Somewhere on Highway 10 near Lawrence, a motorist recently noticed a small pig on the side of the road. She stopped, scooped him up and delivered him to the Lawrence Humane Society.
The piglet was suffering from road rash and other bumps and bruises, so he was transferred to a farm operated by the Kansas City Pig Rescue Network.
Kayli Houk cofounded the rescue, which cares for about 40 abandoned pigs on a farm approximately 30 miles south of Kansas City. She named the piglet Gilbert.
Gilbert was likely on his way to a feedlot where he would have been fattened up before being sent to a slaughterhouse. Instead, he tumbled out of the transport truck and ended up alone on the side of the Kansas highway.
About 130 million pigs are slaughtered annually in the United States. A relatively small number of them manage to cheat death by jumping off the trucks transporting them. Among animal welfare groups, these lucky pigs are known as "jumpers."
"Since we've received (Gilbert), now we also have Monty, who is same age, same size, same story — fell off a truck somewhere," Houk said. "Somebody found him. A good Samaritan took him in and contacted us for help. It's not uncommon."
Elina Alterman of the Lawrence Humane Society said people who find an abandoned piglet should do exactly what the motorist in Kansas did for Gilbert — take it to an organization equipped to care for it.
"I would just encourage folks to seek out expert advice," she said. "We want more people to have pet pigs and foster pigs, but just in a responsible manner."
Gilbert has now been placed in a permanent home where he could grow to weigh 700 pounds and live for 15 years or more.
