Free Little Pigs (From Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard)

Free Little Pigs

A LUXURY home developer has gone the whole hog to encourage new buyers.

Anyone who buys a property at the eco-friendly Lower Mill Estate development this month will get a very special bonus gift - a free Gloucester Old Spot piglet.

Jeremy Paxton, the man behind Lower Mill, is offering the unusual pets to highlight the estate's committment to conservation.

A spokesman for Mr Paxton confirmed the free little pigs will come fully housetrained and their new owners can decide what to do with them.

He said: "Your specially housetrained pig can either live with you and your family at home, be kept on a special farm, where it can graze in the beautiful Lower Mill surroundings, or it can be turned into the finest pork loins and rashers of bacon found in the UK. The choice will be yours."

It is thought Mr Paxton himself came up with the piggy idea and he plans to source the animals from a farm in the county although he has not yet decided which one.

The Lower Mill Estate project has permission to build several hundred luxury second homes on the 600 acre site in the heart of the Cotswold Water Park.

Earlier this year Mr Paxton unvield plans for a collection of multi-million pound houses designed by some of the worlds top architects.

The whole estate is focussed on nature conservation and ecology and there are plans to introduce other rare breeds to the estate as it develops.

Only a few of the projects have been completed to date but once finished the estate will not only house eco-friendly second homes but also a private spa, lesiure facilities and a bistro.

The developers have worked closely with staff from the Cotswold Water Park Society to ensure the buildings have a minimal effect on the local wildlife, this has included installing bird boxes.

However Mr Paxton's plans have been widely condemded by the RSPCA. An RSPCA spokesman said: "The RSPCA is opposed to the giving of animals as prizes or free gifts. An animal given as such comes to be owned by a particular individual by chance rather than a deliberate or conscious decision of the owner."

"Pigs have specific needs and anyone taking on the commitment of caring for a pig must have come to that decision after considering the many needs of the animal: accommodation, feed, water, management, veterinary health etc."