Meet the real life Babe pig mourning the loss of his sheepdog BFF

A pig who is a real life Babe is mourning the loss of his sheepdog best friend.

Savvi the pig has taken on the role of house dog in the absence of his beloved pal, Skye, who died two weeks ago at the age of 13.

The pair had been friends since Savvi was taken in as a piglet at a pig sanctuary and they were raised together.

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The 18-month-old boar believes he is a border collie like Skye and has learned all of his old friend’s tricks and mannerisms.

He is based at animal sanctuary Pigs in the Woods, in Skelmonthorpe, near Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, run by Jac and Rus Haggata.

His original owners gave him up because they had mistakenly thought he was a micropig – but he weighs 15 stone.

After being taken into the pig sanctuary, Savvi formed a special bond with the family’s female pet dog, Skye.

And in his absence, Savvi is emulating the pig Babe from the hit 1995 movie.

Technical manager, Rus, 43, said: “Savvi really does think he is a dog.

“As soon as we took Savvi in, he and Skye had such a close bond that we could not separate them.

“Skye was like a mother to Savvi. They were inseparable. They would sleep together, go on walks together and always be by each other’s sides, it was lovely to see.”

Rus and part-time social worker, Jac, 52, would take the animals in the car to see their piggy friends at the sanctuary for walks and visits.

They also slept together on a giant dog bed behind the sofa.

Like a dog, Savvi will go to the door to be let out to do his business – he has his own special toilet spot in the garden.

He also has his own squeaky toy – Mr Squeak – that he will bring out when he wants to play.

But the family believe Savvi is now showing signs of depression after Skye’s death.

The much-loved collie passed away in her sleep of kidney failure and a heart attack.

Rus said: “He is so incredibly sad, you can see if in his face.”

Last week, Savvi was rescued by firefighters when he left his garden, breaking through a fence and ending up in a stream.

Rus said: “At the moment Savvi has taken on the role of our family dog but it looks like Savvi will have to go outside and join his other pig friends in the woods.

“Now Skye has gone he wouldn’t be very happy on his own. He needs friends.”