Kansas boy, 9, forced to say goodbye to Pig with emotional support after city council voted to keep ordinance
‘She’s part of my family’: Kansas boy, 9, is forced to say goodbye with emotional support to pot-bellied pig ‘Ginger’ after city council declares pet can’t live in family home
- Owen Grigoreva, nine, of Newton, feels the weight of the ordinance as he and his family prepare to give up his pot-bellied pig, Ginger
- A Newton city ordinance classifies pot-bellied pigs as livestock and therefore does not allow them to live in normal housing
- City officials said they don’t want to make an exception for Ginger because it would create chaos for them if other residents asked for exceptions
A Kansas boy has to give up his emotional support pig because of a city ordinance that classifies the animal as cattle.
Owen Grigoreva, nine, of Newton, feels the weight of the ordinance as he and his family prepare to give up his beloved pot-bellied pig, Ginger.
A Newton city ordinance classifies pot-bellied pigs as livestock and therefore does not allow them to live in normal housing. Although the Grigoreva family never heard a complaint about the pig or its smell, a neighbor reported the service animal after seeing it in the family’s yard.
Since then, Owen’s mother Jessica has had to appear before the Newton City Commission to defend Ginger and hopefully keep her in the family.
“I was in tears, I was really stressed,” Owen shared WIS News. “Please let Ginger stay with us, because she’s part of my family.”
Owen Grigoreva, nine, of Newton, feels the weight of the ordinance as he and his family prepare to give up his pot-bellied pig, Ginger. A Newton city ordinance classifies pot-bellied pigs as livestock and therefore does not allow them to live in normal housing
“I was in tears, I was really stressed,” Owen said. “Please let Ginger stay with us because she is part of my family”
City officials play tough ball with the family, telling them they don’t want to make an exception for Ginger, as it would cause chaos for them if other residents sought exceptions.
Newton City Commissioner Clint McBroom said he sympathized with the family and even prayed for the decision, but was ultimately unable to comply with the ordinance.
‘[I] tried to come up with a reasonable solution,” McBroom said, according to WIS News. He said he hopes the Grigoreva family can find a place for Ginger to visit.
“My heart aches for you, it really does,” he said at the meeting.
Mayor Leroy Koehn also supported the city commission, saying, “I think right now we should stay the course and not make any changes, but I do think we should think about it in the future.”
A police representative told WIS News that they would assist the family in finding a new home for Ginger.
City officials play tough ball with the family, telling them they don’t want to make an exception for Ginger, as it would cause chaos for them if other residents sought an exception
Jessica tried to argue at the meeting that Ginger should not be considered livestock since the pig is not considered food and is much smaller than other pigs.
‘It’s not food. They don’t get as big as a normal pig,’ she said.
She also argued that they chose a pig as a service animal because of her son’s allergies and that a pot-bellied pig would be better than a dog.
Newton resident Courtney Napier supports the family keeping their animal, saying it was “reasonable and fair,” as other cities like Wichita and Lawrence allowed them to.
Another resident, who was not identified, said Ginger was a perfect opportunity for Newton to get open-minded.
“I think we can at least learn a lot of information about the pot-bellied pig before we can make a final decision,” the resident said.
The family started with one change.org petition to help them save Ginger. It has collected more than 700 of the 1,000 signatures it is seeking in two days.