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Pigs on parade: Fiberglass pigs pop up on city streets

Mackensy Lunsford
The Citizen-Times

ASHEVILLE - One could hardly hope for a better unofficial mascot than Teresa. She wallowed in mud, walked with a limp and lived to the ripe old age of 14.

That's not bad for a pig who was destined for the slaughterhouse and abandoned in a trailer in a hot parking lot.

Teresa the pig, and others like her, will be memorialized locally by Farm Sanctuary, a New York-based animal advocacy and rescue group.

The group will bring to Asheville several life-sized fiberglass pigs, slated to be painted live this weekend by local artists during the 3rd annual LEAF Downtown.

The city will serve as the launchpad for Farm Sanctuary's North Carolina-focused “Meet Your Neighbors” campaign. 

Teresa the pig was rescued from an abandoned pig trailer.

The pigs will stand in front of several storefronts in Asheville, painted with designs the artists have created as commentary on the meat industry.

As might be expected, the pigs will mainly guard vegan eateries, including Plant and the Block Off Biltmore.

Farm Sanctuary spokespeople hope the effort will inspire people to rethink their relationship with animals, particularly those usually farmed for meat.

Lindsay Morris, Farm Sanctuary’s Senior Communications & Marketing Manager, said she hoped the effort would help North Carolinians see pigs differently. "They're emotionally intelligent; they have friendships," she explained. 

Consider Teresa, who in 1998 was en route from a North Carolina farm to a Pennsylvania slaughterhouse with 180 of her friends.

From left, Tenety Britton, 7, Somer Brown, 6, and Riley Peltz, 7, paint a fiberglass pig at Roots + Wings for a project by Farm Sanctuary, a Los Angeles, California-based animal advocacy and rescue group, August 4, 2017. The pig will be on permanent display at Bean Vegan Cuisine in Arden.

The animals had been on a truck belonging to the Hanor Company, a pork producer, for about five hours when the driver parked in a Washington neighborhood and abandoned the pig-filled rig, The Frederick News-Post reported at the time. 

Neighbors called the officials, who launched an hours-long rescue, hampered by crowding and lack of loading ramps. Several animals died, but the surviving 167 pigs were ferried to the nearby Poplar Springs Animal Sanctuary. 

"The local shelter that took them in spent a whole lot of money on health care needs," Morris said, noting many of the pigs were injured or dehydrated.

That's why the Poplar Springs sanctuary presented Hanor Co. with a $12,000 boarding bill when the shipping company arrived to collect their pigs. 

Selah Parks, 6, paints a fiberglass pig with her fellow Roots + Wings classmates August 4, 2017. The pig will be on permanent display at Bean Vegan Cuisine in Arden.

Meanwhile, the wayward Hanor driver had been charged with driving under the influence. To avoid further embarrassment, the company decided it would eat the loss and surrender the pigs. 

The surviving pigs would become known in animal protection groups as the "DC 167." Forty would live out their days at Farm Sanctuary.

Those 40 included Teresa, who thrived despite leg injuries from the incident and joint ailments that can plague pigs bred for food. 

"That story inspired us to think about how little most people know about pigs," said Morris, adding that the population of pigs in North Carolina can come close to — even surpass — the number of people in the state.

Some estimates put the current population of pigs at 9 million, while the human population is just more than 10 million. 

Teresa the pig at the Farm Sanctuary.

With nearly 2,300 hog farms in the state, pigs represent big industry for many farmers, but their environmental impact has been controversial.

A 1995 waste-water spill from an Onslow County hog farm spewed 25 million gallons of pig waste over roads and crops, and fouled the New River.

More recently, nearly 30 federal lawsuits were levied against a subsidiary of Smithfield Farms, the largest producer of pork in the state.

In May, a new state law increased legal protections for North Carolina hog farmers, limiting what they can be forced to pay in lawsuits over quality-of-life issues for nearby residents.

Gov. Roy Cooper attempted to veto the bill, but the state Senate overrode him.

Still, Morris believes most people want to be good neighbors. “And we're helping people see these animals as someone and not some thing. Someone who is your neighbor."

Anissa Methany's "Let Compassion Bloom" design will be featured on a fiberglass pig, painted live during Asheville's LEAF Festival.

Morris said the group pegged Asheville for the launch of the "Meet your Neighbors" campaign for its vegetarian-friendly reputation.

According to Morris, more than 600 people downloaded the contest rules in the first week the campaign sent a call to artists in the Asheville area. 

"That says something about the Asheville community," she said. "People care about art as advocacy."

Further, she noted, Asheville Mayor Esther Manheimer recently signed a proclamation recognizing Aug. 28-Sept. 3 as Vegan Awareness Week in the city.

The proclamation recognized the assertion that a plant-based diet has a positive impact on dietary health and the environment. 

Asheville also boasts nationally recognized vegetarian restaurants, and a few vegan eateries too, including Plant on Merrimon Avenue. 

"A Pig's Dream" by Abbi Kay.

Jason Sellers, Plant's chef, was approached by the Farm Sanctuary to adopt his own painted pig. 

He thinks it will look just fine in front of his restaurant, as long as it's not painted in day-glo colors or bright polka dots, he said, laughing. 

Whether he'll keep it remains to be seen, he said. Oddly enough, displaying the fiberglass animal requires a pushcart permit, typical for street merchandising, and only good for a number of weeks. 

He's had to fill out a lot of paperwork, he said, including a certificate of liability from his insurance company. 

"As a matter of fact I've still haven't submitted it. That would be a terrible bit of irony, if Plant was left out because of my negligence, but I think it'll be fine."

Wyatt Brazell, left, and William Roberts, both 4, paint a fiberglass pig at Roots + Wings August 4, 2017. The pig will be on permanent display at Bean Vegan Cuisine in Arden.

Each painted pig will be approximately 4 feet long and 3 feet tall, and will be mounted on wooden platforms with locking wheels. 

Completed pigs will be painted live at LEAF and will stand in front of participating business storefronts. After the festival is over, the pigs will become permanent residents of the city — if permitting allows, of course.

"We wanted to give these as a gift to Asheville," Morris said. "We want to help the city's plant-based restaurants get the attention they deserve." 

MEET THE PIGS

The artists: Lena Greenstone; Anissa Metheny; Abbi Kay; Joseph Pearson; Jenny Joleen; Roots + Wings students.

Where to find pigs during LEAF: VIP tent; inside The Block Off Biltmore; Family Adventure; LEAF Style; Easel Rider. 

The on-stage introduction of pigs will be at 3:15 p.m., Aug. 5 after the Free Planet Radio set. 

Where to find the pigs after LEAF: The Block Off Biltmore; Sanctuary Brewing Company; Plant; Bean Vegan Cuisine; Firestorm Books and News; Roots + Wings School.

Roots + Wings teacher Holly de Saillan watches her students paint a fiberglass pig for a project by Farm Sanctuary, a Los Angeles, California-based animal advocacy and rescue group, August 4, 2017. The pig will be on permanent display at Bean Vegan Cuisine in Arden.