march 2014 newsletter - ironwood pig sanctuary · old. she had begun to lose weight and suffered...

IRONWOODIISSSSUUEENNOO 6633

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MMyyrroonn

IRONWOOD

PIG SANCTUARY

Ironwood Pig SanctuaryPost Office Box 35490

Tucson, AZ 85740March 2015

Dear Supporter,

Last week Ben and I made a nearly 2000 mile round trip journey to UC Davis with little Si in tow to dosurgery on a broken elbow on his left front leg. He is ten months old and one of the five boys who wereborn here last April to Charlotte who was rescued from a hoarder/breeder near Tucson. X-rays by Dr.Page revealed he would need a complex difficult surgery by an orthopedic surgeon. In addition to thebroken elbow he has moderate to severe degenerative joint disease. We explored different majorUniversity Veterinary Schools and decided on UC Davis. All else being equal with good surgeons, thiswas the most convenient overall for us with an offer for a night lay over at a friend’s home in Ojai and awarm safe pen for him to stay in. The new x-rays revealed his break was healing on its own and he didnot require surgery. However arthritic changes were already evident. With much relief for Si and for us,since we did not have to struggle to raise the many thousands of dollars the surgery would have required,we headed back to Tucson. Si is very social and accustomed to people since we raised him and hisbrothers by hand. He was not stressed by the trip and enjoyed the stops with frequent fruit treats alongthe way.

We don’t know how his injury occurred since he and his brothers now live in one of our large fields.There was no other evidence of any other injury. He could have a congenital weakness that left him proneto the break.

Inbreeding and a small gene pool in pot-bellied pigs has caused a great deal of pain and suffering forthem. Nearly all of them will develop painful arthritis and for some it will be the cause of their earlydeath. We spend thousands of dollars each year on meds to help relieve their painful joints. Now thebreeders are inbreeding even more trying to produce a “teacup pig”, the result of which will be even morecongenital issues and suffering. To my mind this is immoral and unethical. I hope you agree and will notbuy or promote in any way the continued breeding of these animals.

This whole process has been a difficult one for us. The main consideration was how would Si be if wedid do the surgery and of course the huge financial consideration. In theend we proceeded with what we thought was best for him and becausewe have the wonderful support from you we felt we would not have tosacrifice the care of our many other animals here at Ironwood. You onlyneed to look at Si to know why we have gone to such lengths to save thislittle boy. We are so grateful for your support so these wonderfulanimals may live out their lives with us.

Mary SchanzPresident & Co-Founder

IRONWOOD PIG SANCTUARY Issue 63

SSii

hen I started writingthis story just a fewdays after we lost

Claire, I tried to come up withsomething additional for the titlelike “We Miss You Claire” or“Our Beloved Claire” but nothingfelt right. I just couldn’t find away to express how we felt thatmorning that we had to tell ourbeautiful Claire goodbye.

Claire and her companion Popeyewere the very first pigs that Ben,Mary and I welcomed toIronwood on June 10, 2001. Wehad been working long and hardto get things built and ready forpigs to start coming, so it waswith great excitement that we

brought Claire and Popeye out totheir new forever home. We hadknown Claire for a while beforeshe became ours. She had beenborn at Pigs*A*Lot where thethree of us had volunteered beforeopening Ironwood. Claire wasadopted as a baby and became anindoor/outdoor pig. She wasquite large and strong and soonbecame too much to handleinside. Her owner then adoptedPopeye from Pigs*A*Lot to be

www.ironwoodpigs.org [email protected]

Issue 63 IRONWOOD PIG SANCTUARY

her companion and moved themboth outside. Claire “trained” herowner to feed her on demand.When those vocal demandsbecame way too loud and cameway too early in the mornings forJoan and her neighbors, we wereasked to take the two pigs.

Claire and Popeye both lived inour Main Field but did not remainclose friends. Other pigs began toarrive at Ironwood and there wassoon a small herd in the field. Thetwo pigs sort of drifted indifferent directions and it wasn’tlong before Claire met Dixie Lee.Those two girls became the verybest of friends and rarely spenttime with anyone else. They hadan extremely close relationshipand truly loved one another.

