A RESIDENT of Stockley Open Farm in Arley is having a severe identity crisis - he doesn't know if he is a pooch or a porker.

Neville the pig, a 10-month-old New Zealand Kune Kune, is behaving like a dog.

Mark Walton, who runs Stockley Farm, said: "Neville really is more like a dog than a pig. We have trained him to respond to his name and sit in anticipation before food is given to him.

"He lives in a paddock next to the farm and loves playing with the geese."

Neville can be seen around the farm being taken for walks in his specially made harness and even appeared on television last week when Fred Talbot, from Granada Television, came to pay him a visit.

Neville was adopted by the Walton family after his original owner in Stockport struggled to cope with him.

He is now having the time of his life on the Cheshire farm and the star attraction has become extremely popular with children.

Anne Walton, farm manager, said: "He is just so responsive to humans. If you scratch his tummy he will just flop over on to his side."

Neville has learned to sit when farm workers bring him his favourite meal of apples and bananas.

Anne said: "He just sits there, sticks his head in the air and extends his snout.

"Pigs are very intelligent animals but Neville is very different from all our other pigs. I have never heard of a pig doing the things he does."

Neville is too small to live with the farm's other pigs so he shares a paddock with chickens and ducks - which causes a few problems at dinnertime.

Stockley Farm is now looking for a female Kune Kune so it can breed the rare animal.

phennessey@guardiangrp.co.uk