Chowder is a 6-year-old Vietnamese potbellied pig.
There’s just one problem, he doesn’t know he’s a pig.
While it would be very obvious to you or me by taking one look at him, Chowder actually believes himself to be a dog.
Well, he doesn’t believe himself to be any different than the rest of his family.
That includes five rescue dogs, named Rika, Slick, Nya, James, and Bashe, as well as his human Shelby Madere.
They all live on a farm in Southern California. Even mom sees her babies as one big unit.
“When I look at my crew, I see the reflection of who I am in them,” said Shelby. “Their happiness, their safety, their health, their whole lives rely on me and I will never ever let them down.”
Shelby sees her “crew” as her children… dogs, pigs, and all. But she especially sees Chowder as a son.
He’s basically a big baby.
“He is like a 3-year-old toddler. He’s my son and these are his dogs,” Shelby told videoinspirational.
Shelby says that Chowder definitely thinks that he is the leader of his pack of doggos.
He sees himself as the wisest of the bunch, so he’s in charge. While the dogs are messing around, Chowder is the one to keep an eye on things.
“Chowder doesn’t play. He wants nothing to do with silliness. He’s far too mature,” Shelby explains.
Chowder can often be found “doing his own thing” on the farm.
But he still gets along with everyone and will hang around with both the big and little dogs on the farm.
When it’s time for a family photo, he comes running.
“I just say ‘everybody come here’ then I tell everybody to sit and stay,” Shelby explains. “That’s when I’m able to start taking pictures.”
Chowder will also line up when it’s time for everyone to wait until it’s their turn to get their treat.
Chowder is just really happy to be apart of a family that loves him so much.
“He didn’t have a good life with his first family,” Shelby explains. “He belonged to a guy who got it for his girlfriend and couldn’t keep it anymore. He was kept on the side of the house.”
The piglet’s owner offered to give Shelby the pig.
“They were like, ‘Do you want him? He’s yours if you can catch him.’ Boy, I caught that pig.”
So, Chowder grew up on Shelby’s farm surrounded by dog siblings.
Now, Chowder is living his best life with a family who loves him.
Shelby regularly tells Chowder how beautiful he is.
Chowder must know it because he’s always smiling for the camera.
He’s always looking adorable on his Instagram page where he has more than 68,000 followers.
There’s even a video game that’s based on Chowder that’s available on Google Play and the App Store. It’s called Chowder Dash.
In his game, Chowder and his doggy friends have to overcome lots of obstacles. Half of the proceeds earned from people who buy the game go to animal rescues or a sanctuary, according to Chowder’s Instagram page.
You can follow Chowder and the rest of his crew at piggypoo_and_crew on Instagram and check him out in the video below.
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