Vern and Shirley plus 4: warthog piglets join mom, dad at the zoo

Oink, oink.

It’s going to be a family affair at Zoo Atlanta this weekend when two 7-week-old warthog piglets join parents Vern and Shirley.

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ZooAtlanta

This weekend at ZooAtlanta two 7-week-old warthog piglets join their parents Vern and Shirley.

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The male piglets, two of a litter born April 15, will join mom, dad and an older brother full-time in the African Plains area of the zoo.

The piglets’ other siblings, a boy and girl, are currently being reared by staff members, according to a zoo spokesperson. A fifth newborn piglet did not survive.

Future family outings will include their first introduction to their parents’ favorite summer spot — a large, mud-filled wallow in the center of their habitat.

Found throughout the savanna of eastern sub-Saharan Africa, warthogs are not currently endangered.

Female warthogs usually give birth to one litter (average three to five piglets) per year after a gestation of five to six months. Piglets are typically weaned by the time they are six months old.

For more information, call 404.624.WILD or go to zooatlanta.org