My best friend so happens to be a pig: a red wattle pig the color of cinnamon.

My pig's name is, apprepriately enough, "Red".  "Red-The-Pig".  As far as pigs go, he's a rather handsome fellow with a loving personality, but he will let his feelings be known if anybody is trying to harm me or my family, let alone, any of the pigs.  Red is very temperamental, but around people he knows, he's as gentle as a newborn kitten (or a lamb).

I acquired Red from a friend of mine who raises pigs.  Seeing that I live on a farm, I knew that Red would have a nice place to live.  I welcomed him with open arms and he's been here ever since. 

I have had Red for over five years now.  He is a big fella: well over 600 pounds easy, with a humongous appetite, big brown/black eyes fringed with long, blue-black lashes, a huge snout, and a curly pig tail on the end of his emmense rump.  He looks like he can be mean a lot of the time (and sometimes he CAN be), but most of the time he is as gentle as they come.

My wife and children can go right up to him and pet him; if he could purr, I believe he would,  Instead, he nuzzles at them with his snout and makes happy little grunting/snorting noises, rubbing their hands with his immense head.  Other people, meanwhile, he watches warily, but once he knows that they won't harm him (or us), then he turns friendly and sweet.

Red eats well: leftover foods that we save just for him; his favorites are pumpkins, all veggies, meat (particularly chicken and turkey; he hates ham ... I wonder why?? ... , as well as beef), and pumpkins/squash/melons.  He gets three square meals a day and is given fresh water up to five times a day.  He loves to eat, which is how he got so large in the first place.

This year, if all goes well, we plan on entering "Red" in our local county fair's pig show.  If he does well in that, then we will shoot for the State Fair of Ohio and see if he can take the state's top prize.  We would love to see him win, but we don't want to see him get slaughtered.  We have become really attached to Red and we will do all we can to save his ... ahem! ... bacon!  (A little pig humor there, folks! LOL)

Red is certainly something special; he makes an excellent conversation piece, primarily because of his color.  Most pigs are pink, white, black, brown, or a combination of the four: meanwhile, Red is the color of cinnamon: a gorgeous chestnut-red hue.  That is the normal color for a wattle pig, which is a breed that originates from eastern Texas.  Wattle pigs are known for their color, mild temperament, foraging ability, and large size/rapid weight gain (some wattles can be as much as 1,200 in weight!!). 

Anyway, I think Red is gorgeous and I am so glad I have him in my life!  He may be a pig, but to me he's one of the most beautiful creatures I have ever seen (or had the pleasure of owning)!