"He loves people and snacks and if he feels like going out to find people with snacks, nothing will stop him," shared the pig's owner.
The police department in Alaska has proven no emergency is too big or too small for them to deal with after escorting a "cold-looking" pig home. Officers at Anchorage Police Department, in Fairview, Alaska, reunited a pet pig with his family after a concerned resident spotted him wandering a neighborhood one evening, states a post shared by the department's official Facebook page.
"We're all familiar with refrigerated bacon, we just never thought we'd respond to a call for service related to that topic," the department said in the post. The rescuing officers added: "As it turns out, the portly dude was quite friendly. You'll be happy to know he has been reunited with his family and all is well." And most of us agree that the best part is the pig's name—Elvis Pigsley.
Nolan Boedigheimer, 30, was on his way to work with his dog around 7 a.m. when he spotted something on the road. "My dog started barking and I thought, 'That's a big dog,'" Boedigheimer told TODAY. "I came around the corner and there was a pig just standing there eating snow."
Boedigheimer took a few photos and shared them on Facebook in hopes that the pig would find his way home with a little help from social media. Although the post gained some traction online, no one claimed the pig. Later that day, Anchorage Police Department sent a cruiser to pick up the sauntering swine.
Apparently, this isn't the first time Elvis has gone on an adventure. "He is an escape artist and well known in the neighborhood," shared Elvis' owner, Angela Mullen-Herrera. "He loves people and snacks and if he feels like going out to find people with snacks, nothing will stop him."
"He usually doesn’t get too far, but has wandered further than I am comfortable with considering he lives on a very busy road," Mullen-Herrera added. She has now turned to Alaska Potbelly Pig Rescue to help house Elvis more safely for the next time he decides it's time for an adventure.
Mullen-Herrera did not expect Elvis' latest quest to get so much attention and noted that the police officers were friendly and understanding. "Getting him in the back of that car was probably a very hard task so the fact that they were able and willing to do that was really cool and shows how dedicated they are to keep not just the public but the animals in the community safe," she said. "And I'm sure Elvis was happy to warm up in the cruiser and experience something new. They gave him lots of fruit and veggies."
This isn't the first time the Anchorage Police Department has been called out to an animal-related "emergency." Last year they had to persuade a turkey to leave a shop and continue with his day elsewhere. Recalling the incident, the officer said, "Just shy of a year ago we responded to a call about a turkey trying to enter a convenience store. We showed up and found an actual Gobble Gobble attempting to finagle his way into the mart at a local gas station."
It doesn't look like the police department will fall short of rescue-time surprises, soon.
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