Hubbie and "the dogs"

Hubert hates Eddie. Eddie didn't really do anything to him or at least not anything that we witnessed; but, just to smell Eddie is enough for Hubert to start grunting up a storm. I actually ran an experiment where I petted Hubert with my left hand and then the second I switched overt to my right hand (that had previously petted Eddie), he showed his displeasure. WE NEED a PIG WISPERER. I actually felt Hubert's teeth on my hand.

I'm going to determine if it's Eddie or dogs in general that Hubert dislikes. I'm going to pet Abbie before Hubert and see how he reacts.

Another anecdote with regard to dogs and Hubert is when my daughter, Adrienne, the Veterinary Assistant, came by to visit after work. With her, Hubert was much more of a a "cantankerous bastard," as a friend of the family had pegged Hubert. We surmised that Adrienne, dealing with dogs all day, had--to Hubert--smelled like a dozen dogs caught in the rain.

I've never been as understanding with other animals as I've been with Hubert. I ask myself how I would feel if my only tools for conveying information to a caretaker were a snout, a mouth, and some grunts. I allow Hubert to feign biting me because that's a built in "word" for him to convey displeasure. Hubert, to his credit, always lets me "fight back." He never escalates the fight except perhaps to keep grunting for he must have the last word especially on issues that are important to him (food & chillin).

A quick note on his sense of smell. The other day I poked my head through the basement door. I looked to see if Hubert was around. He wasn't eating so he must have been in his room about 25 feet away from where I stood at the door. It was just a momentary look and I was on my way. As I ascended the stairs to my room, Hubert came out grunting for me.

Hubert shows hi s displeasure

"Dad, will you come and look at Hubert. He's acting a little strange," said my Son, Andre, this morning. I went out on the porch to look out towards the yard. "Do you think he's all right?," continued my son.

Hubert had been laying across a flower bed for about 15 minutes according to my son. It was unusual only because it was a very chilly day with a nasty wind chill added on. Hubert preferred his warmth. I said to myself that he might have had a fever; knowing that animals under God's care usually know how to take care of themselves.

I told my son I had no idea what was wrong but I wasn't too concerned because my son managed to call him into the basement

Well, a few hours passed and I saw Hubert chilling with my daughter on top of the hill at the far end of our yard. I went out there to do what I usual do with Hubert (walk him, scratch him, and bring him back for some fruit treats). On our way back, Hubert had seen me take down a rug that he had used for most of the winter and which was cleaned and laid out in the Sun for drying. At the point where the rug had hit the ground, Hubert started sniffing and refused to come with me into the basement.

I took the rug back into the basement where I was going to lay it out in his room. My son stopped me and with paint roller in his hand and said that I wasn't going to be able to set up the rug because he had moved a whole bunch of stuff into Hubert's room temporarily. Aha! Poor Hubert had been expressing his displeasure over what Andre had done to his sleeping quarters. The poor thing had no room to even turn around.

In the chilly air, poor Hubert was telling us that he didn't like what we had done. When he smelled his old rug, he was telling me that he wanted his life put back the way it was.

When an animal acts strangely, when he refuses to do things he's always done, you should stand back, look at the situation and figure it out. They act differently for a reason. Find out why and maybe God will look down upon you a little less harshly for having taken an animal away from nature and into human society. IMHO.

Winterizing the Pig

Hubert, I discovered, doesn't like snow--he thinks he's going to sink into it. He also doesn't like slippery surfaces like ice-covered sidewalks--he hates it when he slides. It's related to his dislike of hills or slopes. Hubert is a pig who enjoys his low center of gravity and anything that threatens that joy soon becomes an object of scorn.

During a particularly nasty climate in NJ, Hubert had the hardest time leaving the basement to venture out to the yard to poop. I finally had to entice him with dried apricots onto the patio. He normally avails himself of the lawn but, being that it was snow-covered, he would not go there. Still, no pooping. Then I saw him trying to dig into the hard patio surface. I reasoned that he was looking for evidence of earth. Apparently, that's there main criteria for suitable defecation surface. I got some of his old poop from the compost heap, added some dirt and threw it on the patio. Hubert then lifted up his tail because, for him, or was right with world. Prior to this episode, Hubert had used his own carpet to defecate. Why? Well, it was because the carpet had not been kept very clean of mud and the smell of dirt had triggered Hubert's release of poop.

