To say no to visiting pigs for Christmas??

[PigAuntie]

My sister wants to buy my niece and nephew micro pigs for Christmas. They are coming to stay with us for Christmas so she wants to know if she can bring them with her!!!
AIBU to say no because

• we don’t want pigs running around our house partly due to we have no idea (and neither does she) if They will be chewers/poo everywhere/cry all night plus they are tiny and will be at danger of being stood on
• we have a 3 bed semi, with 9 people, Xmas tree, extra chairs etc it’s already going to be crowded enough and we don’t have the space to put a pig pen anywhere - the conversatory is already taken over by the guinea pigs cage. (C&C open type)
• I don’t agree with animals being given as Christmas presents as Christmas is busy and chaotic and full of noise and lights and wrapping paper and choas. I believe a new pet needs to be introduced to a family in a calm and serene environment where they can get used to each other and the animal can retreat to a safe place when they need too
• I also don’t think any animal should go an3 hour journey unless absolutely necessary or they have got used to car journeys
• you need a permit to move pigs to another premises and I think are them not allowed to move them again for 20 days!!!
• Christmas is my favourite time of the year and I don’t want it overshadowed by pigs!
• we will all be drinking (as is the nature of Xmas day) so I don’t think we should be in charge of tiny piglets when no one knows exactly what they are doing with them.

On a positive note I have found out that DH is the perfect mumsnetter husband, his response was ‘fuck no, that’s all you need to say, just no, don’t need to justify it, we say no that’s it!! So I’m happy to loan him to help people with CF’s!!!

Did anyone else think this was going to be about humans with terrible table manners from the title?

Momentarily yes!

And I agree OP you win the award for most batshit relative at Christmas.

Tell her it's a bad idea, you will be making pigs in blankets and don't want there to be any unforeseen incidents.

Only if she wraps them in blankets.

...and then show her this
www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/shortcuts/2019/oct/18/big-porkie-why-do-we-keep-falling-for-the-myth-of-the-micro-pig

Tell her she's welcome to bring them, you were planning on roast suckling pig for dinner and this way it will be cheaper...

I always understood you have to register the land pigs are to be kept on. You have to follow the same rules as pig farmers. So unless she registers your land (which takes 30 days) she wouldn't be able to bring them...

www.gov.uk/guidance/keeping-a-pet-pig-or-micropig

HTH

YANBU. Your sister is a fucking moron. Buying kids pigs for Christmas? That’s a disgrace. Absolutely awful. I can’t believe people do this.

Good God no. I love animals, I really love pigs, but there is no way in hell I would be even entertaining this on Christmas day. No animal should be given as a Christmas present, let alone TWO piglets in an unsuitable, rented house, and then to expect to bring them to yours as well - she has to be having a laugh, surely?!

Tell her you've all got swine flu.

She is monumentally stupid and selfish. Pigs are very bright and they deserve better than this.

The saddest thing, I think, about the twits getting these poor pigs, is the fact that they will be spoilt for the first few months or years of their life, living in a house, getting cuddles, sleeping in a warm room, etc.

Then when the prats give up on them, they’re going to end up carted off, confused, cold, scared, stuck in a field, where they might be ‘lucky’ enough to have a kind farmer or rescue organisation look after them, but it the most home unlike circumstances imaginable to them or killed in an abattoir with the sounds of frighted pigs and the smell of blood. If you did that to a dog, there would be absolute uproar and rightfully so.

This isn’t a vegan rant, btw, this is a fucking think before you buy a poor pig as a pet, rant. I’m not going to talk about farm fared pigs, because this is about the pig raised as a pet. Both entitled to kindness but to treat one as a pet to then have this happen to them, is the ultimate act of cruelty.

"My sister wants to buy my niece and nephew micro pigs for Christmas. They are coming to stay with us for Christmas so she wants to know if she can bring them with her!!!"

No. Or maybe even a "Fuck, no!" as your husband suggests.

Your sister is insane, and I'd be making it very clear that no pigs are going to cross my threshold, and if she turns up with them she'll be turned away.

And I agree with all your reasons. If a dog isn't just for Christmas then neither is a pig.

Adding to the chorus of is she utterly batshit. My dad was from rural Ireland and most people had pigs. He said, a bad tempered one could take chunks out of you. It’s cruel to the pigs and potentially dangerous.

this is brilliant, of course the micro pigs should come to you for Christmas, can you set up an instagram account for their adventures please

What could possibly go wrong?

Well, pigs are quite easily bored and will probably wreck her house, may bite her family and reach sexual maturity fairly young (this will be a real problem if they suddenly have an aggressive boar to deal with). Then there is the landlord who will almost certainly evict the family, the fact that pigs practically shit paperwork and DEFRA isn't an organisation I'd like to piss off. That's without regulations about feeding, or any consideration for medical needs. Pissed-off neighbours are very likely to report the disturbance, this isn't the sort of thing that you can get away with in a house you don't own, especially if you have close neighbours.

Apart from all that, it sounds like a great idea! I kept pigs for a while (on my actual farm) and I don't any more, because they are much more difficult than sheep imo (and I wasn't too fond of the sheep!).

One more thought- please tell me that she isn't getting one male and one female?

No sane landlord would say yes to this, surely? At least she's asking them though, I'll give her that.

Nope on pigs as pets and bringing them for Christmas. All the way no.

Yeah, the landlord will say no so I think that's problem solved.

I kept pigs for a while (on my actual farm) and I don't any more, because they are much more difficult than sheep you just reminded me of the great piglet escape of 1978! Mamma pig managed to break her gate open and all we saw was a dozen excited piglets dashing out of the pig house, in all directions followed by oinking mum. Lambs are bad enough to catch, but at lest the have wool you can grab! Pigs? That’s a whole other game of chase!

She's and eejit!
Pigs in houses? Animal farm!
Fuck off!
Cute and all while they're piglets...but man the novelty will soon wear off.

Oh and can I borrow your husband? I don't have one.

Totally missing the point but how is she going to get the pigs to yours without the kids noticing? I remember we once transported a big dolls house covered in a blanket in the car seat next to dd for her Xmas present but pigs are a whole different matter. They wriggle!

There are small breeds of pigs - kunekune,.Minnesota mini pigs etc, but they are small for pigs - not small in an objective sense.

They still grow too big too keep as house pets. Pigs are highly intelligent animals, and they have a lot of quite specialised requirements to keep them healthy and happy.

You'll also find that they can't just be taken for walks because of government restrictions on the movement of livestock.

And she'll need a specialist vet. Pigs can get ill very quickly their living conditions aren't just right.

I hate pigs. I wouldn’t have someone’s dog over either. In fact, no animals permitted in my house, except Doug (Hamster), but he’s OK.

@T0tallyFuckedUpFamily I know I shouldn't laugh..... but I am!

The thought of you chasing 12 piglets!

She will need a CPH number in order to keep pigs at any address. No breeder will give her pigs without this number, as it is required by law to complete a movement licence of pigs. Both parties must have a CPH number. (County Parish Holding number). The fines for moving pigs without the current documents are huge. She is clearly a total idiot. On the plus side, pigs are very clever, would be fine for a few days in a house and not really any more hassle than bringing a puppy ....

Reminds me of when my DSis turned up for a family holiday (6 adults 11 children) with 5 baby chicks, 2 guinea pigs and a puppy. All new and all ran riot in a holiday home with a no animal policy. She was very annoyed that I was stressed. Then one of the chicks died - cue 11 distraught children. Great holiday.