Claire had a wonderfulpersonality. She knew her nameand would come when we calledout to her. Even though sheadored attention from people shewas never demanding or pushyabout it. Most of our tour groups

got to meet Claire at some pointduring their visit. She wouldquietly wander up to the group tosay hello and get some pets or abelly rub. She was always sogentle and never gave us anytrouble at all. Claire was ournewsletter’s “cover girl” forIronwood’s tenth anniversary inMay of 2011.

We are not sure of Claire’s exactage, but she was around 17 yearsold. She had begun to lose weightand suffered from arthritis. InJanuary 2015 Claire seldom washungry and had to be enticed with

special foods and extra meals.One cold damp morning we knewthat she was ready to go. Thingshad simply gotten too difficult forher to function. Ben, Mary, Tarynand I gathered around Claire asshe peacefully slipped away. It isnever easy to say goodbye to oneof our friends, but Claire wasparticularly special to us for manyreasons other than being our firstpig. We will never forget her andwill never stop loving her.

---Donna

ClaireW

develop the opposite problem andneed stool softeners.

“Do all your pigs take vitamins?”There are a few kinds of vitaminsthat you will often see on our WishLists. The one we use most is aSuper B-Complex. That one is tohelp strengthen dry cracked hooves,a common issue out here in thedesert where we live with a “dryheat” for the majority of the year.Another is 400 IU Vitamin Ecapsules. We have pigs taking thisone for various reasons; dry skin,joint issues, or spinal injuries.Several pigs also take Flaxseed Oil

capsules for their skin. The capsuleswork best rather than liquid or seedsas they’re easier to put inside asandwich or fig newton cookie.Children’s Multivitamins are givento any youngsters that come in underthe age of one. Those are also usedfor pigs that arrive in poor physicalcondition, maybe suffering frommalnutrition or severe wounds.Some of our elderly pigs take themultivitamin as a booster for theirsystem. We almost always use thevitamins with NO IRON in them.On rare occasions we will have a pigwith anemia that needs a vitamin

hat is a question we oftenhear when people arecoming to visit or wanting to

send a care package to the sanctuary.There is always a Wish List in eachof our newsletters as well as one onSmile.Amazon. Sometimes peoplewonder why particular items are onour lists….what do the pigs needwith these things? I hope this articlewill answer those questions.

The biggie is always the peanutbutter. “Why do you feed your pigspeanut butter?” The majority of ourpigs are in their teens and manysuffer from arthritis. They need adaily dose of anti-inflammatorymedications. Then there are a lot ofpigs taking other types of medicinetoo, vitamins, antibiotics, etc. Wehave found that the quickest way toget those meds out to the pigs eachmorning is to stick the pills inside apeanut butter sandwich. Pigs lovebread and the p.b. makes it difficultto spit the pills out. There always hasto be at least one joker in the herdthat can work their way around thepills eating the sandwich thenspitting the pills on the ground. That



is where the fig newton cookiescome in! Those are really sticky andyou can easily push pills down insidethem. And of course, the pigs lovethem and will gobble cookie andpills right down. That is, unless yourname is Cutie Pie. He is picky andclever when it comes to hismedication. The only thing we havefound that works for him is LittleDebbie’s Oatmeal Pies. So theanswer is no, we are not just feedingour pigs cookies and peanut butter.Those are used strictly to get themeds in the pigs.

We always have Animal Crackers onour wish lists. These come in handymany times. Say you have to giveFitzroy a shot and he won’t be still.Throw some animal crackers on theground and he suddenly forgets allabout that poke in the neck. Need toclean Peaches’ ears? Distract herwith a few animal crackers and dowhat you want with her ears.Doppers needs sunscreen? Oliverhas a sore on his side to clean andmedicate? Pinkerton has an abscessto flush? Animal crackers foreveryone! Not all pigs fall for thatruse but it works for a lot of them.

I mentioned that a lot of our pigs takeanti-inflammatory medications.These can sometimes upset theirstomach so we ask for an acidreducer in the form of Ranitidine150mg. Some of our elderly pigsneed that every day. We have a fewwith chronic bowel irritations whichis why we ask for Pro-BioticAcidophilus capsules. A few others

What Do You Need?T

with iron but one bottle lasts us along time.

