On December 11, 2021, a potbellied pig arrived on the sanctuary. Lilah came from a military person who was about to be deployed. I don’t typically adopt animals whose people will be sure to find them a good home, but I made an exception in this case as a way to support people who serve. The way Lilah adjusted to her new surroundings was to walk the perimeter humming to herself. I didn’t know pigs have a wide variety of vocalizations in addition to the classic oink: hums, snorts, barks, and muttering. The pig who arrived after Lilah (more about her in a moment) added a new sound: whining like a dog.
All of the other animals, but one, on the sanctuary looked askance at the new arrival. Some took off running. The one who was blasé, the miniature horse Perseus, had lived with a pig before coming to the sanctuary. The two guardian dogs were the first to accept Lilah, followed by the goats, then the miniature donkeys, the sheep, and finally the large donkeys.
A month after Lilah’s arrival, she walked up to me and lay down on her side at my feet—this is the pig invitation to pet her side and belly, a sign of full trust and acceptance. I was quite honored to receive this gift! I also felt she was saying thank you for her wonderful new home.
By this point, Lilah was joining the dogs and me on our morning walk around the ten-acre sanctuary property. Lilah loved this walk immediately, following us enthusiastically, talking all the while and breaking into a run for, it seemed, the sheer joy of running.
Now we are in a new phase of pigdom. On August 21, 2022, a potbellied pig found abandoned in a nearby town joined Lilah. Animal Services brought her in a crate. When we opened the crate, Lavinia (her new name) took off to investigate the place. I had set up a pen for her in the area around my house but let her loose because she had been confined in a pen at Animal Services and I wanted her to enjoy freedom again. Meanwhile, Lilah was in her pigloo where she spends most of the day.
Lavinia’s adjustment was very fast. Soon after the Animal Services truck drove away, she came over to where I was sitting in a chair watching her exploration and lay down on her side at my feet. I petted her for a long time, telling her where she was and that this was her forever home. It was me who finally ended the cozy session.
Lilah and Lavinia met the next morning through the fence. (Sanctuary protocol is for new animals to meet through a fence until everyone gets used to each other and can safely be together.) The hair along the back of a pig stands up like a dog’s when threatening or being threatened. The hair on both pigs stood up, but Lilah was clearly the more dominant. So we are moving slowly. They still live apart, eating their morning bowls of pig food out of each other’s sight, but coming together for companionable munching of the hay I put out for them on either side of the fence.
I can see Lavinia’s pen from my kitchen window. In setting up the area where she would spend nights, I put straw in a doghouse for her and left extra straw in a pile in the center of the fenced pen. She moved all that straw and created a bed more to her liking next to the doghouse. I watched her do it. When a friend and I gave her a deluxe extra-large dog crate, having deemed the doghouse too small, Lavinia arranged a new bed next to the crate. We watched her create that bed too. In the morning, I look out the window to see if Lavinia is up yet; I can see her nestled in her straw. If I wait too long to show up, she whines in a kind of singing, calling me to bring her breakfast.
In the morning, all of the animals call me when they see the lights go on in the house or hear me talking. Braying, neighing, baaing, and maaing—what a perfect way to start the day!
