Anime is full of animals, ranging from the fuzzy mascots of magical girls to the rampaging beasts that threaten to devour knights and wizards alike. Whether the animal is serving as a battle buddy, comic relief, or source of drama, they always bring a new element to the show.
The anime art style makes it easy to depict cartoony and exaggerated expressions, which is perhaps one reason there’s an abundance of pigs in anime. Chubby pink faces, upturned noses, glistening black hooves, and corkscrew tails make it easy to capture the spirit of these animals, helping pigs become some of the most recognizable animals in the medium. Here are the most iconic porcine characters in anime.
Updated on Jul 25, 2025 by Mark Sammut:Pigs are oddly fixtures of anime, at least in the sense that there are way more of them than there should really be. Two more of thebest anime pigshave been added to this discussion.
OK,Butarebais not a very good anime by any stretch of the imagination, but it warrants a mention for one specific reason: The protagonist is a pig. For the most part, the animal’s appearances in anime are limited to secondary or comedic roles, particularly in shonen stories. They are usually there for a gag, which is fine and makes sense for these types of characters.
Butareba’s Pig is an exception and a pretty absurd one at that. In an isekai anime,a less-than-great guy is reincarnated as a pigin a fantasy world with some rather strange practices. He quickly befriends a girl named Jess, who is just about to go on a journey that will likely result in her death. However, maybe Pig can offer a helping hand.Butareba’s opening episode is pretty terrible, but the anime introduces a couple of interesting ideas as it moves along.
Harima’s pet pig Napolean is probably the cutest thing inSchool Rumble.A piglet with stubby legs, a potbelly, and dots for eyes, Napolean is more like a child’s idea of a pig than an actual pig, but that only makes him better.School Rumbleis an underrated show,and Napolean is an easy answer for why it should be more highly appraised.
Unlike Pyotr, the giraffe who plays basketball with a head of lettuce, picks people up by the scruff of their shirts, and performs other over-the-top feats, Napolean mostly just hangs around, making the occasional “quee quee” noise and waiting for food. He’s a simple pig, to be sure, but a good one.
The fictional MMO featured in.hack//SIGNhas many interesting features for fans to learn more about. One such feature is the Grunty, a species of pig native to the game. The bad news is, Puchi is a terrible Grunty owner, because despite liking the pigs, she isn’t willing to make an effort to raise them. Instead, she dumps her pet pigs in someone else’s care when raising them becomes too much of a hassle.
Puchi ropes Tsukasa into taking care of her baby Grunty while the Blademaster takes a vacation, but Tsukasa realizes the pig is ill and immediately undertakes a dangerous mission to try to get a cure. Puchi’s Grunty never received the love it should have from its original owner, but at least Tsukasa wanted the best for it.
Ganju Shiba’s pet boar Bonnie fromBleachdeserves some kind of medal for her disconcerting appearance. Her fixed, angry expression clashes with the red ribbon on her back, giving her a look that has made her so beloved by the anime’s fanbase that Bonnie is even a playable character inBleach: The Blade of FateandBleach: Dark Soulsfor the Nintendo DS.
Bonnie is a one-of-a-kind character in many ways, and though her role inBleachisn’t the largest,it’s always memorable when she appears onscreen.The adventures of Ichigo and his friends would simply be less interesting without her, as the pig manages to stand out even in a show with so exceptional a cast.
Does this count? Technically,Ryoga Hibikiis not a pig but just a human cursed to transform into one when he gets wet. Still, the martial artist seems to spend more time as P-Chan than in his normal form, and he squeals his way into some of the funniest situations inRanma ½.
As a human, Ryoga is aggressive and prone to angry outbursts, largely due to his burning hatred for Ranma. However, he shows a softer side when around Akane, even if she does not particularly care for him. As P-Chan, Ryoga accidentally becomes Akane’s pet, a situation he uses to good effect.
For an anime to be one of the best shonen series, it needs to have a lot going for it: a strong plot, plenty of humor and drama, compelling characters, and a unique world that fans will keep wanting to explore even after many episodes have gone by.The Seven Deadly Sinshas all of this. It also has Hawk.
Hawk isn’t exactly complex, but he doesn’t need to be. He’s a talking pig who loves to eat, and that’s pretty much all the depth he needs in order to be an endless source of comic relief and snarky dialog. As if he needed to get any cuter, Hawk shrinks later inThe Seven Deadly Sins,making his manic munching all the more adorable.
Does there need to be such a thing as a ninja pig?Narutothinks so.Tsunade’s ninja pig, though often cared for by Shizune,Tonton is the very picture of devotion in this beloved shonen series.
Tonton even tries to help move crates for the Logistical Support and Medical Division during the Fourth Shinobi World War, spraining her foot in the process. Though Tonton can’t speak in the conventional sense, both Tsunade and Shizune can understand her. There’s something undeniably sweet about an animal who would go so far for its owner, and for that reason alone Tonton ranks amongst the best.
Most pigs in anime are just that: pigs. They might be cute pigs, smart pigs, or sassy pigs, but they’re still just pigs. Then there’s Okkoto, the boar god and leader of the Kyuusyu tribe fromPrincess Mononoke.Okkoto joined the forest tribe to assist them in the battle against the Ironforge, so in addition to being a tribal leader and god, Okkoto is also a warrior.
That’s arguably too many cool things to give to one pig, yet Okkoto pulls it off. He’s blind, but doesn’t let that stop him down either. Okkoto undergoes a transformation inPrincess Mononokethat can be hard to watch, becoming truly terrifying, but just because anime pigs are usually depicted in a cute way doesn’t mean every pig has to remain that way.
Sometimes it’s an image that makes a character iconic, and sometimes it’s a sound. It’s the latter for Botan, whose catchphrase “Puhi-Puhi” is a sure way to make fans ofClannadsmile. Botan is Kyou’s pet boar, and though Botan loves Kyou, she has hated her sister Ryou ever since a misunderstanding at the bathtub convinced Botan that Ryou wanted to cook her alive.
Her exceptionally cute and fuzzy body, outsized personality, and crystal clear expressions make Botana favorite not only ofClannadfans, but also of most anime fans who encounter her. It doesn’t hurt that Botan possesses seven secret skills, including the ability to disguise herself as a plushie doll.
Pigs? Interesting. Anthropomorphic pigs? More interesting. Anthropomorphic shapeshifting pigs? The most interesting yet. Oolong is a bit character inDragon Ball Zbut plays a major role inDragon Ball,joining Goku and Bulma on their quest to find the Dragon Balls.
Once their adventure ends, Oolong goes to live at Capsule Corporation. From that point on his appearances are limited to popping up now and then in the company of Master Roshi, but that doesn’t keep Oolong from being one of the most iconic pigs around. Maybe it’s the sharp outfits.
