Meet Internet Sensation Merlin, The ‘World’s Smartest Pig’

Dogs and cats are the most common choices for a pet at home, with birds like parrots also being an option. But is there any hard and fast rule that says your pet choices are limited to them alone? No, right? So, it is not that surprising that a woman from California has a pet pig and she showers ample love on it, even sleeping on the same bed.

25-year-old Mina Alali bought a piglet from a farm in March last year, which she named Merlin. Mina says that she felt an instant attachment to Merlin. The weight of the Vietnamese pig is about 15 kg and it can be up to 3 feet long. Talking to South West News Service, Mina says that she loves her pig to death and also cuddles her to sleep in the bed. Mina has trained Merlin to turn on and off the electric buttons. Apart from this, he has also learned to dance, sit and perform a high five, according to Mina.

Mina started posting videos of the 11kg hog on her TikTok account and quickly amassed one million followers from animal lovers across the world. Due to Merlin’s ability to perform a dance and high five among other things, TikTok fans have often dubbed him the world’s smartest pig.

Mina purchased buttons that can be programmed with pre-recorded phrases online to teach Merlin how to speak. Each button contains a distinct message that Merlin can use to interact with Mina. For example, he can ask for food or drink, to go for a stroll, or even to sing and dance with him. By rewarding him with cookies and kisses when he completes a job or trick, Mina claimed that training him never took longer than a single day.

Animal lover Mina was thrilled to welcome the young pig Merlin into her house, where he quickly made friends with her two one-year-old rats, Millie and Miracle. After watching a cute hog video online, she decided she was finally financially comfortable enough to decide to finally buy one and she drove four hours to go pick Merlin up from a farm. She had put off owning one of the omnivorous, hoofed mammals for years.

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