Sunday, November 06, 2011

Racing Pigs



A couple of friends and I went to the Jacksonville Fair on Friday.  (Thanks Mike and Chris for suggesting the outing!)  I've lived in Jacksonville for five years now and I had never attended.  I'm used to the big county fairs that we have in Michigan, so I was quite curious to see what kind of a fair a Southern city could create.


I would have never guessed that I was going to see some pigs run around a track and jump into a water trough. 



It was a very popular event!  The pigs are a few months old and gladly race around the track so they can get to the end to get their reward.

What do you think motivates a pig to run?



Look at them go!
The little capes on them are their numbers, so that the crowd can root for their favorite.


They look like SuperMan with those capes.

In answer to the question - the pigs are motivated by an Oreo Cookie.  That's their reward at the end of the track.



One of the other things that pigs like to do is swim!
The pig handlers said that if pigs had a nice big pool to swim in and cool off, then they wouldn't roll around in the mud (to cool off.)

Since the pigs enjoy the water a special water trough was set up for them to swim in.




This group of four came barreling around the corner and put on the brakes!!  It was so funny.  I think they are new to the water trough trick. 


It took one brave soul to put a hoof into the water before the others would join in. 


They were still racing to the end for an Oreo, so they made short work of the swim.  I was amazed at how quickly those teeny little pig legs could paddle!



Snouts up!



I Win!!


But these fellas are right behind.


At the end of the show we could get a picture taken with this little piggy.

I completely enjoyed the Racing Pigs.  They were a hoot!

Unknown Mami

That's what can happen on a Sunday in Jacksonville, FL.  For more Sundays in my City, please head on over to Unknown Mami's place.  Who knew you'd see a pig race when you came here?!  You never know what others will blog about in their city.

Have a great day!
Kristin

13 comments:

Raymonde said...

Oh I enjoyed that. It felt as if as was there.
Did you also run around to get the shots you wanted?

Have a beautiful Sunday. xxx

jb said...

OMG! This is the best! THE BEST! Such cute piggies...it must have been a blast, and I also feel as if I was there, watching it all!

Lisa said...

Oh they are most adorable, and what fun to watch.

Keetha Broyles said...

I thought their capes were BOWS!

What fun.

I might race for an Oreo too.

Tara R. said...

That is hilarious! You captured the fun of the event wonderfully. The capes were a great touch.

Cyndy Bush said...

There is so much cuteness here! I love the capes. I had no idea pigs could swim. And I love that they race for an Oreo! I hope they're Double Stuff. ;-)

StarTraci said...

Oh my goodness -- I have never seen pigs swim like that! I love the expression of the woman in the green sweater.

Looks like a fun fair -- I have never been to a true fair before.

Happy Sunday!
:-)
Traci

Claudya Martinez said...

I had no idea pigs were so athletic. This was so much fun.

ArtandArchitecture-SF.com said...

That was so much fun, your series of photos just brought it to life. I too thought they were bows, but capes makes so much more sense. Fun, fun, fun!

Amy DM said...

What adorable little pigs.

Debby@Just Breathe said...

What a fun post. I have never seen anything like that and I love that they like to swim. Fun picture!

Ann in the UP said...

What a hoot. You may have a future as a color commentator for sporting events. Not most events have such cute participants, though.

Love those lil piggies!! I'm with Keetha, I'll race for an oreo, if you can find an good group of gimpy grandmas for me to race with.

42N said...

Funny, I would do the same for an Oreo too.