This little piggy may have been trying to get to the market, but she could not find her way back home.
Carter County Animal Control officer Chayna Winson picked up the runaway swine Tuesday afternoon. She said a resident on Smith Avenue in the Biltmore community called for assistance when the pot-bellied pig made its way into his yard.
“They said the pig was trying to knock down their fence,” Winson said. “We normally don’t deal with livestock, so this was definitely a different situation.”
Shelter employee Wendy Mathes said the decision was made to try to corral the pig because the resident was so afraid the pig was going to damage his property.
“They were really afraid of the pig and were worried it was going to damage their fence,” she said.
Winson arrived at the residence to find an animal much different than what she normally handles. At the home was a large, brown, hairy pig weighing at least 100 pounds.
She was then faced the issue of how to get the animal into the animal control truck. The resident had cornered the pig in a large dog carrier and was keeping it there until animal control arrived.
Animal Control had an idea about who the pig had belonged to, Winson said, but after talking to the person, they found it was not their portly porker.
“Since it was already in the dog carrier, we just picked it up and put it in the truck,” she said. “We brought her back to the shelter, backed up to the gate and let her in.”
At the shelter, the pig has been kept in the quarantine room to keep her separate from the dogs, even though she seems to prefer their company.
“We don’t let the dogs around her,” Mathes said. “She seems to like the dogs. She tries to get to them.”
The pig has been less than the perfect guest at the shelter. Winson and Mathes both said the pig gets quite cranky and does not like to be bothered.
“She’s not very friendly,” Winson said. “It could be because she is scared and is in a place she doesn’t know. We are giving her time to settle down a bit before we try to get closer.”
A brief visual examination of the pig uncovered another reason why she might be irritable.
“She could be pregnant,” Winson said. “We don’t know for sure yet.”
While the pig is biding her time in her private quarantine room, she has found some things she likes.
“She likes donut holes, and dog food,” Winson said. “She is interesting, that’s for sure. She’s completely different. I want to be able to get in her cage with her and pet her. She’s kind of cute.”
The pig will be held there until at least Friday to give her family time to claim her. After that, she will be available for adoption. Mathes said a potential adopter has been found for the pig. She said the interested person came forward after seeing the post about the found pig on the shelter’s Facebook page.
“We’re not sure yet how the adoption process will work because we have never had a pig before,” she said. “We’re working that out. She is only available as a pet or a farm animal. That means she is not for food.”
Hopefully, this tale will end with piggy going, “Wee, wee, wee, all the way home.”