I took three little pigs for a walk and ‘pig-nic’ in Angus – what’s my verdict?

Pickles, Penelope and Porridge are trotting through the woods emitting a series of grunts and the odd squeal.

The cute kunekune pigs are followed by their best pal Dobby the duck – and then there’s me, trailing in their wake.

The trio have round bellies, stubby little legs, short snouts, and bristly backs. It’s impossible to resist stroking them.

I’ve got a wicker basket full of piggy treats – nuts, carrots and melons – and I feed them as I walk. They’re keen to get stuck in.

I’m enjoying a taster of what’s believed will be the very first pig walking experience in Scotland.

Run by Kirsty Brown, a sports massage therapist based at West Adamston Farm in Angus, the kunekune pig walking experience will focus on connecting with nature, and bonding with friendly pigs.

It starts with groups of six to eight people hopping on a tractor trailer and being driven to the meet the animals.

Why is hanging out with kunekune pigs good for you?

Once you’ve given them a brush and a pamper, you’ll head off through the woods, rattling buckets of food to keep them in tow.

You’ll learn all sort of pig facts as you stroll, before arriving at a dedicated ‘pig-nic’ hut and table, with breathtaking views of the Sidlaws and rolling countryside.

It’s an intimate, hands-on, experience. And the message Kirsty wants to convey is that hanging out with pigs is good for you.

“It’s a unique, quirky experience where you come to the country, escape the rat race, slow down and connect with nature,” she tells me.

“People find it very calming and therapeutic. It’s about doing something that brings you joy.”

Kirsty busts common pig myths

Kirsty’s been walking the pigs with her husband Mike and four kids since they were tiny piglets, so they’re well used to it.

They’re super docile and friendly and thrive on human company.

Pickles and Penelope are both 18 months old, but wee Porridge is just six months.

“Penelope loves to be cuddled the most,” says Kirsty. “Pickles is a bit more boisterous.”

Pigs are highly sociable and intelligent animals, and, contrary to the myth that they’re dirty, they’re actually very clean.

“Some researchers say they’re smarter than three-year-old children,” adds Kirsty.

With the experience officially launching in spring, Kirsty is brimming with ideas which she hopes will have come to fruition by then.

“That’s going to be a pig crossing bridge,” she says, pointing to a gap in the woods.

“We’ll also have a pig agility course. That’ll include a timed course for pigs going over a seesaw, through a tunnel, and in and out of logs.

“There’ll also be a camp fire area where you can toast marshmallows.”

Fancy a sauna with a kunekune pig?

Further down the line Kirsty hopes to have a pampering hut from which she’ll offer massages.

There’s also a plan to have a sauna hut in the woods, to introduce another piglet, and to build ‘glam-pig pods’.

After a good 10 minutes of strolling we reach the dedicated pig-nic table, where Kirsty has already laid out a hamper of biscuits and tea.

We all dig in – pigs included. Pickles jumps up on a seat and I offer him a few carrots.

The views – of the Sidlaws, of rolling farmland, and Auchterhouse Hill – are absolutely breath-taking.

Harvest is in full swing and we watch, transfixed, as a combine harvester trundles past a few fields away.

Who is the pig walking kunekune experience aimed at?

As I stroke Pickles, I notice he’s got some curious looking ‘tassels’ hanging from his chin.

“They’re wattles,” explains Kirsty. “Some kunekunes have them and some don’t – but they’re the only breed that has them.

“They’re just accessories. They do nothing.” A bit like jewellery then, I guess?

When the pigs get bored of us, they vanish into the trees to forage and root. A quick rattle of the bucket brings them back.

The experience is aimed at adults, but there’ll be scheduled family days plus school groups, Scouts, Brownies, Beavers, and so on will also be welcome.

Kirsty also hopes to attract students in need of de-stressing, or those struggling mentally.

I’m pretty sure it’ll attract influencers galore, too. Who could turn down a selfie with a pig?!

How does Kirsty get the kids involved?

It’s a real family affair, with Kirsty’s kids all mucking in to create parts of the pig walking area.

Her seven-year-old son, Joe, is especially pig mad, and is full of witty puns and jokes about the creatures.

Joe won the coveted title of junior young handler at the Scottish Smallholder Festival last October, and he’s gearing up to compete at this year’s event.

As we leave the pig-nic area and head back to the tractor-trailer, Kirsty shakes a bucket of pig nuts, which she describes as “like gold dust” for the creatures.

Their tone changes from a gentle grunt to an excited high-pitched vocalisation.

“They absolutely adore nuts!” she says. “They also love apples, bananas and other fruit, but the nuts are what they really want.”

If you’re lucky enough to stay in one of Kirsty’s planned ‘glam-pig’ pods, you’ll be treated to a more meditative version of grunting.

“The idea is that you drop off to sleep with the sound of their grunts,” she explains.

“You’ll sleep next to the pigs – you’ll see them through Perspex windows.

“When they’re just calmly walking about, they go into a different level of grunting that’s sort of meditative. It’s very therapeutic.”

She adds that it could be “quite a while” before the ‘glam-pig’ pods are ready.

Anyone wondering if the pigs will end up on their plates need not worry.

Alongside a pony, dog and hamster, they’re the only animals on the arable farm, so they’re regarded as much-loved pets rather than livestock.

• For more information, check out SnoutAbout Pigs on Instagram.