IT may well be that the Australian film Babe, with its smart porcine hero, will do wonders for pigs' welfare.
Today, animal welfare group Compassion in World Farming begins its "Freedom for Irish Sows Campaign" in Dublin. The campaign aims to end the tethering of pregnant sows in farrowing units.
And Babe has been a tremendous help, says campaign organiser Ms Mary Anne Bartlett, in helping the group to gather more than 14,000 signatures to end the practice.
"Anyone who has seen the film will never again think of pigs as stupid, dirty or lazy. The reality is that pigs are highly intelligent and very active," she said.
Ms Bartlett had to agree with the North Cork TD, Mr Ned O'Keeffe, a pig farmer, who had called for a ban on the film in Ireland because of the damage it could do to the pigmeat industry.
"The man was right. Anyone who has seen the film will know just how lovable the pig is and how well it must be treated. The more people that see Babe the better," she added.
"I love pigs and I know they can do anything a dog can do. They are lovely even though I accept that the film was a bit of make believe However, it does show what the pig is capable of doing," she said.
The campaign is to be launched at noon when a life size model of a sow will be tethered outside the Department of Agriculture.
CIWF will hand in the signatures to the Minister's office, demanding that the practice of tethering more than 90 per cent of the State's 150,000 breeding sows be stopped.
CIWF, which spearheaded the successful campaign on animal transport regulations, wants the practice phased out over the next four years rather than over the 10 year period demanded by the EU.
Last night, Mr O'Keeffe said he still had not seen the film and was unlikely to do so unless it was shown at his local cinema in Michelstown, Co Cork.
People should not forget that Babe was a humorous film and leave it at that, he said.
He added that Irish pig farmers were working towards untethering the pregnant sows as grants became available for them to extend their premises and to create more space for sows in the breeding units.