In the very early hours of Thursday morning, Sarasota police found themselves dealing with an unusual traffic hazard: a spotted pot-bellied pig waddling around downtown with no ID and nowhere obvious to go.
Officers spotted the roughly 100-pound pig in the roadway near Lemon and Central avenues while responding to a call and scooped it up for safekeeping. With no collar and no visible identification, the pig was taken into custody instead of continuing its unsupervised tour of downtown.
The Sarasota Police Department said it responded to a report of a pig in the road around 1:30 a.m. and found the animal on 4th Street between Lemon Avenue and Central Avenue, according to Tampa Bay 28. The department said the pig was not wearing a collar and asked the public for help tracking down its owner. The original Facebook post included a photo of the chunky stray.
How to help
If that pig looks familiar or you know who owns it, call Sarasota County Animal Services at 941-861-9500. The county’s animal services unit handles lost and stray animals and is the agency that took custody of the pig, according to Sarasota County Animal Services.
Strays, pigs and pet safety
As odd as it sounds, this is not the first time a pig has turned up where it should not in Sarasota. Officers have transported unattended pigs to the county shelter after similar calls, as noted in a 2020 Your Observer roundup.
Animal groups and local shelters say that simple steps like collars, ID tags and microchipping give pets, including pigs, a much better shot at a quick reunion with their families. They advise owners to check shelter listings and call the county number if a pet goes missing. The Humane Society of Sarasota County maintains a lost-and-found page that directs people to county animal services for shelter listings and next steps, and its resources also recommend microchipping along with visible identification.
For now, the pig is in county care while officials work to locate its owner. Anyone with tips is asked to call Sarasota County Animal Services at 941-861-9500 so the wandering porker can get back home. Police say they are hoping for a quick reunion and encourage residents with photos or other identifying details to reach out to animal services.
