Pigs were domesticated thousands of years ago. They are farmed for their meat and hides. There are still many wild pigs, like the wild boar, the warthog, and the bushpig. Pigs are found on every continent on Earth except Antarctica.
Names: Pigs are also called hogs or swine. The adult female is called a sow. The adult male is called a boar. A baby is called a piglet.
Anatomy: Pigs vary in color from brown, black, white, to pinkish. Some wild pigs have large tusks, overgrown teeth used for fighting and digging for food.
Diet: Pigs are omnivores . They eat a variety of plants and small animals.
Classification: Class Mammalia, Order Artiodactyla, Family Suidae.
A pig has a snout for a nose, small eyes, and a small tail, which may be curly, kinked, or straight. It has a thick body, short legs, and coarse hair. There are four toes on each foot, with the two large middle toes used for walking.
pigs are omnivores, which means that they consume both plants and animals. Pigs will scavenge and have been known to eat any kind of food, including dead insects, worms, tree bark, rotting carcasses, garbage, and even other pigs. In the wild, they are foraging animals, primarily eating leaves, grasses, roots, fruits and flowers. Occasionally while in captivity, pigs may eat their own young if they become severely stressed. A typical pigs has a large head with a long snout which is strengthened by a special bone called the prenasal bone and by a disk of cartilage in the tip.The snout is used to dig into the soil to find food and is a very sensitive sense organ.
Pigs have a full set of 44 teeth. The canine teeth, called tusks, grow continually and are sharpened by the lowers and uppers rubbing against each other.
Pigs that are allowed to forage may be watched by swineherds. Because of their foraging abilities and excellent sense of smell, they are used to find truffles in many European countries. Domesticated pigs are commonly raised as livestock by farmers for meat , as well as for leather. Their bristly hairs are also used for brushes. Some breeds of pigs, such as the Asian pot-bellied pigs, are kept as pets.
Breeding occurs throughout the year in the tropics, but births peak around rainy seasons. A female pigs can become pregnant at around 8-18 months of age. She will then go into estrus every 21 days if not bred. Male pigs become sexually active at 8-10 months of age. A litter of piglets typically contains between 6 and 12 piglets. After the young are weaned, two or more families may come together until the next mating season.
Pigs do not have functional sweat glands,so pigs cool themselves using water or mud during hot weather. They also use mud as a form of sunscreen to protect their skin from sunburn. Mud also provides protection against flies and parasites.
Categories: types of pigs
Tuesday, July 22nd, 2008 at 10:53 pm and is filed under types of pigs. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
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2008年9月17日星期三
2008年9月5日星期五
Dog Health Checkups Are Essential For The Health Of Your Pit Bull Terrier
All responsible dog owners know that when your pet shows signs of feeling ill or gets injured that it's time for a visit to the veterinarian.
Naturally, it is important to take your pet to the vet when there is a problem, but many people forget the importance of taking their pets to the doctor when they are healthy! Taking your Pit Bull to the vet for routine well check-ups and vaccinations can prevent many serious medical conditions, and treat others early on before they have a chance to progress and endanger your Pit Bull’s health.
No matter how good the care you provide for your Pit Bull is, you may miss early signs of disease that the vet would be able to spot at a routine visit. Catching many diseases early can help prevent them from becoming major health issues. Animals often try to hide any sign of illness, because it can be a sign of weakness to other animals. Your Pit Bull’s ability to hide symptoms makes them that much harder to catch early on.
Taking your Pit Bull for preventative care can often save you quite a bit of money. Diseases left untreated can be very costly to treat, amassing tremendous bills along the way. By early diagnosis and treatment, you can prevent it from ever getting to that level, therefore saving yourself a lot of money.
By having routine visits with your Pit Bull, your veterinarian will learn what is normal for your dog, as no two animals are quite the same. In learning what is considered normal for your Pit Bull, your vet will be better able to tell when something isn’t quite right, and provide prompt medical treatment. Your vet will keep records of every visit, so that he can refer back to them, which will help in treating old problems, and diagnosing new ones.
At your yearly well checkup, your vet will also check to see if your Pit Bull is getting the right diet he needs. The vet will suggest changes to help if your Pit Bill is overweight, or malnourished. This can be vital to your pet’s health. Obesity is a major problem that can cause your pet to suffer from a variety of medical problems. It is also crucial that he get proper nutrition, and your vet can prescribe supplements as needed.
Providing routine veterinary care is a vital part of taking care of your Pit Bull. You are responsible for his well-being, and your vet can help you make sure everything is as it should be. Please don’t take these yearly preventative check-ups for granted, your Pit Bull’s health depends on them.
Naturally, it is important to take your pet to the vet when there is a problem, but many people forget the importance of taking their pets to the doctor when they are healthy! Taking your Pit Bull to the vet for routine well check-ups and vaccinations can prevent many serious medical conditions, and treat others early on before they have a chance to progress and endanger your Pit Bull’s health.
