07/08/2025
Pig Tales Week #14. Today Rosie is Hogginā the Spotlight!
Good morning, piggy lovers! Jenkins here to bring you this weekās edition of Pig Tales.
Her official name is Rose but we all call her Rosie now. She was named in honor of Mommaās dear friend and pig advocate extraordinaire, Rose Brown. Rose runs a group called I Love Pot Belly Pigs and has helped hundreds upon hundreds of pig parents learn how to care for and share their lives with a piggy.
Rosie is a very sweet, beautiful, and loving girl who arrived a year ago with a persistent skin condition that has been difficult to treat.
She was about two years old when she came to live at Saving Snouts. Her previous family contacted Momma Tj and said they didnāt have time for her. Momma suggested a rehoming group to which the owner who replied, āThat wonāt work for me because of her conditionā. When Momma saw the pictures and video of Rosie the owner sent her, she understood why and knew she had to bring Rosie home. This was going to be the type of challenging medical situation that Momma specializes in.
They said she was a āruntā, but even so she was very underweight for a two-year old at only 30 lbs.
The previous owners had taken her to a vet who did not have any lasting success in treating her condition. Sadly, they did not have the money to pursue the very expensive testing that was required to diagnose and treat her condition. They seemed to simply lose interest in her due to her health challenges, and she was left to live alone in the backyard.
Her condition when she arrived clearly tells the tale of how she was living in that backyard. Caked-on f***s covered her entire body and underneath those f***s her skin was thick and crusted. She was covered with what was essentially a full-body scab. Her hooves were very overgrown, making it difficult for her to even walk.
I posted a link in the comments section below of the video of Rosie walking gingerly away from her old life on those overgrown hooves and straight into Mommaās house, arms, and heart.
After many medicated baths, antibiotics, deworming, and three different topical creams, not to mention eating yummy and nutritious meals with some extra vitamins added, Momma Tj and the vet team thought she was almost healed. Only the tips of her ears, parts of her hooves, and her cute little piggy tooshie showed signs of her skin condition. Rosieās skin had started to heal and regrow. It was a beautiful sight!
Unfortunately, that didnāt last for long.
Throughout all those months she had multiple vet appointments with skin scraping and testing done. Treatment plans seemed to be working only to have little scab-like blisters reappear. This condition was beyond frustrating for everyone involved, not to mention painful for our sweet Rosie.
For months Rosie could not even go outside. The vetās orders were that she stay inside where she could stay clean and dry.
Poor Rosie! Clean and dry?? Iāll double check the regs, but Iām fairly certain that āremain clean and dry at all timesā violates Rule 18 Section 1(c)(iii) Paragraph 25.02 of the codification of āStatues Governing Happy Pig Livesā.
She learned to love her soft cuddly blankies. In addition to feeling nice against her skin while it healed, soft blankies likely gave her a sense of comfort because she hasnāt been able to interact with any other pigs and make pig friends.
Rosie appointed herself Piggy in Charge of All Blankie Donations and she carefully selected the softest ones to add to her personal Mount Blankie. This was no ordinary rolling foothill heading to the Sierra. Mt. Blankie erupted into the Mt. Everest of Blankies. She prepped for The End of Blankie Times with the dedication of a squirrel with a hoarding disorder. She buries herself in Mt. Blankie with enough snacks in her bunker to survive the next dinosaur extinction-level asteroid hit. The Emergency Blankie Evac Team with its specially trained Rosie Search and Rescue Squad is on speed-dial around here.
Last summer she was finally able to go outside for very limited periods and only at specific times of the day. Her outside area is close to the house, and includes shelter from the sun and the iconic tomato house which serves as a playpen. Her time outside is closely monitored because of the risk of increased symptoms due to excess sun exposure.
The sight of her bucolic tomato house has enticed some local people to stop by to visit her. Who could resist a cute little piggy like Rosie with a tomato house? Some people contact Momma if they havenāt seen her out in a while. Itās lovely to know she has her own fan club and that they are looking out for her!
