Woman claims pet-sitter made her pig fat

A woman wants abuse charges filed against an acquaintance who was pet-sitting for her potbellied pig and allowed the animal to get fat.

Michelle Schmitz said her pig, Alaina Templeton, weighed 50 pounds when Schmitz left her with a co-worker who offered to care for the animal in February, when Schmitz went on medical leave to recover from ankle surgeries.

Nine months later, the pig weighed 150 pounds and it took veterinarians 4 1/2 hours to surgically remove the animal's collar. Officers are investigating whether Alaina was abused by the sitter's neglect and overfeeding.

Now the one-eyed Alaina is the subject of a police investigation into whether her pig-sitter abused her by neglecting and over-feeding her. Deputies were following up on the case, but no charges have yet been filed, said Winona County Sheriff’s Department investigator Jeff Mueller.

Schmitz, 22, said she cried for three days after she discovered her pet’s weight problem. “That pig is my life,” she said. Schmitz even has a tattoo of Alaina’s name. “Everyone in Winona knows I have this pig.”

She said the woman even tried to rename the pig Pork Chop. “She’s different now,” Schmitz said. “She’s scared.”