EUREKA SPRINGS -- Two pet pigs that live in the historic district of this tourist town will be allowed to remain under a proposal being considered by the Eureka Springs City Council.
The council has been working on an ordinance to ban pet pigs. Then they discovered that there were two pot-bellied pigs still living at a residence on Kingshighway.
The two pigs in question, Fat Boy and Miss Piggy, were the impetus for the ordinance, but council members thought that Marilyn Sloas and her pigs had moved out of town.
Sloas said she's not going anywhere and neither are her pigs.
Alderman Melissa Greene told the council at the Aug. 27 meeting that there had been a "problem" with the pigs.
"Because of not cleaning it up, the smells make it pretty unbearable for neighbors to be in their backyard," she said.
Alderman Tom Buford said he had complained about the pigs last June, before he was appointed to serve on the council.
"There was someone in the historic district with a couple of pigs laying out in their yard," Buford said. "One of the pigs weighed about 50 pounds and the other weighed about 200 pounds. ... You could smell the pigs. I just thought having pigs in a tourist town with B&Bs and all was not something you'd want."
Sloas said she doesn't know how Fat Boy and Miss Piggy could have raised such a stink.
"Literally, as soon as they get done pooping, I'm out there with a dust pan and a broom," she said.
A sign outside her door reads "Poop Deck." An arrow points toward the yard.
Miss Piggy is 4½ years old. Fat Boy was born in December.
Sloas is so fond of her pigs that last year she dressed Miss Piggy as a "princess ballerina" for Halloween. This is Fat Boy's first Halloween. He will likely be wearing a chef's hat and an apron, she said.
"I have some headphones," she said. "They love to listen to classical music. It mellows them out when they're being neurotic."
Sloas was wearing a T-shirt Tuesday with the silhouette of a pig and the words "Praise the Lard." Fat Boy was spinning in a circle, following his master's commands and earning Cheerios in the process. Miss Piggy was trying to sleep.
Sloas thinks the council is rooting up problems that don't exist.
"My opinion is that they have other issues, other things to do," she said. "These are two harmless pigs that just go in the yard."
This is basically the third version of the ordinance. The first one had several regulations regarding pet pigs. The second version would have banned pet pigs altogether by changing the word "hogs" to "swine" in city code.
In the third version, pet pigs will be banned but any pet pigs already residing in Eureka Springs would be allowed to stay until the end of 2030 if their owners notify the city soon after the ordinance is passed and follow some regulations. No timetable has been established yet for pig notification.
The latest proposal would limit the number to two pigs per residence and no more than five hours a day outside.
At an Oct. 8 meeting of the City Council, Alderman Mickey Schneider presented seven letters from Sloas' neighbors saying they have no problem with her pigs.
"Everybody loves these pigs," Schneider told the council. "These pigs go outside when the pig lady takes them out to do their little potty steps. She uses baking soda when they urinate to avoid any massive buildup. As soon as they are done with the other end, she immediately cleans that up. ...
"None of the neighbors have any problems, never have had, and think these things are absolutely awesome."
Schneider said what people are calling pot-bellied pigs are actually "American mini-pigs" because of the mixing of breeds.
"You can call them whatever you want, but mini-pigs turn into maxi-pigs," Alderman Terry McClung said.
City Attorney Tim Weaver is drafting the proposed ordinance. The City Council is expected to vote on the issue at its meeting Monday. The proposal must go through three readings and subsequent votes of the council before it becomes law. The process can take a couple of months.
McClung and Buford were the only aldermen who voted against having Weaver draft the proposed ordinance.
"I'm going to keep on voting against it," Buford said.
Metro on 10/21/2018