Althouse: "We didn't know exactly how big he is. Pot-bellied pigs are more of a common pet so we thought maybe that's what we are looking for. Turns out Fred is not a pot-bellied pig."

October 7, 2023

"We didn't know exactly how big he is. Pot-bellied pigs are more of a common pet so we thought maybe that's what we are looking for. Turns out Fred is not a pot-bellied pig."

Said an officer with Aurora, Colorado Animal Services, quoted "Fred the pig caught after mischief rampage" (BBC).

The pig — probably bought as a "miniature" or "teacup" pig when it was really just a baby pig — is 400 pounds or so.

16 comments:

re Pete said...: "Suck that pig

And bring it on home"; 10/7/23, 7:26 AM
Robert Marshall said...: There's a reason Fred is on the loose. Little piglets are cute pets, while still little. Big, grown hogs are not. They're livestock, until such time as they become pork.

Outside a blue suburb like Aurora, this would be understood, and there would be people who would know how to "transition" Fred to his rightful role.; 10/7/23, 7:31 AM
JAORE said...: I don't know about Fred, but an adult boar can be a dangerous thing...; 10/7/23, 8:48 AM
Ann Althouse said...: People who let their unwanted pets go — off on their own to fend for themselves or to find some kind-hearted person to take them in — they're awful.

People who take in baby animals without understanding what they will grow into — terrible!; 10/7/23, 9:08 AM
Wince said...: "I bet George Clooney is really lonely..."; 10/7/23, 9:41 AM
Saint Croix said...: I love that they're looking for somebody to adopt him.

Pigs are smart.

You vegetarians need to step up and adopt Fred.

Nobody eats dogs!

You want pigs to be a protected class? Make them into lovable pets. Or quit crying if we continue to eat them.; 10/7/23, 10:07 AM
Rusty said...: "Fred likes belly scratches."
And I like pork scratchings. This could work out.; 10/7/23, 10:31 AM
Oligonicella said...: One of my favorite jokes ends with "You don't eat a pig like that all at once."

@Ann:

Agree on the "awful" but not the "terrible". There are plenty of YouTube vids from people who took in baby animals, not knowing what they even were and then devoted the time and effort to save, rear, learn about and work to acclimate and release them into their natural envorin. You're gonna have to get really technical on why those people are terrible.

Unless you meant "the situation is terrible". It wasn't clear.; 10/7/23, 10:31 AM
The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...: A fun story, nonetheless. Not a vegetarian but, yeah, it’d be a beautiful world where all “sociable” animals could lead full lives in peace. Until Fred ate a baby or something.; 10/7/23, 12:12 PM
phantommut said...: "Hey Boss. There's a guy here who says he wants to adopt the pig. Says his name is Bob Evans."; 10/7/23, 12:54 PM
MikeM said...: Hogwash!; 10/7/23, 2:22 PM
mikee said...: Feral hogs in Texas have entire channels on YouTube devoted to their shot by shot eradication. That this abandoned or escaped pet avoided such an end is near miraculous.; 10/7/23, 2:36 PM
Ann Althouse said...: "Agree on the "awful" but not the "terrible". There are plenty of YouTube vids from people who took in baby animals, not knowing what they even were and then devoted the time and effort to save, rear, learn about and work to acclimate and release them into their natural envorin. You're gonna have to get really technical on why those people are terrible."

Because it's unethical to take control of an animal, confine it and make it dependent on you, without understanding what it is, what it can do, and what it needs. People are so wrapped up in their own needs, fantasies, and short-term thinking, that they created danger and pain and destruction.

I said "People who take in baby animals without understanding what they will grow into" and you bring up examples of people who care for injured (or orphaned) baby animals which they do understand and which they release into the wild in a way that experts would recommend.

I agree that there's a category of person who finds and injured baby animal and begins to try to save it without knowing what it is. These people aren't terrible if they quickly educate themselves to "understand what they will grow into" and behave appropriately.; 10/8/23, 4:59 AM
Bill R said...: Or as Homer Simpson would say, "Mmmmmm, bacon!"; 10/8/23, 7:26 AM
Oligonicella said...: Ann Althouse said...
without understanding what it is

Found animals in mortal distress that turned out to be unknown species. Just leave them to die?

I said "People who take in baby animals without understanding what they will grow into" and you bring up examples of people who care for injured (or orphaned) baby animals which they do understand and which they release into the wild in a way that experts would recommend.

Don't gaslight what I said.
"Agree on the "awful" but not the "terrible". There are plenty of YouTube vids from people who took in baby animals, not knowing what they even were and then devoted the time and effort to save, rear, learn about and work to acclimate and release them into their natural envorin."; 10/8/23, 4:40 PM
Oligonicella said...: These people aren't terrible if they quickly educate themselves to "understand what they will grow into" and behave appropriately.

Then what's your bitch? That's exactly what I said.

Again, don't gaslight what I said.; 10/8/23, 4:43 PM