THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, November 30, 1994 TAG: 9411300449
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A01 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ANGELITA PLEMMER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 60 lines
After three weeks of painful separation, Pinky Starlight, the portly Vietnamese potbellied pig, was reunited with owner Virginia Hudgins on Tuesday when Hudgins agreed to put Pinky on a court-approved diet.
Hudgins, 39, agreed to plead guilty in General District Court to failure to vaccinate the animal and pay a $25 fine if the city dropped a charge of cruelty to animals.
She must put the 16-month-old pig on a diet of exotic pig feed, fresh fruits, alfalfa, leafy greens and vegetables for a year. Pinky will have to give up her usual breakfast of oatmeal, bacon and eggs. A veterinarian will monitor Pinky's weight for one year.
``She likes fresh salad, she likes alfalfa, cucumbers, grapes, tangerines, apples, spinach, cauliflower. . . ,'' Hudgins said in an interview. ``She doesn't like radishes or raisins.''
``We're definitely going to be doing more activities together,'' Hudgins said, including morning and evening walks.
Hudgins, a full-time student at Computer Dynamics Institute, must also pay the costs of Pinky's room and board, which could total more than $500 since she was taken away by animal control officers Nov. 8.
Supporters at Robertson's Bar-B-Que on East Little Creek Road are hoping to help defray the cost by selling Pinky Starlight T-shirts that feature the overweight pig in a neon blue sweatsuit on an exercise bike.
Pinky weighed about 230 pounds when she was picked up. She was so overweight that her belly scraped the ground when she walked, and rolls of fat from her forehead had sunk down into her eyelids, obscuring her vision. She stands, with some difficulty, at about 18 inches at the shoulder.
``She is petite,'' Hudgins said. ``I never considered her to be fat.''
Pinky herself is sensitive about her weight, Hudgins said. She nipped WAVY-TV reporter Andy Fox in the calf after he asked during a visit, ``Pinky, why are you so fat?''
The pig has been staying at a Chesapeake farm under the care of her veterinarian, Dr. M.W. Myers. She now weighs about 205 pounds.
``She's not happy there,'' Hudgins said before the hearing. ``. . . They said she lost 3 inches off her tum-tum.''
``This is my baby, this is my child,'' said Hudgins, sporting a purple suit and pointing proudly to a plump pink pig pin on the lapel. ``I wouldn't give one of my kids up, so I'm not giving up my pig.''
However, in one year, if the pig has not trimmed down to the 100 pounds required by the city's ordinance, Hudgins could face other charges.
``I think the city recognizes this did not rise to the level of cruelty to animals and was an intrusion on her private life,'' said Michael T. Pangalos, Hudgins' attorney. ``Havin' a fat pig ain't no crime.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Pinky Starlight weighed about 230 pounds when she was taken into
custody Nov. 8. Her yearlong diet will include exotic pig feed,
fresh fruits, alfalfa, leafy greens and vegetables.
by CNB