“Why do you want Ensure?”Sometimes pigs will go throughphases of not wanting to eat or they

get dehydrated or are just not doingwell in general. We will makemilkshakes for those pigs,sometimes for them to drink ormaybe to pour on their food foradded nutrition. We will use Ensure,vanilla soymilk or almond milk,bananas and a spoonful of peanutbutter to make a yummy shake.

There will often be items on the wishlists that are not used directly withthe pigs. For example two-way

radios. Every staff member andvolunteer has a radio to keep in

contact with one another. We arespread out over a large area workingin different fields and need tocommunicate when and where helpis needed or things that have to bedone. Our sanctuary has gotten toobig for us to simply holler at eachother across the field like we did inthe early days! Another example istarps. We use a lot of tarps here.There are feed stations set up in the24 different fields where we storegrain and hay for those areas. Thehay needs to be covered with a tarpto protect it from the rain. Our truckthat we use to haul trash to the dumpmust be tarped. All those tarps getworn out, ripped and torn and needreplacing.

Ben and I love gift cards! The two ofus do the shopping for the sanctuary.Ben gets most of the office suppliesas well as building materials forfences, shade ramadas, pens, troughsand shelters. I get some of that plusall the groceries, over-the-countermedications, photo developing,cleaning supplies, etc. “Whatgroceries do pigs need?” First of allis the bread for the pigs’ p.b.medicine sandwiches ….every weekI get 80-90 loaves of bread. Manyspecial meals are made for sick orskinny pigs so I buy yogurt, cottagecheese, cream cheese, macaroni and

cheese, fruits, vegetables, veggieburgers, hash brown patties, oatmeal,vegetable oil, cheese crackers andeggs. Don’t forget the juice …prune,

vegetable and cran/grape juices areall needed. And then there’s laundrydetergent, dish soap, trash bags,paper towels, mineral oil, nasalspray, Q-tips, buckets and ….yikes!The list goes on and on. Since mostof that stuff is difficult or impossibleto ship, gift cards are the perfectsolution!

Some items on our Wish Lists, eitherin the newsletters or onSmile.Amazon, are always there dueto constant need. Some come and gowith how well we are stocked up orif the pigs’ needs change. Right nowwe are still using the supplies thatwere donated at our annual OpenHouse in November. Thosedonations usually keep us going forseveral months. (Yea!!) As the yearmoves on, you’ll begin to see itemsadded back to the lists as our stockdwindles. I am constantly checkingand changing the Amazon list so it’sa good place to see what wecurrently need. We do appreciate allthe support of the material donationsthat come in. It’s a real life saver forus financially. We cannot keep upwith the demand for pigs in needwithout your help. Thank you!!

---Donna





ne of the questions that Iam often asked is whywe need so many

blankets. I bet it does sound likewe need a lot. We had over athousand donated to us this

summer and we are still askingpeople to bring them if they haveextra.

The first, easiest answer to whywe need so many is that wehave so many pigs. With morethan 590 pigs needing at least 2blankets each, depending on thetype of blanket, that couldeasily be 1180 blankets. Wow!Now, let’s factor in the olderpigs who may not always makeit out of bed in time to potty.They might wet both of theirblankets in the morning. We willhave to take those blankets out to

clean them and need two more toreplace them. On a regularmorning we have about two pottybeds, sometimes up to 5 or so.That could be 10 extra blanketswe need that day.

We also have pigs that like toshred their blankets. They oftendo this to make them fluffier or toget inside of the blanket. Theycan keep their blankets like thisfor a while before they justbecome a ragged mess and theyneed a new blanket. Wilbur,shown in the photo, is very proudof his shredded blankets!Penelope, also shown with herblankets, has gone through many

blankets. We usually let her keepone shredded blanket and makesure she has a good one as well.

Aside from personal pig issues,let’s also bring the weather into it.When it rains here we end up witha giant mess. A lot of the time thepigs push their blankets to theedge of their house to help keepcool air out. They also drag theirblankets with them when theyleave their shelter. When they do

this in the rain those blankets getwet. We then hang up all of thewet blankets on the property andreplace them with dry blankets.That could easily be 100+blankets we will need to replacethat day.

