Several of the Bahamas’
famous colony of swimming pigs in the Exumas were found dead and floating in
the water late last month, leaving approximately 15 members of the colony still
alive.
Autopsies performed by the
Bahamas Humane Society revealed that the deaths were probably due
to eating sand, although additional tests still are being carried out,
according to minister of agriculture and fisheries Alfred
Gray. “Some people throw food to the pigs in the water; others throw
the food on the sand. Autopsies on several pigs revealed they had a good amount
of sand, which is indigestible, in their stomachs and that probably contributed
to their deaths,” Grey told the Tribune.
The colony of
tourist-friendly pigs have lived on an abandoned island near Big Major Cay
(also known as Pig Island) in the Exumas for almost 30 years, brought there by
two farmers who raised them on the island.
The pigs, a top tourist attraction, dog-paddle out from the beach when local tour
operators pull up in their boats. They swim with the tourists and chow down on
food and snacks, usually lettuce and carrots.
Kim Aranha, president of
the Bahamas Humane Society, told the Tribune that the pigs “are a
well-loved tourist attraction and are treated with respect by local tour
operators.”
The Ministry
of Tourism along with the Ministry of Agriculture & Fisheries are working
on plans to protect the surviving pigs by restricting tourists’ access to photographing them from a safe distance but not swimming with or feeding them.