National Pig Day 2011: Celebrate March 1 (PHOTOS)

PHOTOS: Celebrate National Pig Day
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Today is the time to give thanks to our porcine friends. Started by sisters Ellen Stanley and Mary Lynne Rave in 1972, National Pig Day is "to accord the pig its rightful, though generally unrecognized, place as one of man's most intellectual and domesticated animals," according to Rave.

Instead of chowing down on some pork, we here at HuffPost Green recommend celebrating National Pig Day by...well...not eating them! Instead, you could help support an organization that cares for abandoned pigs, like Pigs Animal Sanctuary or Pig Pals Sanctuary, or a pig adoption organization like Pig Placement Network. You could even send an adorable e-card to your friends to spread the piggy love. If you do find yourself extremely hungry on this National Pig Day though, you could always ditch the bacon and grab some free pancakes since today is also IHOP's National Pancake Day.

Check out these adorable photos of pigs, and vote for your favorite!

National Pig Day 2011
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LANGENHORN, GERMANY - JANUARY 13: Young pigs are seen in their pen at the Ebsen organic farm on January 13, 2011 in Langenhorn, Germany. (Photo by Joern Pollex/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
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LANGENHORN, GERMANY - JANUARY 13: Farmer Ebsen holds a young pig at the Ebsen organic farm on January 13, 2011 in Langenhorn, Germany. (Photo by Joern Pollex/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
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A baby monkey named Miwa (top) hangs on to the back of a baby boar named Uribo while they run around in the Fukuchiyama City Zoo, Kyoto Prefecture on October 19, 2010. Both have been sheltered by the zoo since June after losing their mothers. KAZUHIRO NOGI/AFP/Getty Images (credit:Getty)
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LANGENHORN, GERMANY - JANUARY 13: Farmer Ebsen holds a young pig at the Ebsen organic farm on January 13, 2011 in Langenhorn, Germany. (Photo by Joern Pollex/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
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LANGENHORN, GERMANY - JANUARY 13: Piglets suck milk from the teets of their mother at the Ebsen organic farm on January 13, 2011 in Langenhorn, Germany. (Photo by Joern Pollex/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
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A herd of pigs takes part in a demonstration protesting the dioxin animal feed scandal and genetically modified food in front of the Chancellery in Berlin on January 19, 2011. ODD ANDERSEN/AFP/Getty Images (credit:Getty)
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A herd of pigs takes part in a demonstration protesting the dioxin animal feed scandal and genetically modified food in front of the Chancellery in Berlin on January 19, 2011. ODD ANDERSEN/AFP/Getty Images (credit:Getty)
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Organic Farms Likely To Benefit From Dioxin Scandal(11 of21)
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LANGENHORN, GERMANY - JANUARY 13: A pig looks out from its pen at the Ebsen organic farm on January 13, 2011 in Langenhorn, Germany. Organic foods retailers are reporting a surge in demand following the recent dioxin contamination scandal sparked by the announcement by the German company Harles and Jentzsch that some of the fatty proteins it had supplied to animals feeds producers was tainted with dioxin. German authorities responded by barring 4,700 mostly poultry and hog farms from selling their products until laboratory tests could guarantee them dioxin free. Investigators are meanwhile pursuing a criminal investigation against the leading employees at Harles and Jentzsch. Organic farms have thus far been immune from the scandal since they use no industrially-produced animal feed. (Photo by Joern Pollex/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
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An white-lipped peccary (L) and its baby(13 of21)
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An white-lipped peccary (L) and its baby stand in the snow in their enclosure at the zoo in Berlin on December 10, 2010. In the wild, the animals are native to Central and South America. AFP PHOTO / JOHANNES EISELE (Photo credit should read JOHANNES EISELE/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
A woman walks a 7.5 kg pig called BBQ in(14 of21)
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A woman walks a 7.5 kg pig called BBQ in Taipei on October 10, 2010. Pigs are very intelligent animals, and if understood by the owners, can make good pets. AFP PHOTO / Sam YEH (Photo credit should read SAM YEH/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
Meishan pigs walk through their enclosur(15 of21)
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Meishan pigs walk through their enclosure at the Tierpark Friedrichsfelde zoo in Berlin on June 15, 2010. The animals were originally held as domestic pigs in China. AFP PHOTO BARBARA SAX (Photo credit should read BARBARA SAX/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
A saddleback sow suckles her piglets in(16 of21)
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A saddleback sow suckles her piglets in her enclosure at the 20th Brandenburg Agriculture Exhibition (BraLa) near Schoenwalde, eastern Germany on May 13, 2010. This year's farming exhibition, where 764 exhibitors present their products and animals, takes place from May 13 to May 16, 2010. AFP PHOTO DDP/ MICHAEL URBAN GERMANY OUT (Photo credit should read MICHAEL URBAN/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
Two wild pigs feed near the Vehicle Asse(17 of21)
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Two wild pigs feed near the Vehicle Assembly Building on April 3, 2010 as preparations are made for an early morning April 5 launch of the space shuttle Discovery at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Discovery will carry a multi-purpose logistics module filled with science racks for the laboratories aboard the International Space Station (ISS). AFP PHOTO/Stan HONDA (Photo credit should read STAN HONDA/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
Piglets are pictured on March 4, 2010 in(18 of21)
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Piglets are pictured on March 4, 2010 in Paris, during the international agricultural fair. The event runs until March 7, 2010. AFP PHOTO LIONEL BONAVENTURE (Photo credit should read LIONEL BONAVENTURE/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
A Warthog or African wild pig eats in th(19 of21)
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A Warthog or African wild pig eats in the Kruger Game Park, on December 10, 2009. Tourists who visit South Africa during next year's 2010 World Cup football championship in South Africa will be able to see some of Africa's wildlife. AFP PHOTO / ALEXANDER JOE (Photo credit should read ALEXANDER JOE/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
A pig walks back to it's holding pen aft(20 of21)
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A pig walks back to it's holding pen after a competition at the 61st Montgomery County Agricultural Fair on August 19, 2009 in Gaithersburg, Maryland. The Swine influenza virus, common throughout pig populations worldwide, is related to the same H1N1-type virus of 1918 that became the deadliest recorded pandemic of all time, with 20 to 50 million deaths worldwide. The good news, says the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), is that this descendant of the 'mother of all pandemics' is much less vicious. AFP PHOTO / Tim Sloan (Photo credit should read TIM SLOAN/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
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