A MAN was bitten to death by a pig and a boy left critically injured after they were attacked at a farm.
The 50 year old man, who has not been named, had taken the two year old son of a pal to a farm for a day out to see new born piglets.
As he held him over the sty he slipped into the mud and he was attacked by the frenzied pig after he climbed in to save him.
Officials in Rome, Italy, where the tragedy happened said the animal had a “blood lust” and savaged him to death in minutes before attacking the boy as well.
The boy’s 34 year old father who was nearby was alerted by screams and rushed to help but there was nothing he could do
Paramedics raced to the scene and an air ambulance flew the critically ill boy to hospital where tonight he was said to be in a critical condition.
A police spokesman said the farm had been sealed off while the pig sty was examined and added they were working on the theory the pig was protecting her litter of new born piglets.
He added: “The pig appears to have gone into frenzy to protect her new born piglets. It was a vicious attack and the animal was able to bite him several times.”
Pigs have been known to fatally attack humans and in the 2000 hit movie Snatch gangster ‘Bricktop’ played by Alan Ford spoke about feeding victims to pigs.
In a memorable scene he said: “They will go through a body that weighs 200 pounds in about eight minutes.
“That means that a single pig can consume two pounds of uncooked flesh every minute. Hence the expression as greedy as a pig.”
