Sanctuary Pig Gives Rescue Worker a Grateful Kiss After Having Sunscreen Applied

Most of us slather on sunscreen when it gets hot and sunny outside before heading out. Did you know that certain animals also need sunscreen to avoid getting sunburned? Most of the time you won't see them putting on sunscreen like we do; instead, you'll see them rolling in mud to cover their skin or avoiding the sun altogether. In Henry the rescued pig's case, his mom gives him a little help covering up his 'jumbo' sized ears.

The Gentle Barn shared a video on Instagram on Thursday, May 9th of Henry's ears getting slathered in sunscreen. His ears are bigger than both of the rescuer's hands! Henry looks very content sitting there, enjoying the ear massage. Watch until the end when Henry thanks her with a kiss!

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Awww! That's one happy pig! I want to visit and volunteer to give Henry his next ear massage. The whole time it looked like the rescued pig was smiling during the massage. The Gentle Barn supporters loved Henry's video as much as I did. @introvertlife laughed, "He is like "Hehehehe! Minimal effort from me and I still get a kiss“ LOL!"

Related: Pig's Pure Adoration for the Woman Who Just Rescued Her Is a Thing of Beauty

Pigs and Sunburns

Commenter @hannasculli shared, "This is legitimately important! I’ve seen piggy’s get really bad sunburns. You really have to lather it on them." The Gentle Barn shared more about why Henry was getting his ears covered with sunblock in their caption, "While pigs get protection from the sun in their daily mud baths and all the shade we offer, they also sometimes need extra help preventing dangerous sunburns, especially on sensitive areas like Henry’s king-sized ears—so we use natural sunscreen on those spots during the hottest days of the year." They go on to say, "We have a lot of seasonal spring duties in the barnyard and critical care that’s needed for our nearly 200 rescued animals, and this is just one of so many things we do to go the extra step to make sure our animals are always protected." This is why I love The Gentle Barn!

Because pigs don't have dense hair covering their skin, they tend to burn quickly. Most of the time, sunburns occur on their snout and ears, but can also occur on their back. When a pig gets sunburned, their skin turns red and can even blister just like ours can. Informed Farmers explained that it's not only painful, but it can cause other issues, "The effect of sunburn can also run more than just skin deep and have an effect on a pig’s reproductive system and the maintenance of pregnancy."

So what kind of sunscreen works on pigs? The Informed Farmers weighed in, "We would not recommend using human sunscreen on pigs because some of the ingredients may be toxic if ingested." They went on to say to check with your vet if you're unsure what type of sunscreen to use, though "You can buy sunscreen that is specially formulated to be safe and effective for pigs." Who knew that pigs had their own sunscreen!

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