Multiple offspring among the mini pigs
Chemnitz Zoo: Evening guided tour on 23 May, 7.30 pm
At the end of April, the Erzgebirge farm at Chemnitz Zoo gave birth. The Göttingen mini pig "Bärbel" gave birth to five piglets on 26 April. This is Bärbel's fourth offspring. The father is the boar "Ehrmann", who is currently housed separately from the sow and piglets in the neighbouring enclosure. Visitors can look forward to a colourful "ferkelei", as the young animals are not uniformly dark-coloured like their parents, but also have light and spotted colours.
Domestic pigs are three months, three weeks and three days old, totalling 112 to 114 days. As with their wild relatives - the wild boar - birth is preceded by the construction of a nest-like lair in which the piglets spend their first weeks. They are suckled for three to four months.
Due to the unstable temperatures - especially at night - the piglets often remain in the barn at Chemnitz Zoo, but can also be seen by visitors.
The domestic pig breed "Göttinger Minischwein" was bred in the early 1960s through targeted crossbreeding at the University of Göttingen. The aim was to create a particularly small breed of pig specifically for experimental purposes, as humans and pigs are physiologically very similar. Mini pigs are now also very popular as pets, which is why there is a greater variety of colours. In the breeding population at Göttingen University, however, care is taken to ensure that the animals are pure white in colour.
Evening tour of the zoo
On Friday 23 May at 7.30 pm, interested parties are once again invited to an evening tour of Chemnitz Zoo. This time, however, it is aimed at adults only; the minimum age for participation is 18.
What do the animals in the zoo actually do in the evening or at night? Who goes to sleep and who only really wakes up in the evening? These and other questions will be explored here.
The tour lasts approx. 90 minutes. Participation in the tour costs 10 euros per person and the number of participants is limited.
Registration is required by 22 May (3 pm) by e-mail to tierpark(at)stadt-chemnitz.de. Tickets can be purchased at the zoo ticket office during regular opening hours once registration has been confirmed. (For organisational reasons, there will be no box office. Cancellations and participation with dogs are not possible).
Opening hours in summer:
| Zoo: | 9 am to 7 pm, last admission 6 pm |
| Game enclosure: | 9am to 6pm, last admission 5pm |