As you can see there can bemany variables in this wholeblanket situation. We may gothrough a lot but we reuse asmany as we can and hang on tothem as long as we can. Wedeeply appreciate blanketdonations but not as much as thepigs do. They love coveringthemselves and wrapping

themselves up. Nothing happierthan an Ironwood pig in a blanket.

---Taryn

You Need How Many Blankets!?O

ver the last several months there has been a rash ofstrays all over the state of Arizona. Most have beenyoungsters like this little guy found running loose in

Wittmann. Like most of the males that are strays, Rooseveltwas a boar when he arrived. He was neutered shortly aftercoming to Ironwood. Someone obviously spent some time withhim as he is very friendly and enjoys attention from people.Roosevelt’s left ear has some faint scars and a couple of nickstaken out, so he apparently got into some trouble during hisdays “on the streets”, but otherwise he is a very healthy andhappy little fellow.

his is yet another case of a young pig running loose in a neighborhood. Maureen had seen Renehanging around her neighbor’s yard at times and askedaround to see if she belonged to anyone. No one claimed

her, so Maureen contacted us to see if we would come up to SanTan Valley to pick her up. We asked her to try and get her pennedup or in a carrier before we made that long trip. It took a few daysto earn Rene’s trust, but Maureen finally got her and gave us acall. It turns out that a nearby farm had been sold and severalanimals were simply abandoned there. We think that Rene musthave gotten loose and was looking for food. She has come a longway since her arrival but is still a bit skittish. She has been spayedand will make her home out in one of our fields.

abe’s owner’s health had been steadily declining. We hadbeen contacted about taking him in after she became toodisabled to care for him but she wanted to keep him as

long as possible. It turns out that we were needed sooner thananyone expected. A neighbor was renovating his backyard andhad moved his dogs into a temporary pen during the changes. Thedogs got out, jumped the fence and attacked Babe. Taryn made anemergency trip to Phoenix that night to go and get him. She andDonna unloaded Babe in the middle of the night and examined hiswounds by flashlight. It was not as bad as we had expected butfelt he still warranted a trip to the vet the next day.

Babe is a lucky boy! His injuries were not serious. He sustained bite wounds on his ears but none were deep.His owner decided the dog attack was a sign that it was time for Babe to start his new life at Ironwood andofficially released him to us. Babe has healed up nicely. We got him neutered and he will soon be joining aherd in one of our fields.



Meet Our Pigs

BBaabbee

RRoooosseevveell tt

RReennee

T

O

B

Jack be nimble, Jack be

quick, Jack Jack come after you

lickety split! Just kidding (sort

of)! Making a rhyme to pass

the time while waiting for you.

We have several piggies shown here and othersthat have lost their sponsors for various reasons.Please consider helping one or more of them get

some support back. For your $30 monthlydonation you will receive a letter and pictures of

the pig of your choice thenlater in the year you willget an update with new

photos to keep youconnected to your pig.

Please join our family ofsponsors!

….Donna


MMuurrpphhyy

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. And,Behold, I am here! I don’t even know whatall that means but anyway, I’m looking fora sponsor….

My sponsor of more than ten yearsrecently passed away. I am verysad about that and couldcertainly use a new friend tosupport me.

AAll ii

Top of the morning to you! Isanyone looking for a pig with anIrish accent? Perhaps I’m the ladfor you. Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

SSyyllvviiaa

JJaacckk JJaacckk

I am Bob’s brother. Wemiss our dad but are happyto be living here with

other pigs. At leastwe got to stay together

and still have each other.


BBoobb

My dad got sick and it got to

the point where he could no

longer care for my brother and

me. He was really sad for us

to go but he had no choice.

Yo, I am the Notorious P.I.G.rapper of Ironwood! Actually, I’drather be nappin’ than rappin’.Anyone feel the same? Maybe I’mthe pig for you.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. And,Behold, I am here! I don’t even know whatall that means but anyway, I’m looking fora sponsor….

My sponsor of more than ten yearsrecently passed away. I am verysad about that and couldcertainly use a new friend tosupport me.

