My daughter has always wanted a little pot-bellied pig to keep as a pet in our yard at the homestead. These pigs are certainly adorable when young, but they grow older and much larger.
As we considered getting her a pig, I wondered if they make good pets and how long they live and how to help them live longer. I know a dog can live up to 15 years if well taken care of, but how old would a pet pig get?
My dad had always said that a pig gets as old as your appetite. I certainly had no intention of slaughtering a pet pig, but just how long this commitment would be was a concern.
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How long do pigs live? Pigs can live from 15 to 20 years, depending on the pig breed. A pet pig can last up to 20 years of age if treated with proper care.
The world’s record for the longest-living pet pig is a staggering 23 years, which shows that a pig can be a long-term companion (and commitment) with good care and love.
Meanwhile, wild pigs have a shorter pig lifespan of four to eight years.
Commercial pigs are usually slaughtered around 6 months old.
How Long Do Pigs Live as Pets?
Pet pigs can live as long as 18-20 years. Pet pigs usually receive higher care than other domesticated pigs and are treated more frequently for health problems to prolong their life.
When fed an appropriate diet, pigs live long time. The oldest pig was almost 24 years old, making pigs longer-living pets than dogs.
Conversely, when pigs are overweight or unhealthy, they don’t live as long due to health issues.
Different Pig Breeds Live For Different Numbers of Years
Each pig lifespan will average differently, depending on the pig’s breed, if the pig has a healthy life, access to vet care, and a good diet and nutrition.
Generally, pig breeds can range from an average lifespan of 5-10 years up to 15-20 years lifespan.
How Long Do Mini Pigs Live?
Mini-pigs, also referred to as pot-bellied pigs, have a lifespan of 14-21 years with an average of 15 to 18 years of longevity.
A nutritionally complete diet and proper medical treatment are essential for ensuring that they live a long and healthy life. This includes routine veterinary checkups and immunizations against illnesses.
How Long Do Potbelly Pigs Live?
Potbelly pigs have one of the longest lifespan of all pigs, living as much as 20+ years. On average, they live for 15-18 years in captivity. The oldest pig ever recorded was a potbellied pig who lived past its 23rd birthday!
How Long do Teacup Pigs Live? (Lifespan of MicroPigs)
Teacup pigs are an exception to the longer lifespan because they are usually starved and malnourished, resulting in a shorter lifespan.
Teacup pigs, also known as micro pigs live an average of 5 years despite their status as a pet pig. That’s because teacup pigs are often inbred to produce smaller pigs and so have genetic difficulties.
Teacup pigs have a shorter lifespan because they have been specially bred to create a smaller size and are often underfed to keep them small.
Even when a teacup pig is not kept on a bare minimum diet- inbreeding to create a smaller pig often results in additional health complications and shorter lives
Perpetually starving and often interbred within their own DNA pool introduces many health issues not usually found in pigs and shortens the lifespan of these super miniature pigs.
Another reason teacup pigs lifespan is shorter is that micro pigs are usually starved so that they stay small and so basically spend their lives malnourished and underfed.
This stress to their bodies compromises their health and dramatically shortens their life expectancy.
How Long Do Mini Pigs Live?
Meanwhile, mini pigs live an average of 18-20 years if left to live a full life.
Mini pigs like potbelly pigs, which were originally used for breeding teacup pigs, are ironically the longest-living pig breeds. They are pot-bellied pig breeds and, even in the wild, tend to live longer than their wild counterparts.
Mini pigs (but not the teacup variety) have fewer aging issues than other breeds, which contributes to their long lives.
Mini pigs and teacup pigs are often terms used synonymously. However, they mean different things.
Mini pigs are certain pig breeds, usually pot-bellied pig breeds, that don’t grow as large as other pig breeds, but still grow to 200+ pounds.
How Long Do Heford Pigs Live?
The average lifespan of a Hereford pig is between 10-15 years with most pigs living to the age of 12-13 years old. Hereford pigs are medium-sized pigs and live longer than larger breeds.
Generally speaking the smaller the pig breed, the longer its lifespan. Hereford pigs grow to between 600-800 pounds at full maturity.
How Long Do Durac Pigs Live?
