Falkor arrived at OMI in late 2023. His human saved him years earlier from an abuse and neglect situation, but she no longer had the capacity to care for him. He lived on her rental property on the coast of South Carolina, which was marshy and wet. She wanted better for him. Falkor went straight to the University of Georgia for vet care which included neutering, deworming and treatment for parasites. Once he completed our medical intake process, he went back to see the vets at the University of Tennessee to have his ears evaluated. He had a very badly mangled ear that was causing him trouble and the doctors trimmed it down in a safe environment to lessen the risk of it ripping and bleeding. This type of medical management is an important part of Sanctuary Babe life. We try to anticipate needs and potential problems for the residents so that they won’t struggle unnecessarily with preventable issues.
After Falkor completed his medical tune-up and full 30 days of quarantine, he joined our Gen Pop herd of pigs. We first put pigs into an integration yard where they can meet their new family snout to snout. This minimizes the pressure to fight for dominance because they can work out that part of the process through the safety of a fence. Once the posturing calms down, we slowly introduce pigs with appropriate levels of supervision from caregivers. The pigs will continue to work out their place in the hierarchy, but we do not allow them to get bullied and beaten up. We provide support to the new residents for as long as they need it, until they find their spot in the herd. While we can make educated guesses as to what neighborhood new pigs will join, we cannot force friendships on them. They have very complicated social dynamics that we respect, and they are allowed to form the friendships that suit them best.
