Amanda, a 22-year-old from Staten Island, won’t share her last name for fear her beloved companion will be taken away from her. For the past year and a half, she’s shared her house with a 42-pound miniature American potbelly pig, even though it’s against the law to have a pig in the city.
“My fiancé has really bad asthma, so she’s the perfect pet,” she says of her porker, Annabelle. “Her skin can get dry, but [there is] no shedding, no smell, not a lot of maintenance to her.”
Amanda is a member of a group of New Yorkers who have chosen to live the clandestine life of a city pig owner. Fourteen years ago, in response to pigs being bred as pets, officials made an amendment to the health code that prohibits pet porkers in the city.
“Pigs can present a public health risk, as they cannot be vaccinated for rabies and can become aggressive as they grow,” says a Health Department spokesperson.
The law hasn’t stopped many hog-owning city dwellers who insist the animals make great pets. “My pig’s affectionate and the most loving animal I’ve ever met,” says a 20-something asthmatic man from Manhattan who declined to give his name for fear his 5-month-old Juliana pig would get in trouble with the law. “I’m afraid that if the authorities were to find out I have a pig, they would take her away from me,” he says. “The law is ridiculous.”
Increasingly, the city’s swine owners and their supporters aren’t just ignoring the ban and living in fear, they’re fighting it.
State Sen. Tony Avella (D-Queens) has been on a crusade to make pet pigs legal. “I don’t want people to have to pay these fines,” says Avella, who has taken up oinkers as a cause because they are popular pets in his borough. “I have seen a number of families with them,” he notes.
He recently pleaded his case to Health Department Commissioner Thomas Farley, who has agreed to continue the conversation. Avella may introduce legislation that could overturn the law. While there’s a “common conception that [pigs are] not smart and they’re dirty,” Avella says, “it’s really the opposite.”
Fighting alongside with him is Danielle Adornetto, 32, of Pelham Bay, The Bronx. An educational director at a preschool, Adornetto was forced to give up her 90-pound potbelly pig, Eugene, whom she’d gotten for her young charges to play with. “Pigs are perfect for children,” she insists. “He was part of the community.”
Danielle Forgione, 33, a mother of six living in Whitestone, Queens, is in the midst of a battle with her co-op over her pet pig, Petey. Forgione has received two notices from the Health Department this year, and must remove Petey, her 11-month-old mini Juliana pig, by July, or she will face eviction.
“My kids love him. He’s never been aggressive. He’s not in a kennel or a cage; he’s with my kids all day,” says the homemaker. A
change.org petition to overturn the law highlights Petey’s story and has garnered nearly 1,500 signatures.
Most pet pigs are Vietnamese potbelly pigs, which were originally brought into the country in the early 1980s for use as pets. They can grow to be 100 to 200 pounds. Juliana pigs are also popular pets and are smaller, averaging 20 to 50 pounds. The pig life span is 15 years, similar to a dog or cat, and it can be trained to use a litter box and perform tricks. Owners note that pigs are cuddly and hypoallergenic.
Still, city officials aren’t the only ones who say they’re not suitable companions for city dwellers. “Pigs are not good pets for apartments,” argues veterinarian Alex Wilson of the Center for Avian and Exotic Medicine. She says that they’re not 100 percent allergy-free, and pig owners must take special precautions, or “they’ll dig up the floor, they’ll eat your furniture.”
They’re also not all that low-maintenance, Wilson says. She notes that proper pet pig care includes regularly bathing them and trimming their hooves, and that they should be spayed or neutered, as un-neutered males can give off a strong odor when mature. Pigs should visit the vet annually for proper vaccinations and fecal testing. Because they don’t sweat, they need air conditioning and access to water during New York City summers.
Emma Blasi, 33, a tattoo artist living in Poughkeepsie, doesn’t agree with Wilson. She says her 2-year old, 35-pound mini-micro pig, Snots, is a wonderful companion, and she totes her oinker with her to her boyfriend’s house in College Point, Queens, every weekend, despite the city ban. “He’s improved my health, my attitude and my confidence,” she enthuses. “I haven’t had a bad day since I’ve had Snots.”