Truffles, a 6-year old black sow, who loves nothing better than having a good stroke, has become the mascot for Rochdale-based pig rescue charity, Pig Inn Heaven (www.piginnheaven.co.uk)
Arty Lobster (https://artylobster.com), 3D pet sculpture specialists, chose friendly and lovable Truffles as the perfect candidate for a complementary ‘micro’ version of herself to help raise awareness of pigs in rescue. Although Truffles has now found her forever home, her sculpture will serve as the charity’s ‘mascot’.
Janet Deveraux, Secretary of Pig Inn Heaven, said: “We love the 3d printed sculpture of Truffles; this little pig is the best sort of micro pig!”
The charity is constantly raising awareness of the issue of ‘micro’ pigs which look cute and small as piglets but are anything but ‘micro’ when they grow up. The issue is leading to fully grown micro pigs being abandoned by owners who can’t cope with their pets.
Janet said: “Truffles came from a home where the landlord said she could no longer stay. Unlike many pigs in our charge, she was looked after very well by her previous owner. She has now found her forever home, but we have 60 plus other pigs waiting for new homes, as well as turtles and terrapins.
“We have rescued pigs from flats, terraced houses, outside space which is too small, and roaming the streets in towns where they have been dumped. Anyone thinking of getting a pig please visit our sanctuary first as part of your research, you need to be able to look after a pig for a long time, the life span of a pig is between 10 to 20 years.
“It is very important to do your research in advance, if you are told from a breeder that a pig only grows as big as a Labrador please take into account that a pig also grows wider, longer and stronger than a Labrador and in a lot of cases bigger in height.
Lars B Andersen, Founder and MD of Arty Lobster, said: “We chose Truffles because of her lovable, but slightly cheeky, looks. She’s a wonderful character and we wanted to put that across in her 3D sculpture. Her sculpture has already become a talking point at the charity, and if it can help in even a small way to raise awareness, that will be worthwhile.”
To give a Pigs Inn Heaven pig a home, the charity charges a fee of £400 per pig – this covers the initial veterinary health check and the first month of care.