Swimming pigs at Pig Beach: how to visit Big Major Cay responsibly

Big Major Cay is an uninhabited island near Staniel Cay, and the pigs are not native to it¹. Pigs there are fed by residents of neighboring islands and by tourists³. Whether a visit helps or hurts them depends on what you hand over and how your boat behaves. For more planning pages, start at the Plan hub.

What happened to the pigs in 2017

In 2017, a number of the resident pigs were found dead³. Speculation about the cause included claims that tourists fed them alcohol³. A Humane Society inspector said the animals had likely ingested sand, and that a recent influx of tourism, not alcohol, was likely behind the deaths².

Inspector Ventoi Bethune said that veterinarians who visited the site found large quantities of sand in the dead animals’ stomachs². He said this may have been caused by a recent influx of visitors throwing small amounts of food on the beach². He also said the pigs’ natural source of water had dried up after an unusually dry January, and that he believed a combination of factors caused the deaths².

Bethune described a change in behavior. The pigs had been on the island so long that they foraged for natural food and went to the beach only for an occasional treat². With the rise in tourism, he said, they relied on humans more than ever and stayed on the beach instead of living in the forest². One of the pigs’ owners said people had been giving the pigs beer and rum².

What the community does now

Bernadette Chamberlain and her husband John, restaurateurs on Staniel Cay, are described as dedicated custodians of the pigs, and they helped to establish several protective measures with other local volunteers¹. The tourism board lists these¹:

• Water tanks and a guttering system, so the pigs have fresh water even when volunteers are not there to refill the tanks.
• A nursery for piglets, so they get proper care and nutrition after birth.
• Separate pens for piglets and for sick animals, with a veterinarian from Nassau providing treatment.
• Signs that explain how visitors should interact with the pigs and which foods are “pig approved”.
• A trough that serves as the designated place to feed, so that the pigs do not ingest excess sand or saltwater.

Tour operators who visit also look after the pigs by bringing them food and water¹.

How to feed and visit

The pigs are docile, and visitors are encouraged to act responsibly around them¹. Treat the signs and the trough as the rules of the beach.

What you do	Why it matters
Bring fruit, vegetables, bread or pig feed bought locally	These are the foods the signs list as “pig approved”1
Feed at the trough	It keeps the pigs from ingesting excess sand or saltwater1
Do not scatter food on the beach	Sand in the stomachs of the dead pigs may have come from small amounts of thrown food2
Leave alcohol on the boat	One of the pigs’ owners said people had been giving them beer and rum2
Arrive by boat	Big Major Cay is only accessible by boat, whether your own, a chartered one or a tour1

Choosing a tour or your own boat

Humane Society president Kim Aranha said local tour operators are respectful of the pig population, but that careless boaters can harm the animals². She separated the “silly sailors” who feed alcohol from the tour operators based out of Nassau, who she said have treated the pigs with excellent care².

If you book a tour, ask three things: whether the crew brings food and water for the pigs, whether guests feed at the trough, and whether alcohol stays off the beach. Our Nassau day trip guide covers the operators that run this stop, and the Big Major Cay page has the place details. If you arrive on your own vessel, the same rules apply to your crew. The cay lies near Staniel Cay³, where the restaurateurs who help care for the pigs run their business¹.

Rules and enforcement

When National Geographic reported in 2017, boats could drive up to the pigs, and it was legal for tourists to swim with and feed them². The Minister of Agriculture and Marine Resources, V. Alfred Gray, said that with boundary lines visitors would be able to photograph the pigs and watch them swim but not feed them². The government also planned to post a warden on the beach to protect the animals².

That plan dates from 2017². Ask the Exumas Tourist Office what rules apply on the beach before you go¹.

Is it ethical to visit?

The 2017 deaths came with a surge in tourism, small amounts of food thrown on the sand, and a dry spell that emptied the pigs’ natural water source². The measures listed above address water, feeding and visitor behavior¹.

A visit that ignores those measures repeats the conditions Bethune described². He said everyone in the community would still like people to come visit, and he hoped pig-swimming tourism would continue to thrive if the proper changes are made².