Florida woman sobs after her ‘severely obese’ pet pig called PORK CHOP was seized by animal control over fears for the 400-pound animal’s health
- Pork Chop is so fat it took two officers to carry him out of the house, using straps to support his body and help him walk
- His owner, Kelly Jacobson, cried as she told reporters, “I need him” and promised to “make him better.”
- Officers said the pig was severely obese, has a skin condition and needs its tusks and nails taken care of
A distraught Florida woman cried as her beloved “severely obese” pig, Pork Chop, was seized by animal control over fears for the 400-pound porker’s health.
Pork Chop was carried by two police officers during an eviction from a home in the West Palm Beach village of Northwood on Thursday evening.
He is so heavy that the officers had to use straps to support his weight to help him walk, with one at the front and the other at his back.
His owner, Kelly Jacobson, 38, wiped away tears as he was carried away and loaded into a van, telling a reporter, “I need him.”
An emotional Jacobson vowed that she would “do everything I could to make him better.”
It took two officers to move the giant pig, named Pork Chop, which is so fat he can barely walk
Pork Chop was carried out of the house and loaded into a van on Thursday evening
She added: “I don’t know what else to say at this point. They took Pork Chop away from me.”
Jacobson claims Pork Chop is a service animal, but Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control officers are so concerned about his weight that they have seized him and are seeking custody of the animal.
It’s not the first time they’ve raised concerns about Pork Chop — Jacobson was cited twice for similar issues in February 2023 and September 2022.
“I fought a lot of people for a long time to keep him, and people are taking him away from me,” Jacobson told WPTV.
She said she had tried to put him on a diet, but had difficulty finding someone willing to care for him.
Officers finally removed him Thursday evening, while Jacobson was evicted from her home.
According to court documents, she was evicted after a Fort Lauderdale landlord said she had not paid rent for three months.
Pork Chop owner Kelly Jacobson cried as she told reporter, ‘I need him’
Jacobson vowed to ‘do whatever it takes to make him better’
She said she fought “for a long time” to keep him. The pig was seized when Jacobson was evicted from her home
She also reportedly told the landlord that Pork Chop had been removed six months ago.
A local business owner, Stephen Schmidt, said Pork Chop was famous in his office because employees could hear it squealing.
‘It was quite a distraction, I know. They heard it screaming from across the street,” Schmidt said.
Animal control officials are now pursuing custody of Pork Chop – a process that will take between 30 and 60 days. He will then probably go to a retreat to lose weight.
Annette Wrubleski from the nearby Laughing Pig Sanctuary can take him in when the time comes.
She told WPTV that she has hope for Pork Chop, who has to eat a lean diet of fruits and vegetables.
Annette Wrubleski from the Laughing Pig Sanctuary hopes Pork Chop can lose weight and lead a happy and active life again
‘It will be a long process. He cannot walk and does not have the activity level to exercise, but that will come in time,” Wrubleski said.
Wrubleski posted on Facebook criticizing the way officers removed him from the home, but attributed it to a lack of training and said “pet pigs are quite new.”
“I was absolutely shocked at the way animal control handled this poor pig…” she said. “If they don’t have the tools and training to safely and effectively remove a pig from a household, it’s not their fault.”