- Pigs are mammals in the Suidae family (genus Sus) of even-toed ungulates.
- The Suidae family includes eight genera and 16 species of pigs.
- Among these species are wild boars, warthogs, pygmy hogs and domestic pigs.
- Pigs, like all Suids, are native to the Old World.
- Some historians theorize that pigs were domesticated about 6000 years ago – one of the first animals to be domesticated!
- Pigs exist on every continent except for Antarctica, northern Africa, and far northern Eurasia, according to the Encyclopaedia of Life.
- Newborn piglets learn to respond to their mothers’ voices, and mother pigs communicate with their babies through grunts while nursing.

- In Denmark, there are twice as many pigs as people.
- Wild pigs play an important role in managing ecosystems and maintaining biodiversity. By rooting, and thus disturbing the soil, they create areas for new plant colonization. They also spread fruit plants by dispersing their seeds.
- The pig is the last of the 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac and is seen to represent fortune, honesty, happiness, and virility.
- People with allergies sometimes have pigs as pets, because they have hair, not fur, and they do not shed.
- Pigs are incredibly social. They form close bonds with each other and other animals.
- Pigs are easily trained to walk on a leash, use a litter box and even do tricks.
- Soldier pigs have gone to war, using their snouts as mine sniffers.