No charges filed after 163 pigs rescued from Burke home

When more than 160 pigs were found living in and on the property of a Burke County home three weeks ago, 20 were severely underweight and two had to be put down due to illness or infection — but county officials say no animal neglect charges are warranted.

The case began when the homeowner, who lived at an undisclosed home on U.S. 64, called Burke County Animal Services, asking that they come to her farm and help to relocate 163 pigs, along with some goats, chickens, and dogs living both inside and outside the home.

Animal services brought in the state veterinarian and Ziggy’s Refuge Farm Sanctuary, a Providence, N.C.-based animal rescue, to handle what quickly became one of the largest animal intake efforts in recent county memory.

“It was completely unlivable,” Ziggy’s Co-founder Jay Yontz said. “The entire floor was just covered in feces, inches deep.”

NO ANIMAL NEGLECT CHARGES

According to county officials, no charges are on the table for the previous owner because they reached out for help and had nowhere else to go.

Burke Public Information Officer Chris White said, “Their barn, their home was destroyed in Helene. They’ve got no funds to fix that (and) have not received anything from FEMA. The pigs were healthy and the pigs can live in that, they thrive in that.”

White explained that only two of the 163 pigs had to be put down following testing done by the state veterinarian, but the rest were healthy.

However, Yontz said, “If I were the one to set the standard, I would say the animals were certainly in a position of suffering. The standard a lot of times, when it comes to farm animals, can be a lot harder to meet for those types of things. But at the same time, that’s the law enforcement’s job, that’s where they come into it. It’s not really our realm.”

While refuge workers described unhealthy living conditions, county officials say the reality did not meet the legal definition of animal neglect.

“People are met with challenging situations every day and it’s their own business how they handle it,” White said. “As long as they were not causing harm to the animal — which they weren’t — or harm to themselves or others, it’s not really the government’s place to get involved in that.”

He reiterated that Burke County tries to lead with an “empathy first” approach, and that since the property owner didn’t cross the line of the law, they approached her situation with empathy.

Yontz said, “Pigs are extremely intelligent animals, definitely smarter than dogs. The question is always ‘Can they suffer?’ If they can suffer, I think it’s our responsibility as humans — especially when we are the ones who bred them, put them on this earth — it’s our responsibility to take care of them.”

PIGS ON THE MEND

The animals spent two weeks in quarantine, undergoing tests to be sure they wouldn’t spread diseases.

“They all had parasites between worms and mange (and) scabies,” Yontz said. “About 20 of them we have separated out because they’re really, really underweight.”

Past initial intake and feeding them healthily, the refuge is vaccinating and spaying the pigs. But that costs money and time, both of which are consumed quickly by the animals.

Many of the swine currently live on neighboring land near Ziggy’s due to the abundant need for space, but time is ticking on the neighbor’s generosity. They have plans for the land this summer.

“We’re being pretty picky,” Yontz said. The rescue received about 100 applications for adoption within the first three weeks after the pigs being discovered.

“While 100 applications sounds good, most of those probably won’t be appropriate for them. There’s even people joking about eating them and stuff like that, which obviously, as a rescue, we’re not gonna do,” he explained.

MORE ON THE WAY

Those pigs are looking for a new place to roll in the mud, and Ziggy’s expects more piglets very soon.

“A lot of the females are pregnant, so we’re expecting more litters,” Yontz said, estimating about 200 pigs total could eventually be up for adoption. “All said and done, these numbers could go up quite a bit.”

With more than 30 pigs left to spay, and each pig costing an average of $1,000 each, mostly supported through donations, the refuge is looking to get the animals to a healthy point and get them to new homes.

“We don’t have the resources to care for them long-term,” Yontz said. “There’s definitely a risk getting them all signed over, trying to take that leap of faith that the donations will come into play, some adoptions will come into play, so we don’t get stuck with more pigs than we can handle.”

As of Friday, March 20, more than 20,340 pounds of feed had been consumed, $121,400 had been raised, and 50 pigs had been placed.

Those that want to adopt a pig or donate to the cause can go to blueridgeliberation.org.