Little Peppa Pig was days away from being killed by shotgun when she was rescued by volunteers from Pear Tree Farm Animal Sanctuary.
Peppa, a kunekune pig is estimated to be less than a year old, and was saved alongside her mother, Mummy Pig, and Chloe Pig, another young female lop pig. All three were due to be shot after their previous owner received complaints from the local community.
Every year in the UK, 10 million pigs are slaughtered for human consumption, with the majority being gassed to death.
While it’s not unusual for rescued animals to be given names when they arrive at a rehoming centre or sanctuary, Peppa, Mummy and Chloe were named after Astley Baker Davies’ popular children’s television show characters, to remind people of the similarities between real life farmyard animals and the ones we love watching on TV or reading about in books.
While Peppa Pig the cartoon is around pre-school age, the reality is, most pigs reach slaughter age at just 6 months old, despite the fact they have an average lifespan of 15-20 years.
Bex Barlow, Co-founder at Pear Tree Farm Animal Sanctuary, said: “It was a very sudden and dramatic rescue. We received a message from someone on Facebook who told us three pigs in Devon were about to be killed. We knew we couldn’t let that happen.”
“Once we arrived, we managed to coax Peppa and her family into a trailer, and safely bring them home to the sanctuary. They came out of the trailer so calmly and quietly although they seemed scared, and unsure about what was happening. They’ve started to settle in and have happily arranged their stable into a huge pile of straw where they sleep all three side by side.”
The pigs are now enjoying life at the family-run Somerset-based sanctuary with the volunteers currently weighing up whether they’ll be able to integrate them with the other resident pigs, or if they’ll be looking for loving forever homes.
Peppa’s rescue comes as The Vegan Society launches a partnership with Pear Tree Farm Animal Sanctuary as part of its Future Normal Campaign.
Future Normal aims to inspire ‘animal-lovers’ to reconsider their relationship with non-human animals, widening their circle of compassion to include all animals including species that have traditionally been used by humans for food and clothing.
Mark Banahan, Campaigns Manager at The Vegan Society said: “At a time when everyone is patiently waiting for things to ‘go back to normal’ following a year of lockdowns, we want people to reconsider what ‘normal’ is when it comes to the way we view, treat and eat animals.
“We are sharing the message that being an animal lover means caring for and respecting all animals, like Peppa and her family, and not just those we might share our homes with.”
Explore the Future Normal here, where you can find a whole host of exciting videos, articles, podcast episodes, a quiz and more. The Vegan Society is encouraging people to share the site with their family and friends.
