Happy Birthday Lucas!

Happy 1st Birthday Lucas!

Here are some pictures of him before he came to Windy Hill Ranch. Notice how thin and malnourished he was. His only bed was a rolled up hose.

Lucas at 4 months old just days after he arrived. These are my first pictures of him after he learned how to sit on cue.

Him performing the “sit” behavior then.

Look at his “sit” now.

His “lay down” then.

His “lay down” now.

His “Hoola Hoop” behavior then.

The “hoola Hoop” behavior now.

There was a time when he could do this!

The best part of my day… taking him on walks.

On a hot day, he loves dipping into that lake!

What a precious pig! Who couldn’t love this guy?!?

*As always, clicking on the pics will make them bigger. Thank you to Lee and Yuki who took some of the pics featured above.*

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Meet Lucas!

Meet Lucas

Updated 9/28/07

Age:

1 year

Came to Windy Hill Ranch:

At the age of 4 months old on August 30th 2006. He was rescued, and thru friends of Windy Hill Ranch, he found his way here.

He is a Hampshire Pig

Last Weighed in at:

381 lbs

Nicknames:

Lucas Piggie, Piggers

Why does it look like pieces of his ear are missing?

He has ear notches. Farmers will notch their pig’s ears to tell them apart from other pigs. His left ear tells us which number in his litter he is. The right ear tells us which litter he was from. According to the notches, Lucas is the second baby born into his mother’s 5th litter.
I think the notches make him look like a little Papillon dog, so sometimes I call him, “my little papillon.”

Aren’t pigs just dirty animals that spend all day just making a mess in the mud?

They are not dirty animals. The reason why pigs spend a lot of time in the mud is to keep themselves cool. Pigs can not sweat like humans and they do not pant like a dog. The only way they can cool off during the hot summer days, is by laying in the mud. Sometimes it gets to be more than 100 degrees here at Windy Hill Ranch! So the pigs are very thankful they have mud to relax in. The mud also helps keep the flies away and helps to keep them from getting sun burned.

Pigs are also very smart. Some even say they are smarter than dogs. Lucas is very much like having a dog. He follows me everywhere I go. He has learned to do behaviors like a dog could. But, before you start thinking… aww he’s so cute and I want one, just remember that he’s just a baby right now, imagine him at 600 + lbs! It’s a good thing he’s here at Windy Hill Ranch.

Let’s take a look at all the things Lucas has learned to do so far …

Look … I go thru a hoop!

And I can even jump like the big horses over at El Campeon Farms!

I learned to sit within minutes. It was the first thing I learned to do and I love doing it all the time! (She gives me yummy watermelon. My favorite!)

I can also sit and stay. I sit so pretty while my trainer walks away.

I love to play with the ball

I have also learned to circle in place.

Here I am following a target pole with my nose and going thru my trainer’s legs. I won’t be able to do this when I get big!

This is how pigs give high 5’s!

I can shake your hand hello.

I’ve even learned to lay down!

*I hope you’ve enjoyed meeting Lucas. As always, clicking on the photos will make them bigger. This page will be updated continually as Lucas grows, learns new behaviors and new photos are taken. I encourage you to come back often. This page will be linked to his photo on the side bar. *

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