Little potbelly pig has been on the lam for weeks

PEORIA, Ariz. (3TV/CBS 5/Gray News) — The search is on for a pig in Peoria. For a few weeks now, people in one area have been seeing the pig. But despite multiple efforts, no one has been able to capture him.

Christine Boivin raised the runaway pig and said she tried to sell her seven pigs to a nearby pet store, but an employee told her they were too big and suggested another option.

“He had a guy who lived on a farm and would come get them,” she said.

When the man showed up two weeks ago, Boivin said two baby pigs escaped during the transfer process: a baby male and a female. The female was later captured. The baby male pig has taken advantage of his freedom.

“He took off from that way,” she said. “And we have not been able to get him back from that way.”

Nearby resident Saryna Morari said she’s seen the pig in her front yard, digging through her fruit plants and damaging other yards.

“It just puts me on guard. I’m always shaking, always have anxiety when I walk outside,” she said. “It’ll be nice to know that the pig is not only gone, but it gets rescued, and it gets help.”

That’s the goal for Traci Cook and the HARRT organization (Humane Animal Rescue and Trapping Team). They set up a camera to better understand where this pig will be and how they can trap him.

“The next step depends on their step, you know?” Cook said. “I know we’ll get him. It’s just a matter of when and how exactly.”

Cook said because pigs can bite and are aggressive when they feel threatened, she’s warning anyone in the area to avoid chasing or trying to catch this pig.

“When it gets closer to actual rescue, I’ll probably actually ask the neighbors to hold off on the food so I can set a trap and put food in there, and that’s where he goes,” she said.

The plan is to capture the pig on Wednesday, and everyone involved said they hope this baby pig won’t pull a disappearing act.

“It’s probably not good for it to just be running around, period,” Morari said. “It should be where it belongs.”

“Apparently, he loves bananas, even the neighbors are feeding him bananas,” Cook added. “So I think that’s my golden ticket.”

She said whenever this pig is captured, the plan is to transfer it to Better Piggies Rescue shelter in Phoenix, where the people there plan on taking care of him.

Copyright 2023 KTVK/KPHO via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.