Saturday, November 17, 2018

An Adventure in Pig Chasing

I have to post about the “it takes a village” moment we had in Ehrenburg, Arizona, while on our way to Tucson.  Ehrenburg is a little (population about 1,500 people) town on the Colorado River and just across the water from California. It's also right on Interstate 10.

Because it's on the river, it has several big RV parks. And because it's on the interstate it also has a Flying J Truck Stop, where we stopped to get gas before checking in for the night as one of the campgrounds.

As Jim was pumping gas, I noticed a man carrying a small but empty pet carrying case. A tiny pig was trotting in front of him. So cute. But the pig owner (I’ll call him PO) was not walking his well-behaved, off-leash pig. Apparently Bacon Bit escaped from the truck stop dog run. I told PO I’d help catch him. After all, I was a two-time greased pig catching champion at the Lorain County Fair in Ohio. How hard can it be to grab a miniature pig? Turns out plenty.

We followed little Bacon Bit, who scampered toward the back of the truck stop. PO circled behind him. I stayed in front. We closed in. Bacon Bit squeaked past and went toward the pumps. Several others, including Jim, saw what was going on and joined in. 

Bacon Bit hid under a Prius; a big group surrounded the car. I almost touched piggy and the owner actually did. But Bacon Bit squealed and escaped. 

Several times Bacon Bit came close to getting hit by a car or truck, but many folks (including a Colin Kaepernick doppleganger -- that guy could run) blocked him from danger.

Now about 20 people, including a Flying J employee, were helping. Bacon Bit got under a second car; humans lay on the oily asphalt to create a human fence. (When humans use their bodies to corral a pig, are we creating a human fence or a pig fence?) 

Then: Success! Bacon Bit was in the hands of a very nice man and went back in the carrier. Jim said at that point he thought about yelling “BLTs for everyone!” But we’re glad little Bacon Bit is on his way home. And they should change his name to Houdini.
The finally captured little piggy.  The owner told us they'd has a previous pet pig that was "laid back."  Not so this one. He's gonna be a challenge.

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