Hog monkey

Hog monkeys are vicious-looking primates who roam the lands of the Earth Kingdom. They are not easily tamed, nor ridden.

History
Aang, Sokka, and Katara first ran into them when they were walking through the forest near Gaipan. Some of the hog monkeys were caught in a Fire Nation trap, so Aang and Sokka released them. They were seen again at the Ba Sing Se Zoo.

Anatomy
The hog monkey has a vaguely canine face, a long tail, and the body of a primate. It appears to run on its knuckles, suggesting that it is more closely related to gorillas and baboons than to chimpanzees. It has reddish eyes and a dog-like snout that is full of sharp teeth, including two tusks protruding from its lower jaw. Its fur is brown on most of its body, apart from the area around its face and head which is a much darker shade of brown.

Connection
The hog monkey resembles a cross between a hog and a monkey.

Behavior


The hog monkey is most likely a tree-hunting creature, hunting small game. Hog monkeys roam in troops or small packs usually. Its tusks could be for display, or killing larger prey. Due to its dog-like snout and small eyes, it probably relies more on scent than sight. Although the hog monkey does not really resemble a hog in any way, its noises are swinish in nature. It was stated that a hog monkey's bark is worse than its bite. It can, however, be soothed with leechi nuts.

Hog monkeys tend to be troublesome animals if they are let loose in a city. According to Aang, wild hog monkeys do not enjoy being ridden.

Trivia

 * The leader of the Zhang tribe wears a shirt made out of hog monkey hide.
 * The Avatar Relic for the Earth Kingdom is a hog monkey plush.
 * "Hog monkey" is a figure of speech used to refer to someone who tends to ramble on and on.
 * The Old fisherman says, "Well, I'll be a hog monkey's uncle". This is a play on the real-world expression, "Well, I'll be a monkey's uncle".
 * Aang mentions hog monkeys briefly in the unaired pilot as he asks Momo whether the lemur would save him from a pack of wild hog monkeys; the Avatar was attempting to justify his desire to save Sokka and Kya, the "only family he has", from the Fire Nation.
 * In the video game, hog monkeys roam in troops around a small fishing settlement and are blamed for the disappearance of food from the village.