An average Durac pig lifespan is that of 15 years. They used to be a larger breed, but breeding has brought the breed to a smaller size, that has increased the survival rate of piglets and lengthened how long they live.
Duroc pigs now mature at 700-800 pounds, but before they were bred to be smaller, the breed usually topped 1,000 pounds before maturity.
Today they are considered a medium-sized breed.
How long does a KuneKune Pig Live?
KuneKune pigs can live up to 15-20 years, but if they are overfed or fat, they will live an average of 8-10 years naturally. Kunekune pigs are smaller pigs that mature at about 150 pounds for a female and up to 250 pounds for a male.
Unlike other smaller pig breeds, KuneKunds don’t have a longer lifespan if they become obese, which is easy to do because of their voracious appetite.
What Factors Can Affect Pet Pig Lifespan
Purpose for Raising the Pig Affects How Long the Pig Lives
The purpose for the pig affects how long it lives. Pet pigs, with the exception of teacup pigs, live the longest number of years of any pig, while slaughtered pigs have the shortest lifespan.
Teacup pigs live fewer years than other pet pigs, and farm pigs live longer than slaughter pigs but fewer years than pet pigs.
Pet pigs can live as old as 20 years and often get the best health care of any pig.
That’s because their owners are willing to pay for vet visits, healthcare, and corrective actions that cost more.
This isn’t usually economically feasible in other situations.
How Long Do Farm Pigs Usually Live?
Farm pigs are usually raised to around 9 months old. Commercial pigs are often slaughtered around 6 months. At 6 months commercial pigs weigh an average of 200-300 pounds.
Farm pigs are often raised a little longer because their feed rate and growth speed is not as fast as commercial enterprises.
On the farm, pigs live between one and three years while they fatten before they are slaughtered. Breeding pigs can live 10-15 years but do not usually die naturally.
Often breeding pigs are often slaughtered when they are not longer as viable for breeding.
Commercial slaughter pigs are raised for optimum profitability and so are slaughtered around 6 months of age on average.
Overall Health of the Pig
Genetics, disease, exposure, and other factors affect each individual pig’s lifespan. They will live shortened lives when their diet and daily care are inadequate.
Pig Lifespan in Human Years
You’ve decided to get a pet pig—Great!
My daughter was overjoyed when we decided to get her one. Our research also discovered that different pig breeds could reach a range of ages that are different from our ages as humans.
The first year of a pig’s life is equivalent to 18 human years, but after that, one pig year equals four human years.
So, to help you make the best choice in pig breed here are the pig lifespan in human years:
Pig Years to Human Years Comparison Table
| Pig Years | Human Years | Pig Years | Human Years |
| 1 pig year | 18 human years | 8 pig years | 46 human years |
| 2 pig years | 22 human years | 9 pig years | 50 human years |
| 3 pig years | 26 human years | 10 pig years | 54 human years |
| 4 pig years | 30 human years | 12 pig years | 58 human years |
| 5 pig years | 34 human years | 15 pig years | 62 human years |
| 6 pig years | 38 human years | 18 pig years | 86 human years |
| 7 pig years | 42 human years | 20 pig years | 90 human years |
What Pig Has the Longest Lifespan?
You may wonder what age most pigs will reach, whether pet pigs, miniature varieties, or the “big old slaughter pigs.”
Here are a few pig breeds and their ages as well as the longest-living pig breed:
Pig Breeds And Average Life Expectancy Table:
| Pig Breed | Average Life Expectancy (In Years) |
| Wild Boars | 15-20 years |
| Duroc Pig | 10-15 years |
| Spotted Pig | 15-20 years |
| Berkshire Pig | 6-10 years |
| Hampshire Pig | 10-12 years |
| Landrace Pig | 6-10 years |
| Poland China Pigs | 6-10 years |
| Yorkshire Pigs | 8-10 years |
| Chester White Pigs | 6-8 years |
| Razorback Pigs | 9-10 years |
| Truffle Pig (Spanish Black Pig) | 15-20 years |
| Potbelly Pigs | 15-18 years |
| KuneKune Pigs | 15-20 years |
For more information check out our guide to pig breeds here.
Fat pigs have to live for fewer years than other healthier-weighted pigs of the same breed. Overweight pigs can lose as much as ⅓ of their natural lifespan.
