Nottinghamshire

A Nottinghamshire animal rescue centre has warned people not to be taken in by the latest craze in pets.

Micro pigs were in demand after they became "the celebrity pet", but experts have warned it is difficult to predict how big they will actually grow.

Brinsley Animal Rescue Centre has been giving new homes to some of the pigs.

John Beresford said: "It's rescue centres that pick up the pieces of people buying animals on a fad and then giving them up on a whim."

The centre's website states that there is "no such thing as a micro pig" and explains that all pigs are large, powerful and possibly destructive.

Micro pigs are usually a cross between pot-bellied or Kune Kune pigs and were made popular after various Hollywood stars and the Beckhams bought one.

One of the pigs Brinsley Animal Rescue Centre has re-homed came from Bolsover, Derbyshire.

The Beale family said they had to give up micro pig, Bertie.

"I did a lot of research on him," Sian Beale said. "But nothing prepares you for how big it is going to be and how much attention it will need."

After Bertie ate the kitchen floor and some of the cupboards the family decided they could not keep him any longer.

It was a tearful farewell but Bertie is happy at his new home in Brinsley.

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