PPiiggggyy SSmmaall llss

I have lived here for many

years and lost my sponsor a few

months ago. I hope someone can

find it in their heart to give an

old guy another chance.

PPoorrkkyy RRaannddyy

JJooee

e meet a lot of pigshere at the sanctuary.Some of the pigs arrive

later in their life and we may onlyhave a few years with them untilthey pass. Most of the pigs thatcome in stay here for the rest oftheir lives, some get adopted out.No matter the time period they arehere at the sanctuary we form abond and connection with them.For the pigs that stay we get toknow them well and learn allabout them. We also learn a lotfrom them.

I’ve never seen the kind of lovethat I have witnessed with thepigs. Not just the love they showus but also the love that they showeach other. They console eachother and comfort one another.I’ve seen pigs arrive home fromthe vet after surgery and watchtheir best friend stay close to them

through the night to keep themcompany. They give each otherspace when they need it and stayclose even when the other thinksthey need space.

They also protect each other.

Sometimes when we are outtrimming or doing some medicalwork on a pig, their friends willrush us, often barking, to makesure we aren’t hurting them. Theyare prepared to get us out of theway in order to help theircompanion. They also knowwhen their pal is sick or coming totheir end. We often see themclinging when this happens.

When one of the pigs passes awayfriends gather around that pig andsay goodbye. We can see thatthey understand what happenedand want to show their love forthe last time. I’ve even witnessedpigs trying to hang on to life aslong as they can so that theirfriend passes first, ensuring thattheir friend never spends a dayalone. Once their friend passesI’ve seen them let go and stophanging on. Everything you’dwant your best friend to do foryou they do for each other. Theyare very in tune with each other.

Another great message to learnfrom the pigs is that they forgive

quickly. Even if they get inarguments with each other nowand then they know at the end ofthe day that things are ok. Theyeven grumble as they go to bed,arguing over bed space, but thenthey cuddle and keep each otherwarm. A great lesson for all of us.

A good example of a pig beingupset with a pal and thenforgiving them is Petunia and herfriend Jackson. They used toalways sleep together until somenew girls were introduced to thegroup. Jackson started spendingsome time with the new girls.Petunia is not amused and getsquite grumpy when Jackson givesthe other girls his time. However,when he comes back around andwants to see Petunia she lets him

hang out with her. This cyclecontinues between them butPetunia knows Jackson is still herfriend.

Even if not for the lessons welearn in watching the pigs we alsoget a lot of comfort and happinessfrom watching them. Seeingthem interact and enjoy their days



Earth AngelsW

is really heartwarming and canchange a person’s mood instantly.Just like when they know whentheir pig companion needs somelove they also sense when weneed it. They snuggle close andhang around. I’ve come homeafter a hard day and my pigs cometo sit with me, knowing that I justneed some comfort.

So this is for all of the angels thatwe have met and the ones we willmeet, each as important as theother. We thank you for your loveand your lessons. The impact youhave on us is like no other and weappreciate and love you more thanyou know.

---Taryn



Thank You!The 3000 Club is a local and international group of like-mindedindividuals, small business owners, volunteers and non-profit agencies andorganizations who bond together supporting its two flagship projects:Market on the Move and American Medical Aid. Ethel Luzario is thePresident/CEO and she saysthey rescue millions of poundsof produce that wouldotherwise go into a land fill.They have 12 locations aroundAZ and service about 4400hundred families a week withhealthy affordable produce.

Dana Lim is a volunteer forboth the 3000 Club and forIronwood Pig Sanctuary since she rescues food left over from Market onthe Move for our pigs here at Ironwood. She also sorts and prepares it forus so all we need to do is feed it to our pigs who greatly enjoy their treats.

What could be better? A truly win win situation where both people andtheir animal friends are being fed healthy delicious food and the landfillsare not get fuller!! Their web site is www.the3000club.org.

---Mary

Donation Drop Offs in Phoenix and TucsonWinter is here and we need blankets! We are always in short supply so any blankets are appreciated. Forsupporters in the Phoenix and Tucson areas, you can save shipping charges by dropping off blankets and wishlist donations at the locations below.