But, even these statistics may not be accurate because most fat pigs are being raised for meat and are slaughtered before they reach a natural death.
If your pet pig is overweight and you want it to live a long, healthy life- you’ll want to work to find out from your vet what a healthy weight is for your pig. Pig obesity can cause breathing issues, increase the risk of disease and heart ailments, and cause depression and lethargy in your pig.
For more info on how to help an obese pig, check out this article, which has an entire section on it.
As a general rule, the larger the pig, the lower its life expectancy. Smaller pigs tend to live longer. Potbellied pigs have the longest lifespan of all pig breeds.
The oldest pig ever recorded was a pig named Oscar. He currently holds the Guinness World Record at 21 years 13 days when he passed.
How Long Do Pigs Live FAQs
You may have some more questions about your pet pig’s life expectancy or how long your breeding pigs may live (if not slaughtered), and here is some more great information.
How long does a pig heart last?
Pigs can live up to 20 years or more, which is the natural life span of their heart. However, in non-pig heart transplants, the valves have been used for human heart procedures over many decades.
Yet, until recently, the first pig-human heart transplant was thought impossible, but a US man has lived two months on a pig heart transplant.
How long do wild pigs live?
Wild pigs live an average of 6-8 years. After 4 years, the mortality rate increases to 50% each year. Exceptionally older wild pigs max out around 10-12 years. Experts consider 9-10 years to be the maximum age for most wild pigs.
Their shorter lifespan is due to a number of reasons:
Additionally, pigs in the wild often suffer injury without care that can shorten their lifespan.
Predators, limited resources, weather stress, and dietary deficiencies all contribute to the shorter lifespan of wild pigs.
How long do domesticated pigs live?
Domesticated pigs can live for an average of 10-15 years if allowed to live out their lives. The lifespan of a pig will depend on its use; slaughter, breeding, or pet.
Domesticated pigs can live longer lives than wild pigs because they maintain better health and diet.
How long do pigs live on average before slaughter?
Pigs are slaughtered at 6 months. On a small farm or homestead, pigs may live as many as 9 months before slaughter. This is the optimal age for food-to-weight ratio. After 6 months, a pig’s weight gain slows down and they continue to increase their food intake.
What breed of pigs lives the longest?
The Vietnamese Pot-Bellied Pig has the longest lifespan and can live up to 20 years. Other pot-bellied pig breeds also have longer lifespans which range between 18-20 years. Mini pig breeds live longer than larger breeds and teacup pigs. The oldest pig ever recorded, Jane, was 23.5 years old. No pig is known to live longer than 23 years.
How can you tell a pig’s age?
A pig’s age can be estimated by looking at their teeth, assessing their weight and development, inspecting tusks, and observing behavior.
Pigs have baby teeth and grow adult teeth at 2-3 years old.
Age can be estimated by examining the type of teeth and the amount of wear and tear on the teeth. Tusks come in at 2 years as well. In addition, pigs’ weight, growth, and behavior can also be assessed using average breed trends.
Conclusion
When you are ready to get your pet pig, remember one thing. Pet pigs are awesome!
We love our little spotted pig, and it’s been such a blast training her and introducing her to the other animals in the yard. Because we know that if we take good care of her, she will live for many years. She can even be around when my daughter goes to her prom one day.
My Most Used Pig Supplies
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Purina Pig Chow will last well (or Mazuri is popular, but I haven’t tried it), and the stainless steel non-skid bowls that will help keep the mess down.
A pig blanket to keep her warm. This one also has bright colors and helps to provide rooting without the destruction.
Pig Harness for walking and handling your pig. There are a lot to choose from, but this one is pretty easy to use. If you want one that has a separate leash, this looks like a good one.
A large crate for keeping her safe in your house at night and when you leave the house. This is essential. You’ll also want a litterbox, and I like mine with a lid for nighttime. Pine shavings are best, and you may be able to find them in larger quantities locally.
When you have accidents, Odoban will help eliminate odors. When you are potty training, these floor pads work great for keeping your house clean while training her to go in certain places.
You’ll also want an outdoor house to keep her warm when she gets outside time, an essential part of her development.
Dewormer- Ivermectin is the primary dewormer I use, although I do rotate with a non-ivermect ingredient once so that the worms don’t get immune to it.