Date: Fri 23-Feb-1996

Publication: Bee

Author: ANDREA

Quick Words:

pig-Hanna-Pot-bellied-animal

Full Text:

WITH PHOTOS: Tai Finds Pig Heaven In Sandy Hook

B Y A NDREA Z IMMERMANN

The mystery of the missing faxes was solved last week when June Hanna caught

her 200-pound Vietnamese Pot-bellied pig eating the paper as it came out of

the machine in her home-based office. Like anything else in the house that

might be eaten by "Tai" - which is everything - it will have to be moved above

pig-level.

"We had had a pony, goat, chickens, and rabbits, but in the wintertime - with

the snow and cold - they didn't get the same attention [as in better

weather]," said Mrs Hanna. The more she read about pot-bellies as indoor pets,

the more she liked the idea of getting one.

In 1992 when she and her husband, Jack, were vacationing in Myrtle Beach,

S.C., Mrs Hanna saw an advertisement for pot-belly pigs in a local newspaper.

It was love at first sight - Tai was the only piglet in the litter with a

white streak down its snout. They put the 10-lb pig in a box and headed back

to Connecticut in their replica Classic Tiffany.

The first night on the road, they carefully smuggled Tai into a motel. "But

when I went out the door to get our things from the car, she screeched like a

human being murdered," Mrs Hanna laughed. That was just the first of many

humourous moments that have ensued during the four years they have owned the

pig.

Within two days of bringing her to their Toddy Hill Road house, Tai was

litterbox trained. She sported a bright pink harness and could explore the

back yard on a 100-ft run. Tai was unhappy being on a lead so the couple let

her loose. She tended to stay close to home but, one day, the temptation of

the neighbor's carrot garden got the better of her.

"They were very much north of us. The people in the house didn't know who

belonged to the pig, so they called the police," said Mrs Hanna. "George

Mattagat picked up Tai and took her to the dog pound. In the meantime, we were

looking for and couldn't find her."

Sunday morning, Mr Hanna thought to call the police station. He was told a pig

had been found, so he offered to provide proof that it belonged to him. "The

officer said, `Sir, how many pigs do you think come through here on a Saturday

night?'" recalled Mrs Hanna.

Tai maintained a constant weight of 40 lbs her first year, but put on the

pounds in the fall when acorns proliferated in the yard. "She spent four,

five, six hours each day carefully eating acorns," said Mrs Hanna. She grew so

fast that within three weeks she looked like a different pig. At 100 lbs she

meandered into Toddy Hill Road and stopped traffic long enough for the police

to be called to the scene.

Pig With Personality

"Tai is a laid back animal," said Mrs Hanna. Her behavior is consistent with

the saying: Never cross a road with a pig unless you have time. "They always

have to stop and think. If you say, `Come to me,' it takes her exactly one

minute to respond."

But when there's food to be had, the pot-belly pig does not hestitate. Like

most pigs, Tai is very smart. Her owner spells out the words "popcorn,"

"doughnuts," "chocolate," and "kitchen" for fear of otherwise rousing the pig

at her side.

Keeping food out of Tai's reach is a challenge at times. For three years the

Hannas had to keep a bungee cord around their refrigerator because their pet

pig could open the door and help herself to anything on the shelves. When the

couple recently moved to a new home in Sandy Hook, they chose a "pig proof"

refrigerator - one with flush doors and high handles.

Tai amazed guests one New Year's Eve party when she opened the refrigerator,

pulled out a six-pack of beer, and then proceeded to open the flip top and

drink each one. A little tipsy, she then climbed onto one of the beds to sleep

it off.

Mrs Hanna said, although pigs have terrible eyesight, Tai must learn by

watching what she and her husband do. "For instance, every Thursday night we

go line-dancing," she said. "When I put on my hat, that must complete Tai's

observation because she goes in the bathroom and shuts the door with a click."

The bathroom in their old house is where the pig would sleep, she explained.

Snout marks bear witness to the fact that Tai can open a sliding glass door.

And she has a trap door that allows her to goes from her pen in the upstairs

bedroom out onto one of five decks. The Hannas, who are finishing a new

colonial in Sandy Hook, actually designed their new home to accommodate the

now 200-lb pot-belly pig. "We designed the office area so she could be near

me," said Mrs Hanna. Her husband built a little corral with a heat lamp in the

bedroom adjacent to the office. And the couple picked out the dark carpeting

with the pig in mind.

The only grooming Mrs Hanna does is to wipe down the coarse-haired pig with a

cloth, and file her hooves. In the summer she hoses her off occasionally. "You

wouldn't believe the mud!" said Mrs Hanna. "She rolls in it on a hot summer

day and all you can see are two little beady eyes."

Tai is a creature of habit - up at dawn, and dead asleep by 3 pm. She loves to

bask in the sun. The pig will chew anything she can get her mouth around -

paper, pens, clothing, shoes, comforter - but she won't swallow it. Tai uses a

scratching post and enjoys a steady diet of hog feed and water, with treats of

grapes and popcorn.

Rooting is also in a pig's nature. This week Tai found an open container of

joint compound in an unfinished bathroom in the new house; she was in pig

heaven until Mr Hanna put an end to her fun.

A True Pot-belly

Although Tai is larger than most people envision a pot-belly pig, Mrs Hanna

said she is the real thing because of her straight tail and low slung wrinkled

belly. Pot-belly pigs were domesticated as house pets and for food as early as

the tenth century.

It is unlikely that many other pigs have their own telephone number, however.

Tai had a listing in last year's phone book and she actually got a few calls.

"People call for telemarketing and ask for Tai," said Mrs Hanna. "I say,

`She's busy right now - does she know you?' And the person says, 'She'll know

me. Tell her Pat's calling.'"