Teh One Who Knocks
10-04-2012, 10:44 AM
By JENNIFER TIPPETT - The Sun
http://i.imgur.com/Zep0U.jpg
DOGS may be a man’s best friend but Maria Cooper’s soulmate is a pot-bellied PIG.
Maria, 29, from Marden, Kent, is inseparable from her enormous pet — driving her around, taking her for walks on a lead and letting her come and go through a pig flap.
Music teacher Maria loves animals so much that she openly describes her pet pig as her best pal.
She says: “I bought myself a black pot-bellied piglet this time last year. She was so cute that I decided to call her Dinky.
“It was love at first sight and she was much too precious to be kept in an outside enclosure — so I gave her the run of the house.
But, partial to nuts and bananas, Dinky didn’t stay slim for long.
Maria says: “She soon became anything but dinky and now she’s got too big to sleep in my bed so I have built her her own bedroom.
“I know she’s spoilt but she deserves something with a bit of style.”
http://i.imgur.com/Eq48J.jpg
Dinky goes in and out of her private quarters through a tiny door beneath a grand piano in the front room of the house Maria shares with husband Ian, 33, and kids Harriet, seven, and four-year-old Peter.
Ian, a flooring contractor, owned tarantula spiders and bearded dragons when he met Maria.
She says: “I thought it was so cool that Ian had exotic beasts in the house but I don’t know if he expected me to take to it the way I did. He got more than he bargained for.”
Treated like a person, Dinky will often be found relaxing in her boudoir or being kept busy as the star of the show at kiddies’ functions.
Maria says: “She was such a born performer that I decided to make a business out of taking Dinky to kids’ parties. Last summer, I decided to have a complete career change and set up my own animal-handling business. It’s given Dinky a celebrity lifestyle — the kids love her.”
Maria provides a variety of beasts for animal-handling sessions and has a range of wacky and wild creatures.
She says: “I got the idea when I went on a school trip with my daughter to a petting zoo. It was miles away and I realised I could take my pets to schools, parties and events.”
http://i.imgur.com/ZtztV.jpg
So the mum kickstarted her new business venture. Although Maria has guinea pigs, cats, hamsters, chickens, cockerels, chinchillas and ducks, her showstopper is Dinky.
Maria says: “About three times a week we all go to a children’s event.
“Dinky rides with me in the car. The kids love it and the animals love the kids — it’s perfect. Dinky can be hired with other animals or on her own and she likes all the attention and fuss.”
But Dinky can sometimes be a diva.
Maria says: “Pigs can be very stubborn sometimes. She occasionally has to be enticed with treats like her favourite iced cakes.
“The problem is she knows she often gets treats and if she doesn’t get what she’s expecting, she can dig in her heels and refuse to even get out of the car.”
At home, Dinky is best mates with Maria’s miniature pony Lola. She says: “Pigs are herd animals so Dinky loves to pal around with Lola. Dinky is definitely the boss, though. Lola adores her and follows her around. Sometimes she tries to follow Dinky into her bedroom but she’s too big to get in.”
Maria now has 16 species of animals but says Dinky will always be her star. She says: “She’s such a character. I’d be lost without her.”
http://i.imgur.com/Wwa3H.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/Zep0U.jpg
DOGS may be a man’s best friend but Maria Cooper’s soulmate is a pot-bellied PIG.
Maria, 29, from Marden, Kent, is inseparable from her enormous pet — driving her around, taking her for walks on a lead and letting her come and go through a pig flap.
Music teacher Maria loves animals so much that she openly describes her pet pig as her best pal.
She says: “I bought myself a black pot-bellied piglet this time last year. She was so cute that I decided to call her Dinky.
“It was love at first sight and she was much too precious to be kept in an outside enclosure — so I gave her the run of the house.
But, partial to nuts and bananas, Dinky didn’t stay slim for long.
Maria says: “She soon became anything but dinky and now she’s got too big to sleep in my bed so I have built her her own bedroom.
“I know she’s spoilt but she deserves something with a bit of style.”
http://i.imgur.com/Eq48J.jpg
Dinky goes in and out of her private quarters through a tiny door beneath a grand piano in the front room of the house Maria shares with husband Ian, 33, and kids Harriet, seven, and four-year-old Peter.
Ian, a flooring contractor, owned tarantula spiders and bearded dragons when he met Maria.
She says: “I thought it was so cool that Ian had exotic beasts in the house but I don’t know if he expected me to take to it the way I did. He got more than he bargained for.”
Treated like a person, Dinky will often be found relaxing in her boudoir or being kept busy as the star of the show at kiddies’ functions.
Maria says: “She was such a born performer that I decided to make a business out of taking Dinky to kids’ parties. Last summer, I decided to have a complete career change and set up my own animal-handling business. It’s given Dinky a celebrity lifestyle — the kids love her.”
Maria provides a variety of beasts for animal-handling sessions and has a range of wacky and wild creatures.
She says: “I got the idea when I went on a school trip with my daughter to a petting zoo. It was miles away and I realised I could take my pets to schools, parties and events.”
http://i.imgur.com/ZtztV.jpg
So the mum kickstarted her new business venture. Although Maria has guinea pigs, cats, hamsters, chickens, cockerels, chinchillas and ducks, her showstopper is Dinky.
Maria says: “About three times a week we all go to a children’s event.
“Dinky rides with me in the car. The kids love it and the animals love the kids — it’s perfect. Dinky can be hired with other animals or on her own and she likes all the attention and fuss.”
But Dinky can sometimes be a diva.
Maria says: “Pigs can be very stubborn sometimes. She occasionally has to be enticed with treats like her favourite iced cakes.
“The problem is she knows she often gets treats and if she doesn’t get what she’s expecting, she can dig in her heels and refuse to even get out of the car.”
At home, Dinky is best mates with Maria’s miniature pony Lola. She says: “Pigs are herd animals so Dinky loves to pal around with Lola. Dinky is definitely the boss, though. Lola adores her and follows her around. Sometimes she tries to follow Dinky into her bedroom but she’s too big to get in.”
Maria now has 16 species of animals but says Dinky will always be her star. She says: “She’s such a character. I’d be lost without her.”
http://i.imgur.com/Wwa3H.jpg