These days one can say there is no such thing as a shortage of images when it comes to cats and dogs, as they are considered to be some of the most popular pets in a lot of households. However, other types of animals such as bunnies, snakes, spiders, birds, and even pigs can also sometimes make for a great pet in situations where the said animal was rescued from a horrible situation or condition and couldn’t be released back to their natural habitat.
This post may include affiliate links.
This time we’d like you to meet Floppy, a lovely giant (and very cuddly) pig of 1 and a half years. Floppy was born on January 18th, 2020, and his journey in this world has been very hard and complicated from the very beginning as he took in his first breath. With all of that said, it’s also worth noting that this piggy has quite an important and inspiring story to share with all of us.
This is Floppy. He was born with shaking head syndrome (which is similar to a tremor that can't be controlled)
Bored Panda reached out to Floppy's owner to hear the full story behind his condition and recovery.
"My name is Chelsey Weaning and we live in West Virginia.
Floppy is a very special pig. My sister-in-law had a litter of piglets and he was shaking uncontrollably. It's informally referred to as shaking head syndrome, which is similar to a tremor that can't be controlled. "
According to Chelsey the owner of Floppy, he couldn't nurse, couldn't walk, or do very much on his own
First, we wanted to find out how Chelsey came to a decision to take in Floppy regardless of his condition.
“I have always had a place in my heart for animals. All of my animals are rescues and I see the value in being the voice for those who can't always speak for themselves. When Floppy was born, I could tell my sister-in-law and husband were having a hard time deciding what to do with the piglet. They went back and forth for close to a day and finally, I said that if they wanted to give him a chance at life, we could take him home and give him the round-the-clock care he needed. The rest is history! I knew nothing about pigs, but I have learned so much from Floppy and from research. We created such a close bond and from that, we knew in our hearts he was meant to be part of this family.”
"The vet said it was the worst case she had seen and recommended euthanasia because he likely wouldn't live longer than a week"
Of course, Floppy being the special cuddly giant that he is, we also wanted to know what his personality was like.
“Floppy is so loving, smart, and sociable. He never wants to be alone and loves spending time with people. He gets so excited when people come to visit him. He taught himself how to walk up and down the stairs and how to open doors. He loves snacks and belly rubs and playing in his pool. We take him on walks on a leash every day. He is just so special and unlike a lot of other pigs.”
"My sister-in-law hated the idea of euthanasia and me and my husband were determined to let this piglet live out his life, if even for a short time"
We noticed that Floppy wasn’t the only animal that was lucky enough to end up in Weaning’s house, so we wanted to find out a little bit more about Floppy’s other friends as well.
“We have 2 dogs, Kona and Kai, and 2 cats. Kona and Kai are his best friends and they spend every day with Floppy. As a piglet, Kona adopted a mother role and looked after him. They took naps together and played together. Floppy is now 3x the size of our dogs, but they still love to play in the yard and enjoy the outdoors. That being said, although they have never had issues with each other, we understand the risks of having dogs and pigs together and they are never left unsupervised.
Floppy loves his pet siblings. If he could get more attention from them, he would love it!”
"My husband and I took him to our home, which is not a farm, and we bottle-fed him every three hours as a baby"
We also asked Floppy’s owner to tell us about how the piglet’s Instagram account came to be.
“The idea of our Instagram account is funny. At first, we didn't think to show him off publicly because we didn't know what his life was going to look like. But one day we snapped the BEST picture of Floppy in our living room and my sister-in-law posted it on Twitter. He got so much love from that photo! An artist in the UK, Robert James Hull, reached out to her about a week later saying he had been trying for days to find the owner of this pig so he could ask permission to use the photo for his greeting cards. We gave permission and then realized people loved Floppy and his story should be shared with everyone. We created his Instagram and we now have 6,700 followers from all over the world. We then created a business, Floppy and Friends, in honor of Floppy and donate to pig sanctuaries from our profits.”
"We only expected to have him for a couple weeks, then if he did better to take him to a sanctuary, but when the time came he won our hearts and we couldn't let go"
Floppy’s story is not only unique, but also very inspiring; therefore, we asked his owner to share what she’d like people to take away from this story.
“The biggest takeaway from this story is to just have faith and give chances. Believe in the happy things in life and that things will work out the way they were meant to. Floppy beat the odds and is living his best life because we simply gave him the chance to become the pig he was meant to be.”
"He is an indoor house pig and has his own room and now it's been over a year and he is simply thriving"
Floppy is a domesticated animal, but that doesn’t mean he’s unlike any other pet! We asked Floppy’s owner to share with us some funny stories about the cuddly giant and maybe give us a secret or two by sharing her favorite things about Floppy.
“Floppy and I were painting for the first time and I laid out all the paint, canvas, and tarp for him. Instead of making creations on the canvases, he made himself the artwork! He flopped down and started rolling in the paint because he was so excited. He was covered in blue and yellow but was so proud of his masterpiece he created.
Another funny story is a recent discovery. Last fall, our friends and family donated their leftover pumpkins to Floppy to eat. He loves pumpkins! When we clean the yard of his droppings, we put the waste in a compost box in our yard. Last week, we discovered new pumpkins growing out of the box! Floppy is excited and proud of his new harvest grown from his own fertilizer.
My favorite thing about Floppy is our bond. I love that he not only lets me take selfies with him, but he loves it and sometimes demands it. Pigs can recognize their own reflections so he often smiles in our photos together. He is my best buddy and I love having him in our lives.”
"The shaking has nearly gone away except for when Floppy is excited or anxious"
"He is a big pig (not a mini) so he is close to 500 lbs now, but a gentle giant and loves when people come to visit him"
"He eats on his own and he is SO smart.
A typical day for us is apples and bananas for breakfast, spending time in the backyard with our dogs, and in the house with us for naps. He likes to lay in his pool, then go back to his room for more naps and bed time."
Chelsey told us, that these days they spend all day together and have come to form an amazing bond
