Hogwash: Pensioner Margaret Smith was told the micro pig she bought would grow to just 12 inches - but now it is an eight-stone monster hog named Pigwig
It was supposed to be a cute companion to a pensioner that would spend its days snuffling around her home.
But after Margaret Smith spent £450 on her so-called micro pig, she was shocked when the the creature started to grow longer than the 12 inches she was assured it would reach.
It wasn't long before Margaret realised she had been told a few porkies and that instead of being the owner of a micro pig, she was sharing her home with a monster eight-stone hog.
The last straw came when the hog she named Pigwig tore a radiator off the wall and the 65-year-old had to move the beast outside and contain it with a stable door.
Margaret has now set up a Facebook group called 'the truth about minipigs' which has almost 150 members who have had similar experiences.
Members travel around the country to inspect each others' hefty hogs.
Margaret, of Ringwood, Hants, said: 'Pigwig was only as big as chick when I bought him.
'But when he was about seven months old he suddenly shot up and we couldn't even pick him up any more.
'It was ridiculous, I phoned the breeder and demanded my money back. He's an incredibly powerful pig but it's not his fault.
Margaret Smith with her the piglet she was told was a micro pig. It grew so big it tore a radiator off the wall
'The breeder did not tell us the truth about his size but we love Pigwig anyway, he's a very happy and mischievous pig.'
After Margaret's complaint the breeder agreed to refund her most of the 450 pounds she had paid for the pig.
Now she has also also bought a kuene kuene pig, which are smaller than average pigs, after Pigwig became lonely.
Margaret's daughter, Emma, 26, said: 'I don't believe there was ever such a thing as a micropig, they were just called that when they were piglets and sold before they grew.
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'We've heard about people who have one bedroom flats and buy them but then suddenly they grow and they have to get rid of them.
'It's actually quite sad because they have been interbred to keep them smaller but then they can become ill and die.
'People have seen David Beckham and Paris Hilton with them and are falling over themselves to get hold of one - some are paying up to 1,200 pounds.'
source: dailymail