​Furry Pigs Look Like Sheep And Act Like Dogs

In cute news we wish we'd learnt sooner, a pig that looks just like a sheep but acts like a dog actually exists - and we can't believe it either!

Though we often think about pigs as pink, non-furry characters (as their fur is just so fine), the Mangalitsa pig has a curly, thick white coat, similar to its farmyard neighbour.

And their coats can grow up to four inches in the winter - sounds like a sheep to us!

The cute animal is also aptly nicknamed the sheep-pig, because of its sheep-like appearance, and it even shares some personality traits with a dog!

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The Hungarian breed of domestic pig is a cross-breed of the Nagyszalonta and Bakony with the European wild boar and Serbian Šumadija breed.

It shares a similar coat to the Lincolnshire Curly Coat, a breed that is now extinct.

We came across this cute bit of information through The Dodo, on a rescued Mangalitsa pig at the Peace Ridge Sanctuary in Maine.

Three-year-old Mangalitsa Angus was severely underweight when he was first rescued but has definitely come out of his shell since then.

Melissa Andrews, director of development, humane education and outreach at the Peace Ridge Sanctuary, said: "When he first came in he was pretty nervous, but he's now a large and bossy pig."

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"The Mangalitsas are a Hungarian heritage breed and they almost look like sheep when they have their full winter coats on," Melissa added. "Then they shed the entire coat in the summer and are pretty close to bald. So it's a pretty big transformation watching him throughout the year."

"He looks like a big bear."

Melissa added that Angus particularly loves rolling over and having his belly rubbed by staff at the sanctuary, very much like a pet dog. We love this!

And Angus sounds like the life and soul of the party TBH.

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Melissa added: "He lives in a small group with two other large pigs. He likes to sleep next to them at night, and go on little adventures with his best friend Wilbur.

"He taught Wilbur how to be a bit naughty. Wilbur was one of our best-behaved pigs until he met Angus and then Angus was like, 'Hey, let's cause trouble.'"

Sounds like our kind of pet!

Topics: Cute, Animals

Aneira Davies

Aneira Davies is a freelance lifestyle journalist with a particular interest in interiors and craft. She has written for the Evening Standard, Prima, House Beautiful and Good Housekeeping.

@aneiradavies