According to the Chinese calendar, 2007 is the Year of the Pig. If you were born in the Year of the Pig (which occurs every twelve years), you would be characterized in Chinese astrology as chivalrous, gallant, strong, honest, loyal, smart and loving toward your family members. This should come as little surprise, since it describes so many of the attributes of our porcine friends.

Pigs and humans share a surprising amount in common. Both species are by nature social creatures choosing to live in groups, forming friendships and relationships with those around them, including members of other species. Like human mothers, sows nurture their young with milk, warmth and love while protecting them from danger. Piglets, like children, enjoy playing with toys and one another -- wrestling, rolling down hills, running and leaping. Pigs also have perhaps the most complex set of domestic animal vocal sounds: researchers have identified more than 20 distinct categories that include greeting, distress, separation, excitement, aggression, fear, pain and so forth.

Studies show that pigs are intelligent, and researchers have even taught some to play video games. Donald Broom, Ph.D., Professor of Animal Welfare at Cambridge University's Veterinary School, claims that pigs' cognitive capacity is similar to that of a three-year-old human child. More and more American families are keeping pigs as companions, and many animal experts believe they are easier to train than dogs. Everyday observations strongly suggest that each pig, like every person, has a unique personality and a distinct self.

Still, despite their cleverness and sensitivity, pigs continue to be cruelly killed for leather, agricultural experimentation, hog-dog rodeos and, of course, food. Americans eat over 100 million pigs every year, and many seem unconcerned that sentient animals are killed under the most inhumane conditions to make the meat they buy in supermarkets. Worse yet, many remain unaware that over 90% of pigs come from factory farms that produce meat more cheaply by raising and processing animals in assembly-line fashion.

Factory farms may cram as many as 12,000 pigs may together in a single enclosed building the size of a football field. There are no straw nests or mud puddles here -- only hard concrete and cold metal for pigs to stand and lie on, often in their own excrement. Breeding sows are confined in gestation crates that are so narrow they are virtually immobilized for their entire 16-weeks of pregnancy. No exercise or nesting is possible, even though the urge for such behavior is strong.

Animal welfarists have been making unprecedented progress in the fight to end the use of cruel gestation crates in the U.S. Groups have filed lawsuits in California and New Jersey claiming that the use of gestation crates violates state law. Both Florida and Arizona have already banned the use of gestation crates. Recently, under pressure from both animal welfare activists and corporate customers, Smithfield Foods, Inc., the top pork producer in the U.S., recently announced a plan to phase gestation crates out of their operation over the next ten years and allow their hogs to live in group pens that allow for movement and socializing. This shows that while many consumers aren't yet willing to give up eating ham, pork chops, hot dogs, sausages and other pig-derived meats altogether, the majority of people want these animals to be treated better while they are alive.

What You Can Do

Since Chinese New Year started on January 29th, this is a great time to write a letter to the editor of your hometown newspaper about how smart and affectionate pigs are, emphasizing that they should be appreciated as living beings, not killed to provide meat for our tables.

Pigs are friends, not food. If you are still eating pork, make your Chinese New Year’s Resolution to go vegan. Get your FREE vegan starter kit today!. (Additional copies are available at the rate of $5 for 20 kits.)