Runaway Rome Pig Finally Caught With Help From A Piggy Friend

The little pig that spent weeks running around the streets of Rome successfully avoiding capture - and traffic - has finally come to a happy end.

The miniature pig escaped from his owners on Wednesday, September 12 and began his 16 day freedom run. Volunteers, led by George DeFazio, set up a perimeter to capture "Piggy Smalls" - using traps and tracking the tiny pig wherever he went. At one point, there was even a fear that Piggy Smalls was injured.

For a little pig, he sure could run. He managed to avoid getting caught, in spite of George's best efforts. Concern began to grow that the little pig might get chased into traffic by well-intentioned people trying to catch him.

The George and his friend Ann came up with an ingenious plan: a girl pig to lure the little boy big. Enter Daisy Mae.

Here's what happened, according to Ann: "we both thought it would be a good idea to bring one of my mini pot belly pigs down from Constantia, NY and see if we could lure the little Kune Kune piggy in. After about 2 plus hours and a lot of people trying to interfere, I saw him in a yard were he usually went."

Once Daisy Mae, Ann's pig, was in the area, Piggy Smalls couldn't help himself. He came right over to check out his new piggy friend. Ann says Piggy Smalls was all over Daisy Mae, jumping for her attention. George managed to get a net over Piggy Smalls, and in a moment, the tale of the runaway Rome pig came to an end.

Piggy Smalls' owner turned him over to Ann so that he could live in a place equipped to keep him safe. Ann's first step? To change Piggy's name...to GD, in honor of George DeFazio, the man who dedicated so many hours to save the tiny pig.

"Piggy Smalls" will go on to live happily ever after with Ann and her other pigs. "We put him in a crate brought him home with my four other mini pot bellies. When I got home I took Daisy out first and put her in her outdoor pen. Then I opened up the crate and this is NO LIE!! GD ran right out of the crate and I was scared BUT he ran right down the yard to the pen where the others are. I told my husband Dave open up the pen and GD ran right in Daisies pen with her," Ann says.

"GD will learn to walk on a leash and interact with children and people and be house broken. He will also be very spoiled!! He fell asleep having his tummy rubbed laying in my husband's lap tonight."

Many thanks to Ann and George for keeping GD from becoming a tragic tale.