Hank Was Foraging When Foraging Wasn’t Cool

I did some exercise, so now I can eat a bunch, right?

In an effort to slim him down, I started taking Hank, my overweight pet pig, on daily walks. While I am certain the exercise is good for him, this outing has also become what my husband and I call a “sampling tour,” allowing Hank to add many additional items to his tasting menu.

Hank’s first new culinary windfall came in autumn, in the form of acorns from his very own front yard. Now that he has discovered these high-calorie morsels, he demands to be taken out front each day during acorn season, where he spends an hour or so, sifting through the fallen leaves with his nose. Since I often find acorns and drop them in front of him, he follows me around for weeks after the last acorns are found, hoping that I’m having better luck than he is.

Hank found the next new menu item in early summer when the wild grapes that grow across the street started to fall. As soon as he finds the first grapes of the season, he barrels out the front door each day and runs right over to the spot beneath the grape vines. I help him with the grapes by knocking some down for him, so much like the acorns, Hank expects grape-related miracles from me once the vines are empty.

The most amazing foraging spot opened up to Hank when Sandy, our animal-loving neighbor moved in. She invited us to walk down to her property whenever we like, which is a pretty long walk for Hank. He wasn’t so sure at first, but he soon discovered that the slog down to Sandy’s is well worth the effort. Her yard is full of foraging opportunities.

The first treat of the season comes in late spring when the squirrels start dropping lightly damaged fruit from Sandy’s pear trees. Hank gets so excited by the pears, that he isn’t able to eat them where he finds them. He has to walk far away with the fruit in his mouth so he can enjoy it in peace. Hank has always done this when he gets something he really likes, but the behavior is especially pronounced at Sandy’s house. He doesn’t know her that well, so there’s no certainty she can be trusted around his food.

Hank’s summer treat comes from Sandy’s fig trees, where the bird-nibbled figs litter the ground beneath them. Some days, he finds so much fruit that he refuses to leave, and I have to force him to head back home. Sandy also has some grape vines that produce tart green grapes. Hank is not completely sold on these, but once the figs and pears run out, he has no choice but to eat a few.

There is one final item that Hank can eat year-round on his walks but it’s more plentiful after a rain. In the leaf piles that collect by the road, Hank finds and eats earthworms. He doesn’t get quite as excited about worms as he does fruit and acorns, but the hunt requires plenty of rooting, and he loves to do that.

One of the best things I ever did for Hank is buy him a harness and start taking him on walks. He was incredibly excited when I first started taking him out, and he would practically run everywhere we went. He’s getting to be an old man now, and it takes him a little longer to get where we are going, but he still very much wants to go.

Allowing Hank out front had another positive side effect. He used to be obsessed with escaping from the backyard because he would see the dog and his people out front, but for him, the area was off-limits. I didn’t think he could be trusted out front, but I’m glad I gave him a chance. Now that the mysteries of the front yard have been revealed, and he doesn’t feel left out, he never tries to escape our yard.