooktobr0000port/mode/1up Pigs: A Handbook to the Breeds of the World]. Ithaca, New York: Comstock Publishing Associates. {{isbn|1873403178}}.

[s.n.] (2012). [https://www.vetmeduni.ac.at/fileadmin/v/schweineklinik/ratgeber_minipig_2012_01.pdf Der kleine Ratgeber Das Minischwein] (in German). Vienna: Veterinärmedizinische Universität Wien. Accessed January 2025.

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Category:Mammals as pets

Category:Pig breeds originating in Canada