The Intelligence of Pigs
As a child I went on a family holiday, I was delighted by the presence of dogs during our stay. I loved watching them yawn, the way their eyes crinkled, and their peaceful presence around us. One day when my parents were having dinner, I slipped away to play with one of the dogs. It was sleeping. I tried waking it, and I was greeted with a growl that quickly turned into a snarl. I backed off with the lesson that dogs might not be friendly if one interrupts their sleep.
As an adult I understand that I had invaded the dog’s nap time, I would do the same today if a kid interrupted my sleep. Having spent a lot of time around cats and dogs I understand them. They are not all the same. Not all dogs are friendly and not all cats are mean. They are just like us, with various emotions, and each being has a personality of its own.
Proximity leads to understanding in the case of our pets, we learn their non-verbal cues and in time they become part of our families.
But when we extend this realm of thought to other animals, we hardly know anything.
We consider dogs as worthy companions; they are friendly and intelligent in the way we have defined friendship and intelligence. On the other hand, pigs are considered filthy choosing to reside in places infested with diseases and incapable of feeling emotions worthy of our notice.
This was the image painted by the stories around me and I held this image for a long time until I watched the movie Okja.
The movie ignited my curiosity about pigs, and I wanted to understand more, I went through books like “Inner Life of Animals “and researched online to understand how pigs behave.
It has been proven that pigs are more intelligent than dogs, their intelligence levels are closer to chimpanzees. In fact, pigs can outperform human 3-year-olds on cognition tests.
We all have people in our families who are good with family trees, their memories crawl back to decades remembering people and connecting the dots. Pigs can do something similar. Compared to other animals’ pigs have long-term memories and they can distinguish between family and strangers.
This was an important trait in its ancestor, the wild boar which was territorial and needed to distinguish the family from the rest. Wild boars would let families and even distant relatives into their territory.
Apart from having clear social hierarchies, Pigs are also clean contrary to popular opinion. When provided with enough space pigs tend to choose one area to defecate and keep the rest of the space clean. So next time someone says “You dirty pig” you might want to take a moment to explain that they are mistaken and let them continue.
The image of pig as an intelligent being with complex emotions and long-term memory is alien to us. We are scratching the surface when it comes to understanding these animals, although people who have spent enough time around them are not surprised. While there is a lot of information on dogs and cats, for animals like pigs, cows and animals which tend to become food, the information is scarce and only available for those who seek it.
The movie Okja led me on a quest to know more about pigs and the discoveries have been fascinating. Pigs have social hierarchies, they are clean, and they are intelligent. It is just a different kind of intelligence compared to what humans have.
As a famous quote goes “Dogs look up to you, cats look down upon you and pigs look you right in the eye” Eye contact is a marked sign of intelligence, and pigs displaying it makes one wonder about other animals.
How does a hen behave when left in the open, does a cow have mood swings or is it always kind and benevolent? Do all goats have herd mentality or are there rebel goats?
How would we behave if we were raised in captivity throughout our lives?
