Pigs: Tiffany, Prince of Darkness

Out of respect for my desire not to house pigs in the summertime due to the smell, Mr. Farmer patiently awaited the birth of the fall pigs from a past supplier. The dam was a new sow to that particular farm, and this was to be her first litter. Her keeper was concerned when she went days past the expected delivery, and that concern turned out to be well founded. Four days past due, she delivered 14 still-born piglets. Five days past her due date, having failed to serve her intended purpose, she was sent off to the butcher in an attempt to recuperate some of the cost of that failure. It was a disappointing day all around.

October and November came and went without sign of a single, properly-priced piglet for our small needs. Overpriced and low quality could be found, but nothing like we were able to acquire last year. Mr. Farmer was about to break down and attend a livestock auction that, while promising, was an investment of unknown certainty. Finally, like a Christmas Miracle, an ad appeared for newly-weaned piglets: make your offer.

The offer we made was low- just $25 each. The seller was in need of cash, and Christmas was right around the corner, so he accepted. The van was readied, and the piglets were loaded. In the fuss of loading the pigs, and assuring that they came from different litters for breeding purposes, 5 were loaded instead of 4. There were 4 females and one male, all with distinct markings. We had a pen full of piglets before Christmas morning came.

After a few days of adjusting, our helper/investor/friend brought his girlfriend by to see the lot. Being a city girl, she immediately started ooh-ing and aah-ing over the cute little piggies. She was reminded of the fact that most of them would be on her dinner table in less than a year, and that she should not get attached. In spite of the men's advice to the contrary, she began naming the pigs. She started with the black pig with an even white stripe across its back. She said it should be called "Tiffany"- like the jeweler- because it wore a pearl necklace. Naturally, she had just given the name "Tiffany" to the only male in the pen.

I didn't object to the naming of a breeder boar. After all, his odds of surviving past puberty are far better than those of most of his sisters and cousins. Of course if he fails to uphold his duties I will allow Mr. Farmer to make what use of him that he sees fit, named animal or not. The name stays.

The following day our friend's son had the poor timing to be around during care and feeding time, so he was enlisted to help. Young Master Farmer and Friend were then introduced proudly to Tiffany. They responded with age-appropriate eye-rolling until Mr. Farmer stated that the boar's full name is "Tiffany, Prince Of Darkness". They were pleased with the name and now they even join in with the jokes. Tiffany even has a rapper name: T. - P.O.D.

Thus was Tiffany, Prince of Darkness, christened.

Tiffany, Prince of Darkness
January 2011 - About 12 weeks old