Find the Pig in the Poke Trivia Quiz

Answer: swine

Uncle Festus sayS WIN Every year . . . and the category for showing pigs is "swine," a term which is essentially identical to the word from Middle English and Old High German. There are approximately 70 breeds, all presumed to be descended from the European boar. Unlike most livestock, pigs are not easily herded, so pig farming is not seen in more nomadic peoples.

Answer: pork

Hold uP OR Kill some time reveals the word "pork," which comes from the Anglo-French term for a pig, "porc" or the Latin "porcus." China is the world's largest consumer of pork. The advertising slogan, "pork, the other white meat" was coined in 1987 in a U.S. campaign for the National Pork Board and led to a marked increase in pork consumption. Alas, the U.S. Department of Agriculture does not agree that pork qualifies as a "white meat."

Answer: farrow

A quiver oF ARROWs yields the word "farrow," a word with roots in Middle English and Old German once again - perhaps pigs were popular then? The word can be a verb indicating the act of giving birth to a litter or a noun referring to the resulting litter of piglets.

The average gestation period for a sow is 114 days. They are often placed in farrowing crates to prevent the sow from rolling onto and crushing any of the piglets.

Answer: sow

It's in there twice - alSO Wanted and SO We moved on. Sows may have two litters each year, producing 8-12 piglets in each one. Commerically, they are generally weaned at about 3-4 weeks.

Answer: gilt

A "gilt" (VirGIL Took me) is a female pig who has not yet had piglets, generally under age 2.

Answer: barrow

A "barrow" (ice cream BAR ROWs) is a castrated male pig. If the pig is castrated after puberty, it is referred to as a stag instead.

Answer: shoat

A shoat is a young pig of either sex who has been weaned.

Answer: boar

Not surprisingly, the word "boar" (found within aBOARd in this clue) comes from Middle English or Old High German. Sometimes adult males of other types will be called a "boar" colloquially. Wild boars and domestic pigs can freely interbreed. Boars have been introduced into several areas for hunting.

In other areas, domestic pigs have escaped and large numbers of feral pigs roam, often difficult to distinguish from wild boars. The "razorback" of the southern US is a feral hog which closely resembles its wild relatives.

Answer: sty

CuriouS TYkes contains the word "sty" which hails from - you guessed it, Middle English. Pigs do not have sweat glands, so to avoid overheating they need to wallow in water and/or mud. Some light-colored hogs may sunburn, so the mud also helps block UV radiation. Pigs prefer to separate their toileting area from their wallowing area.

They instinctively root fo food, so all vegetation inside a sty will be ripped up. It is this tendency that also makes feral hogs unwelcome in wildlife reserves.

Answer: chop

Pork chop (muCH OPportunity) on a stick is actually an option at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, so I know it can be done. There are several different types of pork chop, depending on which portion of the spine is included - ribs may or may not be included. They can be prepared in multiple styles.