Male Sus scrofa are able to continuously sharpen their tusks by rubbing the lower ones against the upper ones. The tusks are used as weapons most frequently during mating season. Sus scrofa develop thick tissue around the front of the belly to help protect against stab wounds from tusks. The most aggressive males have been known to secure as many as eight sows for himself during a single mating season. The female gestation period is 110-120 days or a little over three months and three days.
Mothers give birth to litters of five or six and are extremely protective of their young.
Despite these protective measures, on average only half of a litter will survive to maturity. Disease and predators prove fatal to many young. In the wild, male Sus scrofa often travel individually while females and litters congregate into groups of six to ten. When the males reach maturity, they leave the group for a solitary way of life to find acceptable mates. With natural habitats decreasing at such a rapid pace, most Sus scrofa find themselves being reared in captivity on farms as a food source for humans.