March 1993 - January 15, 2005

Charlie was named when we got her and I'm not sure why she got that name.

March 1993

Charlie was fairly small for a pot-bellied pig - much smaller than her brother Arnold - but was definitely not one of the miniature pigs.  If I had to estimate her weight I would guess it was around 80 (36 kg) when she was in her prime.  

When we got her, she was very overweight and had developed a condition called "fat blind," in which the wrinkles on her face got heavy enough that she couldn't open her eyes.  She regained her vision after losing a good deal of weight. 

Charlie was a very quiet pig and never squealed even when being examined by the vet or having her hooves trimmed.  The only noise she made was the soft grunting sounds all pigs seem to make.

The lady who owned our house previously raised Charlie and Arnold from small piglets.

Sweet, quiet, shy, and unassertive.  Charlie was a very docile, cooperative pig.  She was wary of us when we first moved in, but I knew things were going to work out when one day, she walked over to where I was sitting on the ground and put her head in my lap.

All pigs seem to love to have their ears and tummies scratched, and Charlie was no exception, though she got less social as she grew older.  She enjoyed being brushed, too.

Like her brother Arnold, she was not very active at all and even when she was younger, spent a good deal of her day sleeping and sunbathing.  

Joint pain / arthritis.  See Details. 

She was very close to her brother, Arnold, and mostly tried to ignore Charlotte.