1.3.2024 -
On the day of the pig
From the perspective of an Aiderbichler
(written by Gisela Pschenitschnig)
If meat is eaten in Austria, then it is pork: on average, more than 34 kilograms are consumed per person per year. This considerable demand could be met exclusively with Austrian pork, as domestic farms produce even more than is eaten in Austria. However, a considerable proportion of the pork produced in Austria is exported. In order to meet our demand, almost 170,000 tonnes of pork are imported, as imported pork is sometimes significantly cheaper than Austrian pork. This exchange also has to do with the eating habits of Austrians. Fatty cuts of pork or even the snout, ears and feet are hardly used in Austrian kitchens. In other countries, such as China, these cuts are in high demand. On the Asian market, pigs’ feet are prized as a delicacy. The most important importer of Austrian pork is Italy, followed by China and South Korea.
As intelligent and sensitive as dogs
The majority of pigs lead a life in highly mechanised fattening farms. Cramped conditions, boredom and no chance to fulfil more than their basic needs. Neither the emotions nor the intelligence of the pig are given any importance in a fattening farm.
Pigs are not dirty or smell bad. However, this is only possible if they can lie in a generously littered straw bed and have enough space to set up their toilet corners. There is no straw on the fully slatted floors of pig farms. Here it stinks of foul-smelling digestive gases, the floors are slippery and: it is not at all about the welfare of the pigs, but about rearing them “meaty” in order to fill the refrigerated shelves in the supermarkets after slaughter.
Let’s hope that the discussion about the end of fully slatted floors will soon come to an end and that pigs will be kept in spacious, clean and straw-scented pens. Perhaps those in favour of fully slatted floors will also remember how much pigs love to walk, how much they want to enjoy the sun and the generous living space.
Miss Piggy and Wutzi
Miss Piggy and Wutzi are red-coloured Husum pigs. This huge breed of pig comes from North Friesland. The small animal farm where they lived had to be closed down. The animal owner tried to find good accommodation for her animals. Miss Piggy and Wutz came to Gut Aiderbichl Henndorf.
The two radiate peace and contentment and were not kept as therapy pigs for nothing. In the pig palace, Miss Piggy and her son Wutzi have lots of “piggy neighbours” – everything is fine.
Pigs are very talkative. They grunt all day long – sometimes louder, sometimes quieter. Did you know that pigs have 244 different “oink” sounds to communicate with each other?
The prejudice of the “stupid pig” is more than unfair. Miss Piggy and Wutz observe humans, watch us very closely and can imitate us quite a bit. They also talk to us using their 244 different oink sounds. Each “oink” has a meaning, which is also defined by higher or lower, quieter “oink” sounds.
Pigs are highly intelligent creatures and are in no way inferior to man’s best friend – the dog. They learn their names and always know exactly who is meant. They also choose their favourite people. In a group, they learn from each other, work together and can act tactically. They love to be lazy, and for at least 15 hours a day they simply choose not to be active. They doze off, snore or simply bury themselves in the straw and prefer to snuggle up close to their friends.
My friend Susi
Susi has been living at Gut Aiderbichl in Henndorf for some time now. She is a former fattening pig who had been left alone in the pig pen of the breeding barn. She was injured on her hind legs, had inflamed legs and was dehydrated. It was impossible for her to get to the water or feed trough due to her injuries. One day, Susi was discovered in the stable by a vet: huddled up, apathetic and in pain, he found the animal lying on its side
Susi now recognises me “without words”. She recognises me by my voice and happily gets up from the straw bed to greet me with loud, joyful “oink calls”. She loves being cuddled behind her ears and on her back. Susi also loves the silence, stands by the fence and enjoys it when I put my hand on her forehead. We enjoy these few quiet minutes until Jürgen, who has been sharing the straw bed with Susi for a few months, makes himself known. Pig friend Jürgen weighs over 300kg, but he also has the most loyal pig eyes, which look at me and say “It’s all good, I know you two are old friends!”.
Pigs are wonderful and lovable personalities and deserve laws and people who respect their existence. Yours, Gisela
"Just like us humans, animals have a central nervous system and therefore also experience the world very consciously. They can hear, smell, taste, feel and see and perceive stimuli from their surroundings. Many animals can do these things even better than humans."
~Albert Schweitzer
More stories
On the day of the pig
From the perspective of an Aiderbichler
(told by Gisela Pschenitschnig)
My grandmother had a small farm in Carinthia, which also included Anna and Liesi, two pigs. I always spent my summer holidays with my grandmother and loved spending time in the barn with the animals. We always had breakfast together with Anna and the three-legged Liesi: I ate my sandwich and the pigs slurped up their pig’s breakfast.
During the guided tours, I always realise how much the visitors would like to stroke a pig. So I tell them the stories of our pigs and you often find me sitting in the straw next to the huge trunked animals. In the course of my stories, more and more big and small hands tentatively dare to come up to the pig and scratch it behind the ears or on the belly.
The pig is intelligent and socialised
It is said that pigs are stupid and dirty. However, pigs that are kept in spacious stables use a corner as a “toilet” and would never soil the straw on which they lie.
Wallowing in the mud is an innate behaviour that serves to cleanse and cool down. Pigs have no sweat glands, so wallowing in the cool mud bath lowers their body temperature, while the mud on their skin protects them from sunburn.
The pig’s brain works intelligently and so, unfortunately, pigs are also used in behavioural research…
Pigs in the test laboratory in the service of humans
Physiologically, pigs and humans are very similar. Pigs are susceptible to stress and have similar cardiovascular problems to humans.
Pig skin is also very similar in structure to that of humans. For example, if a human has extensive burns, pig skin is transplanted.
Many visitors have nodded their heads during the tour in recent years when I have told them that there are people who can continue to live with a pig’s heart when theirs is sick.
Slaughterhouses closed due to the coronavirus pandemic
As an animal and human lover, I read headlines like this with a smile and a tear in my eye. Laughing because fewer animals have to die, crying because, of course, human livelihoods suffer due to the lack of income.
During the coronavirus pandemic, the number of coronavirus cases also increased in slaughterhouses, meaning that animals could not be collected from fattening farms and slaughtered.
In Germany alone, over 600,000 pigs were waiting in the stables. The animals had to continue to be fed, they gained weight and eventually exceeded the slaughter weight. The ideal slaughter weight is 95kg. Every additional kilo is deducted from the price. Consumers and their consumption behaviour decide whether animals suffer or are happy.
Once upon a time there was a vet who fell in love with a pig …
You don’t have to have a Wiener schnitzel or a steak on your plate seven times a week. A creamy vegetable soup and a pancake with apricot jam also make us happy. Yours sincerely, Gisela
