What Christmas present do you get for the man or woman who has everything? Well, how about a Pig Experience Day – the perfect gift for any Lord or Lady Muck.

Gwen Howell, of Pigs in Clover, has six different breeds of rare breed pig, including piglets, at her small holding in Cardeston, near Shrewsbury. She says that the pig experience has become surprisingly popular with scores of people ready to don their wellies and waterproofs and muck in.

The idea is all down to one man who wanted to surprise his wife for her birthday.

 “A chap phoned and asked if his wife could come and muck out the pigs for her birthday,” explains Gwen. “It seemed an odd request but I thought, why not?”

The woman loved her present, which got Gwen thinking.

“I looked on the internet and there are llama and donkey days but no pig days and nowhere where you can really get up close with pigs, so we decided to find out if people were interested.”

The idea took off on computer networking site Twitter and is now available on online auction site Ebay, attracting pig enthusiasts from as far afield as Leicestershire and Wales.

The experience costs £25 and includes coffee, home-made cake and a chat before meeting and feeding the pigs, and a delicious bacon sandwich to finish.

There is plenty of opportunity for photos and a certificate to take home as a memento.

As for the mucking out, Gwen says it’s optional.

For details telephone 01743 821878 or visit www.pigsinclover.co.uk or visit www.ebay.co.uk and search for ‘pig experience’.