A cruise ship passenger on a popular “swim with the pigs” excursion in the Bahamas is suing Norwegian Cruise Line after being bitten by one of the animals, requiring stitches and painful post-exposure treatment to fend off the possibility of developing rabies, according to a civil negligence complaint reviewed by The Independent.

New York resident Jason Gordon had been enjoying a vacation aboard the 4,200-passenger Norwegian Escape last summer when he signed up to participate in the popular activity during a port call at the line’s private island, Great Stirrup Cay, states the complaint, filed August 5 in Miami federal court.

“It’s not known exactly why or when pigs were introduced to \[the Bahamas\], but it will become obvious that their descendants have thrived,” Norwegian’s marketing materials tell guests about the side trip, which starts at $197.99 ($159.99 for children). “Once you wade into the shallow waters, you can expect the pigs to follow, knowing that food awaits. The guide will show you how to feed the pigs and the best ways to interact with them while swimming. The pigs couldn’t be friendlier, cuter or more enthusiastic about the attention.”

But Gordon’s complaint says things quickly went sideways for him as he mingled with the supposedly docile animals, who have roughly a quarter-million followers on Instagram.

Gordon was “interacting with the pigs as invited and expected by NCL,” when one of them clamped his jaws down on him unexpectedly, “causing a laceration and puncture to \[his\] right lower leg,” the complaint contends.

Once Gordon got home four days later, the complaint says he “sought emergency medical treatment, where the laceration was closed with sutures, \[he\] was administered intravenous antibiotics, and… was required to undergo a course of rabies post-exposure prophylaxis, including administration of rabies vaccine and rabies immune globulin.” \[...\] 

The complaint goes on, Norwegian’s “promotional material and information did not contain adequate warnings and/or reviews from other passengers about negative experiences and/or prior incidents, including the risk that the pigs bite, injure, and/or transmit disease to participants.”

Pig bites and scratches can expose excursionists to bacterial infections and waterborne parasites from swine feces and urine present in the water. Tourists can swim with pigs at numerous locations throughout the Bahamas; though the Centers for Disease Control warns that even healthy-looking pigs can carry diseases such as leptospirosis, cryptosporidiosis, and ascariasis.

Earlier this year, a Florida man reportedly contracted a flesh-eating bacterial disease and nearly died after scraping his ankle while swimming with pigs in the Bahamas.

In 2025, a New York woman claimed she had been battling a parasitic roundworm infection for more than a half-decade following a Bahamian pig-swim during which she held a piglet up to her face.

When wild pigs get hungry, they can also be aggressive. Fitness model Michelle Lewin made headlines in 2019 after she was bitten on the derriere by a swimming pig during a commercial shoot in the Bahamas.

Beyond the purported health risks, animal rights advocates have raised concerns about the treatment of the pigs, calling the proliferation of swimming excursions “out of control.” \[...\] 

Cruise passenger feared rabies after bite from ‘swimming pig’ in Bahamas, lawsuit says