Pig racing is a sport in which juvenile pigs race around in a small, enclosed area of either dirt, fake grass, gravel track or steel-framed enclosures. This racing is usually purely for entertainment or charity, and betting is rarely part of it, as the races are family-friendly events.
Equipment The pigs are equipped with vests to differentiate each pig from another. To distinguish the pigs racing, the vests are either colour-coded or have numbers on them. Puppet jockeys are sometimes attached to the vests for entertainment purposes. The course includes a variety of obstacles which the pigs have to race through, such as tunnels, tyre ramps, hay bales and a series of locked gates. The course distance can vary in length depending on the type of race. The race can be a normal race on the track or a race with obstacles. Most races at the end of the finishing line have a prize waiting for the winning pig, usually food.
Countries
Australia Pig racing is practised in Australia. The MTV Promotions Pig Racing hosts pig racing events which cover all Major Royal Shows and have been running since 1993. The pigs are trained through a 4-week course to prepare them mentally and physically for the race. The pigs run a 50-metre (55 yd) track in a 10-by-20-metre (11 yd × 22 yd) space and there are two races within the 15-minute show production. The pigs get ready at the starting gates while their coloured vests are fitted on them and they wait for the whistle to be blown before they start to race. Noah's Farm Thoroughbred Pig Racing hosts pig races for entertainment purposes and fundraisers for organisations. The pigs are raised in free-range conditions and begin training for races when they are approximately 5 to 6 weeks of age. For the race, five pigs are pitted against each other wearing coloured jackets. The track dimensions are 14 by 6 metres (15.3 yd × 6.6 yd), and 15 to 20 small square bales of hay are used as obstacles. The race begins with a bugle call as the pigs begin to position themselves in their starting box and wait for the commencement of the race. The crowd counts down from five and then the starting gate opens once the count is finished. On the course, the pigs face tyres, gates and a maze of hay bales. The pigs start to race when they are around 4 weeks old an after being weaned, they continue racing until they are around 12 to 15 weeks old. For each race, a "Race Steward" is picked from the crowd to oversee the pig race. Children are allowed to name each pig, and the best name wins a prize. The 2003 Sydney Royal Easter Show in held a pig racing event on Olympic Boulevard. The race featured nine pigs racing around a 36 metres (39 yd) track.
Ireland The festival in Portlaoise is known for pig-racing, and it was tried in Durrow for their St. Patrick's day parade in 2009.
United Kingdom Pig racing is practised in the United Kingdom. The South of England Rare Breeds Centre holds regular pig races in the summer. Natasha Raskin has also commented that Hall Park in Oswestry is also famous for pig racing. Piglet racing has become popular at the Royal Norfolk Show, which has a course of about 80 metres (87 yd) with three jumps with various breeds participating. A proposal by the Winchester Cheese and Chilli Festival in August 2018 to stage a steeplechase for six rare-breed pigs over hurdles was abandoned after a campaign group, "Pigs Don't Race", got 46,873 signatures in an online campaign. The charity Animal Aid was quoted as noting "to run in front of potentially loud crowds in scorching heat...caused these sensitive animals undue stress, in addition to the distress and heat produced through transportation". The organisers said they withdrew the event due to continued hot temperatures and after consultations with relevant parties. Joseph's Amazing Racing Pigs has five different breeds of pigs for racing: Tamworths, Gloucester Old Spots, Saddlebacks, Berkshires, and Oxford Sandy and Blacks. The track dimensions are 65 by 5 metres (71.1 yd × 5.5 yd) of roped off grass area for the track and a 15 by 15 metres (16 yd × 16 yd) display area for the pigs to interact with the audience. The pigs are encouraged to race down the track by the handlers, who shake a bucket of food for the pigs. The pigs are weaned for approximately 10 to 12 weeks and are raised naturally and are not given growth hormones or antibiotics. Once the pigs become too big to race, they are returned to where they came from and new sets of pigs replace them. Pennywell Farm in South Devon, England holds pig races every day. They use specially-bred pigs called miniature pigs, which they started breeding in 1992. The average pig weighs 250 grams (8.8 oz) at birth.
United States
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