No matter how good the care you provide for your Pit Bull is, you may miss early signs of disease that the vet would be able to spot at a routine visit. Catching many diseases early can help prevent them from becoming major health issues. Animals often try to hide any sign of illness, because it can be a sign of weakness to other animals. Your Pit Bull’s ability to hide symptoms makes them that much harder to catch early on.
Taking your Pit Bull for preventative care can often save you quite a bit of money. Diseases left untreated can be very costly to treat, amassing tremendous bills along the way. By early diagnosis and treatment, you can prevent it from ever getting to that level, therefore saving yourself a lot of money.
By having routine visits with your Pit Bull, your veterinarian will learn what is normal for your dog, as no two animals are quite the same. In learning what is considered normal for your Pit Bull, your vet will be better able to tell when something isn’t quite right, and provide prompt medical treatment. Your vet will keep records of every visit, so that he can refer back to them, which will help in treating old problems, and diagnosing new ones.
At your yearly well checkup, your vet will also check to see if your Pit Bull is getting the right diet he needs. The vet will suggest changes to help if your Pit Bill is overweight, or malnourished. This can be vital to your pet’s health. Obesity is a major problem that can cause your pet to suffer from a variety of medical problems. It is also crucial that he get proper nutrition, and your vet can prescribe supplements as needed.
Providing routine veterinary care is a vital part of taking care of your Pit Bull. You are responsible for his well-being, and your vet can help you make sure everything is as it should be. Please don’t take these yearly preventative check-ups for granted, your Pit Bull’s health depends on them.
2008年9月1日星期一
Pet Insurance: What Exactly is Pet Insurance?
It might seem like an unnecessary expense; but you would never consider going without health insurance for your family - why should your pet be any different? Health insurance for pets is by no means a new concept - people have been doing it for years and saving hundreds of dollars on healthcare for their pets. Veterinary costs have sky rocketed and even a simple problem can cost you thousands of dollars to fix. You don't want to be put in the position of choosing between an expensive life saving operation or saying goodbye to your beloved pet.
Dog healthcare plans can vary greatly and you need to choose carefully when looking for the best coverage for your pet.
Some plans cover normal expenses like annual checkups and other routine care. Others only cover sickness or injury. If you are handling the general costs fine and just need something incase of sickness of emergency its worthwhile to consider a plan that caters for serious conditions. Like human healthcare plans - emergency coverage begins right away but you might have to wait a month or so for the other benefits to kick in.
Coverage and costs involved depend on your pet’s age, breed- some even take into account whether your dog is a pet or a watchdog too. The insurance will also take into account whether your pet has preexisting conditions.
General plans should include regular vet visits and long term illnesses/diseases. There are more comprehensive coverage plans; these cost more but if you want the best treatment for your pet its worth considering a plan that includes coverage against poisoning or accidents. Most pet healthcare plans will start coverage when your puppy is as young as 6 weeks. They generally don't insure pets older than 8 years of age. But look around; some policies can cover pets up to 27 years of age. Be sure to read the fine print and check what you are getting for your money. Doing a simple search on Google for "pet health insurance' should return many results. There is a wide variety of pet insurance. Compare and choose wisely.
There are other alternatives when it comes to healthcare. If you don't' want to take out an expensive policy there are some small ways to offset the costs of pet healthcare. Consider asking your vet if there are discounts; cash discounts, discounts for more than one pet etc. You could also check out some discount policies like Pet Assure. It's recommended that you get pet insurance; try to think of it as a normal expense that comes along with having a pet. It's well worth it to think carefully about what kind of insurance you choose. Choose well and you can rest assured that whatever the emergency - you're covered.
Dog healthcare plans can vary greatly and you need to choose carefully when looking for the best coverage for your pet.
Some plans cover normal expenses like annual checkups and other routine care. Others only cover sickness or injury. If you are handling the general costs fine and just need something incase of sickness of emergency its worthwhile to consider a plan that caters for serious conditions. Like human healthcare plans - emergency coverage begins right away but you might have to wait a month or so for the other benefits to kick in.
Coverage and costs involved depend on your pet’s age, breed- some even take into account whether your dog is a pet or a watchdog too. The insurance will also take into account whether your pet has preexisting conditions.
General plans should include regular vet visits and long term illnesses/diseases. There are more comprehensive coverage plans; these cost more but if you want the best treatment for your pet its worth considering a plan that includes coverage against poisoning or accidents. Most pet healthcare plans will start coverage when your puppy is as young as 6 weeks. They generally don't insure pets older than 8 years of age. But look around; some policies can cover pets up to 27 years of age. Be sure to read the fine print and check what you are getting for your money. Doing a simple search on Google for "pet health insurance' should return many results. There is a wide variety of pet insurance. Compare and choose wisely.
There are other alternatives when it comes to healthcare. If you don't' want to take out an expensive policy there are some small ways to offset the costs of pet healthcare. Consider asking your vet if there are discounts; cash discounts, discounts for more than one pet etc. You could also check out some discount policies like Pet Assure. It's recommended that you get pet insurance; try to think of it as a normal expense that comes along with having a pet. It's well worth it to think carefully about what kind of insurance you choose. Choose well and you can rest assured that whatever the emergency - you're covered.
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