There are two locations in both Phoenix and Tucson. Please note that nomonetary donations can be accepted. All other material donations are verywelcome and much appreciated. Don’t forget blankets since we are alwaysin short supply for the winter.

For the Phoenix area you can drop donations off at Carolyn’s in East Mesa,AZ near Superstition Springs Mall. Give her a call at 480-981-8069 fordirections. Also Susan’s in North Phoenix near E Union Hills Dr and NCave Creek Road. Give her a call at 602-339-6213 for directions.

For the Tucson area there are two drop off points. One is on the northwest side in the vicinity of Oracle Roadand Hardy. Call 520-631-6015 for directions. The other is Sherry’s in southeast Tucson near Swan Road and22nd Street. Call her at 520-622-6304 for directions.

Thank you for all your support!



Shopping On Amazon.com is Easy

Hoof & TuskTrimming

Pig owners in the Tucson,Phoenix and surroundingareas can contact Donna

Thomason for pot-bellied pigtusk and hoof trimming.Donna is an experiencedtrimmer living on site at

Ironwood. Donna provideshouse calls for pig and goat

trims. Please call 520-780-8832 or e-mail

[email protected] set up an appointment.

GIFT CARDSWalgreen’sHome DepotLowesO

ur W

ish

List

MISCELLANEOUS ITEMSPostage Stamps (Forever, 49, 34, 2 cents) Other

denominations can also be usedUsed Blankets are always welcomeChildren’s Multivitamin - NO IRONAnimal CrackersVitamin B ComplexAcid Reducer, Ranitidine 150mgFlaxseed Oil, Capsules OnlyTriple Antibiotic OintmentBenefiber (Not Flavored)

We received a lot of Wish List items donated at ourOpen House so that is why the list above is so short.Gift Cards are always welcome and we can pick whatis needed at that time.

WalmartAmazonOffice Depot

DiscoverMasterCardOffice Max

TargetFry’sStaples

Shopping on Smile.Amazon.com isidentical to Amazon.com except that for allyour normal shopping including our wishlist items, Ironwood Pig Sanctuary receivesa 0.5% donation from Amazon. It is a supereasy way to give to the sanctuary, especiallyif you want to give something extra for theholidays. We have numerous items on ourWish List already picked out so you’llknow you are donating exactly what weneed. The list is updated frequently so it’salways current.

Here’s how it works: On Amazon’s Homepage, click on “Wish List” in the top rightcorner and go to “Find a Wish List” thenenter Ironwood Pig. You may choose itemsfrom our list and click on “Add to Cart” foreach. When you have completed yourselections, go to “Cart” and check out. Theitems you choose will be shipped directly tous. How easy is that! Thank you for all ofyour support.

***We have a wish list on Smile.Amazon.com.See “Shopping On Amazon” above for details.



Thank you for considering theIronwood Pig Sanctuary in your estateplans. The Mary C SchanzFoundation is doing business as (dba)Ironwood Pig Sanctuary. For yourWill please use both names (althoughit is okay if you’ve already used onlythe Ironwood Pig Sanctuary name),the post office address from the backcover and this tax identificationnumber for the Foundation: 86-

0999483. Your support makes it possible for us to give a loving home to the almost 600 Pot-Bellied Pigs in our care and is very much appreciated.

Your Employer May be Able to Double Your DonationYou can easily make your donation to the Ironwood Pig Sanctuary go even further if you workfor or are retired from a Matching Gift company. Many of our supporters have doubled andsometimes tripled their donation by receiving a matching donation from their company. For alist of the larger matching gift companies please go to the bottom of the Support page of ourweb site at www.ironwoodpigs.org. Even if your company is not on the list it pays to checkwith them because this list does not include all matching gift companies. All you need is a formfrom your company to include with your donation.

Visit Our Web Sitewww.ironwoodpigs.org

Our web site carries all our newsletters sincewe founded Ironwood, all 63 of them. See theevolution of the Sanctuary through thenewsletters. You can find them down the rightside of our Home page. You can also make aDonation, Sponsor the pig(s) of your choiceor make a Sustainer donation via PayPal. Youcan also view this newsletter on-line.

