The Cellar - April 28th, 2019: Only in [strike]America[/strike] Canada

Steve Jenkins and Derek Walter ~~buy~~ adopt Esther the cute little 3 lb pig, which might be a problem because where they
lived it was illegal, but were assured she would get up to no more than 70 lbs. Wrong, urban breath, even the potbelly
pigs get big if you feed them anywhere close to what they want. But how could they resist such a cutie.
And how could they resist posting pictures of her on Instagram.... and facebook... all over the net.
That doesn't seem very smart when it's illegal livestock you're harboring.

http://cellar.org/img/esther1-1.jpg

Ester was a house pig, litter box trained and lovable. They even became vegans so as not to eat any of Esther’s friends
or kin. Guess nobody told them Esther would eat her family given the chance, pigs love meat.
In 18 months Esther hit 420 lbs and had thousands of followers on social media. She taught herself to open things like
cabinets and the fridge, but the 3 bedroom house wasn’t cutting it.

http://cellar.org/img/esther2-1.jpg

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They found a 50-acre farm located about 40 minutes away from their house. However, the property cost a small fortune – listed at $1 million. Putting their faith in the communities love for Esther they created a crowdfunding site, with a goal of $400,000 to purchase a new home for her. Within two months, they managed to raise $440,000 from 9,000 people in 44 countries.

Nice work if you can get it. :rolleyes:

http://cellar.org/img/esther3-1.jpg

Four years after the farm move... oh wait, that's Farm Sanctuary move( don't want to sully their tax status), Esther was 650 lbs
and sick. But at Ontario Veterinary College no machines were big enough to give her a CT scan.

Quote:

Once again Jenkins and Walter reached out to animal lovers everywhere to help them fundraise to bring in the necessary equipment not just for Esther but the other large animals in the community. Within four months they exceeded their goal of $650,000, raising an extra $120,000, which Jenkins said was to be donated to other animal charities and rescue organizations. With the necessary equipment, they discovered she had breast cancer.

Even better work if you can get it. :right:

http://cellar.org/img/esther4-1.jpg

Esther had surgery and is now cancer free, has half a million followers online, and is living at Happily Ever Esther Farm Sanctuary,
with her friends,and a $350,000 a year operating budget. She has a website selling clothing, jewelry, note cards, and her new book.

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