Concerning brushing, VPB pigs definitely need it to get rid of large skin flakes that stick to their hair with a tenacious static electricity. This year, we're looking into the possibility of buying skin conditioner by the gallon. Speaking of hair, Hubert is growing the most splendid "Mohawk" atop his head. His hair has grown to a length of 3 inches over most of his body.

Hubert's Frosty Winter

I thought Hubert would not venture out on the cold being that he's from Vietnam and is not equipped for the cold but that turned out not to be his main concern.

When faced with snow, Hubert apparently tests the first inch or so and decides that it may be some kind of swamp or quicksand and will not put his full weight on it. I know this because, after shoveling the snow down to the ground, Hubert determined that it was safe and went out to do his business. But, interestingly, not until I left him alone near the door to the outside to contemplate the situation. While I remained at that door, Hubert kept trying to tell me that he would prefer for me to come into the basement and give him some goodies there. I was not about to give in to him and proceeded to walk away into the yard to play ball with the dogs. Sure enough, he was soon in the yard grunting about why he couldn't have stayed in Texas where it was warm all year long. [he was born in Texas].

I also noticed on a previous day, where the ground was covered with just a dusting of snow, that Hubert needs to recognize (smell) the ground. Only after he digged around with his snout did he poop and pee.

Hubert is also terrified of icy conditions. If he detects that he may slide, he does not continue along the same path but finds an alternate route around. Aren't we all like that? Afraid of the road less-traveled.

Hubert is very good at pooping and peeing in areas that are removed from his bedding and his food dish. Yesterday, he had to "go" but Grandma, who usually lets him out in the morning, was not around to open the outside door. Hubert went into my son's (his owner's) room in the basement and pooped there. [My son's room had been left open by Grandpa who needed to make sure that my son, vacationing in Columbia, had not left any heaters on.] I should have suspected something when, later that day, when I took him for his walk, his volume of poop was greatly diminished. My son had told me that these pigs hold their poop for days if they have to in order not to do their business near their living quarters. Ha, Hubert had determined that the operative words were "out of sight" of your living quarters.
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Hubert chilling in the Fall.

This is Hubert taking his daily walk with me. His tail it not up in the air which means he's not fertilizing the bush. I don't know if it's intentional but Hubert has a preference for plants. It's almost as if he knows that if he does for them (the plants) they'll do for him (berries, leaves).

As you can see, he's kind of exotic looking--very Asian eyes.

He's become very tolerant of Abby, one of our two dogs, but he still gets upset if Abby tries to come into his "room" where he sleeps.
The weather is getting colder. It's now nearly December but the cold days that we've had do not seem to bother Hubert. He still ventures into the yard and will chill underneath his favorite table if the Sun is shining. I think his black coat keeps him somewhat warm. We'll see what the Winter holds for his majesty.

Hubert at a garden wedding.

This is Hubert at my son's garden wedding in July of this 2007. He cleared away the mulch and began to make himself a mud bath. He was the hit of the wedding and was very well behaved but then, people were feeding him food all day.

Hubert gets a taste of his own medicine

There we were; a bunch of us gathered in our backyard. Our neighbor had some relatives over and one of them wanted to see Hubert. He didn't need much prompting because wherever there is a crowd, there is Hubert smack dab in the middle of things.

I took out some soy nuts so that the relative could see Hubert munch on something. But Eddie, our Jack Russell Terrier, asked for some for himself. Now, Eddie does not particularly like nuts but being a JRT he wanted some of the action. I threw some near him and Hubert went over to get them. Well, you'd think someone was trying to abscond with Eddie's meat chunks. He growled at poor Hubert and faked biting him. Hubert was flaggergasted and walked away. I gave him more soy nuts.

BTW,I figured out why Hubert always seems to be in the middle of things. It's just that he isn't very nimble and must plant himself like a log if he is to be at all social.