Start With What This Kunekune Will Grow Into
A Kunekune pig stays smaller than a commercial hog, but a seller should still tell you exactly what this pig will become. Ask the pig's age, its sex, and the size and weight of both parents, because a Kunekune's mature size is best judged from the sire and dam standing in front of you rather than from a breed description. Ask to see those parents if they are on the property. A breeder who can walk you to the parents, name them, and describe their temperaments knows the animals being sold.
Ask whether the pig is registered and whether any litter record exists. Registration is not required for a happy pet pig, but the paperwork tells you the seller tracks parentage rather than guessing at it. Ask also whether this pig is sold as a pet or as future breeding stock, since a responsible Kunekune breeder often places pet pigs with an expectation that they will not be bred.
Ask What the Pig Eats, Because Kunekunes Graze
A Kunekune's diet is the question that separates informed sellers from casual ones. Ask what this pig eats each day, in what amounts, and how much of that ration is pasture. Kunekunes were shaped as grazing pigs, and one raised mostly on grass, hay, and a measured pig ration will look and behave differently from one pushed on rich feed. A pig that is already overweight at sale is showing you a feeding habit you will have to undo.
Ask whether the pig has been fed kitchen scraps or animal products, and how treats are used around it. Kunekunes are famously food-motivated and famously good-natured, and a pig that has learned to demand food loudly or push for it is easier to spot when the seller describes the daily routine honestly. Ask where the pig roots, too: Kunekunes generally graze more and plough less than other pigs, but an individual that has torn up its paddock is telling you something about your own fencing and pasture plans.
Ask for the Health and Handling Record
A Kunekune seller should be able to describe the care this pig has received without hesitation. Ask what parasite control has been done and when, what hoof care the pig has had, and whether a veterinarian has seen it for anything beyond routine care. Ask about the health of the wider herd: any recent illness moving through the pigs, any unexplained losses, and how new animals are separated before joining the group.
Ask how the pig is handled day to day. A Kunekune that is used to being scratched, moved between pens, and loaded will settle far faster than one that has rarely been touched. If the pig is a gilt or barrow intended as a pet, ask whether it has been desexed or when the seller recommends arranging that with your own veterinarian. Bring any pig that arrives home off its food, limping, coughing persistently, or unusually withdrawn to a veterinarian promptly rather than waiting for it to settle.
Ask About Company, Shelter, and Space
A Kunekune is a herd animal, so ask whether this pig has lived with other pigs and how it ranks among them. Ask whether the seller will place a single pig with a first-time owner who has no other pig, and listen carefully to the answer: a good breeder will usually steer you toward a pair. Ask what shelter the pig uses in wet and cold weather, what fencing has contained it, and whether it wallows, because your setup needs to match what the pig already understands.
Finally, ask what happens if it does not work out. A seller willing to take a Kunekune back, or help rehome it, is planning for the pig's whole life rather than the sale day. Ask for the feeding routine, the health notes, and the parentage details in writing before money changes hands, so nothing depends on your memory of a yard conversation. Once your Kunekune is home, KinsLe Transferrable Profiles lets that written record travel with the pig's profile instead of living in a forgotten message thread.