‘Wanted: piggy cuddlers.’ SC rescue group needs help snuggling pigs up for adoption
These little piggies didn’t go to the market and they probably weren’t being fed roast beef at their last residence — but they do need a home.
Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary in South Carolina is looking for volunteers to help socialize 100 pigs rescued from a hoarding case in Kentucky so they’re prepared to be adopted, executive director Evan Costner told McClatchy News.
To best do that, the animal rescue group is calling all “piggy cuddlers.”
“Belly scratches, cookies, sitting with and even just talking to our pig friends can get them ready for their new home,” Cotton Branch said in a Facebook post.
The rescue group in Leesville — roughly 30 miles west of Columbia — works to help abandoned, abused, neglected and elderly farm animals, according to its website.
Costner said cuddling the piggies is an important step to help them adjust to their “prospective pig parents” down the road.
“We need to socialize them so they can eventually bond with the herd leader (the pig parent),” he said.
The pigs will be family pets, WLTX reported.
Volunteers spend about an hour with the pigs three times a week, according to the media outlet. They’re usually ready for adoption — “rolling over for belly rubs” and “pursuing you for attention” — within a month.
Pigs are also quicker to house train than a dog, WLTX reported.
For those hoping to adopt, Costner told McClatchy that Cotton Branch is looking for people whose property is zoned for pigs and who have a fenced-in yard, lots of shade and “a nice warm house to sleep in outside or inside.”
“Pigs love their outside time but some can come inside the home during bedtime,” he said.
More information on volunteering or adopting is available on Cotton Branch’s website.
This story was originally published January 27, 2020 at 6:57 PM.