You can make One-Time or Multiple Monthly Sponsor or Sustainer donations tothe Sanctuary with PayPal (no PayPal account required) using your credit or debitcard by going to the Support page of our web site.

Robbie & Eugene Telling Secrets



yron is one of45 pigs werescued on

April 15th 2008 fromPeoria, AZ. The womanwho had these pigs wascharged with animalcruelty and neglect. Shehad other animals as welland the prosecutingattorney agreed to dropthe charges if she would

give up all her animals. Three litters were born atIronwood but there would have been many more hadwe not intervened and neutered all the males andspayed and lutalysed all the remaining females. Shehad many litters born at her place but most of thebabies died from exposure and predation.

Myron has had a number of health issues over theyears. From February of 2012 through October of2012 Myron experienced difficulty urinating anddefecating and made trips to our vets during that timeto try to determine the cause. In time we have gottenhim regulated by feeding him in a pen within hisfield with meds, daily diluted prune juice and aspecial mash. These past 2 years he has enjoyedgood health and has been able to remain in his fieldwith his companions. He is one of hundreds we haverequiring special attention and care but this is ourmission and why we are here. Look at that sweetface and you know why we care.

M

artha, Leota and Jackson could bedescribed as a motley bunch but veryendearing for sure. These three seniors

have come to live together behind our Visitor Centerafter age and health issues brought them in from theirfields. Jackson is 17 now and he has been with ussince June of 2002. He was a big strong boar whenhe arrived and dug cavernous holes in his pen beforebeing released to a field where he lived until agebegan to catch up with him. He was moved in to thepen behind our Visitor Center for a more sedate life.

Leota and Martha both arrived in April of 2012.They were part of a rescue of 75 that we took in overa period of years from another rescue. Many of thesepigs were old and had little or no medical care. BothMartha and Leota had large uterine tumors that werelife threatening and would have surely taken theirlives by now. The tumors were removed and due totheir age, arthritis, and advanced tumors theirrecoveries were difficult. But now both haverecovered and have found a new friend in Jackson.They will live out the remainder of their lives in thissmaller area where they can be given more intensecare and monitoring required for many of our seniorpigs. How nice that they have developed new bondswith each other.

I R O N W O O D P I G S A N C T U A R Y N E W S

IRONWOOD PIG SANCTUARYPOST OFFICE BOX 35490TUCSON, AZ 85740-5490520-631-6015ironwoodpigs@yahoo.comwww.ironwoodpigs.orgwww.facebook.com/IronwoodPigSanctuary

Page 16 IRONWOOD PIG SANCTUARY Issue 63

NON PROFIT ORG.US POSTAGE

PAIDTUCSON, AZ

PERMIT NO. 2216

Return Service RequestedPublished at the above address regularly.

MARCH 2015ISSUE 63

MMMMaaaarrrr tttthhhhaaaa,,,, LLLLeeeeoooottttaaaa &&&& JJJJaaaacccckkkkssssoooonnnn

Front and Back Covers

M

Some of Myron’s Extended FamilyFrom the Peoria Rescue in 2008

MISSION STATEMENTThe Ironwood Pig Sanctuary is dedicated to eliminating the suffering of pot-bellied pigs by

promoting spaying and neutering, assisting owners and other sanctuaries, and providing apermanent home in a safe, nurturing environment for those that are abandoned, abused,

neglected, or unwanted.

* Ironwood Pig Sanctuary is accredited by the American Sanctuary Association.* The Ironwood Pig Sanctuary is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and

your donations are tax deductible.



I R O N W O O D P I G S A N C T U A R Y N E W S

IRONWOOD PIG SANCTUARYPOST OFFICE BOX 35490TUCSON, AZ 85740-5490520-631-6015ironwoodpigs@yahoo.comwww.ironwoodpigs.orgwww.facebook.com/IronwoodPigSanctuary


NON PROFIT ORG.US POSTAGE

PAIDTUCSON, AZ

PERMIT NO. 2216

Return Service RequestedPublished at the above address regularly.

MARCH 2015ISSUE 63

MMaarrtthhaa,, LLeeoottaa && JJaacckkssoonn

march 2014 newsletter - ironwood pig sanctuary · old. she had begun to lose weight and suffered...

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