This summer, as her condition continues to improve, she can finally spend a bit more time outside. Momma even ordered a special sun tent for her! I canāt wait to see this set up and see her outside, finally able to learn the ropes about how to live her best piggy life.
If any of us piggies need something like the special sun tent for Rosie, Momma always makes sure we get it immediately although any help with the cost is greatly appreciated if you are able. Iāll put links below if you would like to contribute a bit toward her brand spankinā new sun tent that allows her to enjoy the great outdoors while her skin continues to heal.
Momma Tj told me that Rosie is unlike any other pig she has ever rescued with several unique personality traits.
For example, typically we pigs canāt be trained to use potty pads. Give us a nice, clean potty pad, and we will add it to our already extensive collection of blankies. If we need to be potty trained, weāll take a litter box any day!
Not our Rosie. She would have nothing to do with a litter box. This couldāve become quite the problem, seeing how she has to live in the house. But leave it to Rosie to go where no pig had gone before. Momma gave her a potty pad and Rosie was potty trained! No potty pads will ever mar the aesthetics of Mt. Blankie!
When Rosie goes outside, she doesnāt march right out on the grass giving no consideration to the landscaping. She tiptoes through those tulips and walks carefully on the grass, with absolutely no rooting behaviors in sight. Perhaps sheās preparing for a horticulture career. I, of course, would suggest she focus on edible plants. I can think of all kinds of delicious fruits and veggies for her to tend to and Dusty would love to deliver them on his Treat Wagon! Why, Iāll even volunteer for the Harvesting and Quality Control Team.
As I said above, Rosie loves her blankies. Whatās so unique about that, you ask? Well, she loves weighted blankets. Because we piggies are prey animals, we donāt like the feeling of something that heavy on top of us.
Rosie has impeccable table manners. No scarfinā down half a watermelon with juice pouring down her face like itās the second coming of Noah for this girl! All her food must be in bite-sized pieces, and she finds only certain snacks to be acceptable. Most likely tea and crumpets or finger sandwiches. Sheās gone all Lady Rosie at Hogton Abbey on us, liftinā the olā pinky like a pig who knows which fork is for truffle pĆ¢tĆ© while the rest of us slurp daintily from the water trough.
Okay, I may have exaggerated just the tiniest bit and there is a very valid reason for her food preferences. I asked yāall in my Sneak Peek on Sunday what you think her favorite snack is. The answer is Strawberry Newtons. No ordinary Fig Newtons for our Lady Rosie. Strawberries are far more suitable fare at high tea at Hogton Abbey than the lowly fig! She simply prefers soft food and for good reason. Her painful skin condition also affects the inside of her mouth. And while she is, indeed, quite the little lady, this preference was born mostly out of her need to minimize her pain.
You may recall that Momma posted back in May that Rosie was finally ready for her spay. You may also recall that the vets werenāt able to do it that day because certain areas of her skin had still not healed fully.
This is what Momma told me about the day the vet couldnāt do her spay. āToday she was put under anesthesia with a pathologist on the phone giving detailed instructions for the biopsies Rosie needed. Multiple deep skin biopsies were taken from several areas of her skin and those will be sent to two different labs. One of the labs specializes in testing on pigs.
āRosie has been a unique and challenging case for all of us. So many possibilities have been ruled out and so many treatments have been tried. We are hoping to have more definitive answers within a week of these most recent biopsies.ā
When we got the results, everyone involved was more than a little bit shocked. Rose has Pemphigus. This is a rare condition in humans, and Rosie is the very first known case in pigs. Her entire medical team, including her vet, the pathologists, and dermatologists (Yes, she even had M.D.s on her medical team!) will be publishing her case. Her journey and treatment plan will be carefully documented.
All the information about her diagnosis and treatment will be available in professional journals for other vets with patients facing similar medical issues.
Rosie would have preferred to have something simpler be the cause of her skin issues, but she is proud to be making history and being able to help other piggies.
As a medical professional in her previous life, our Momma Tj is very proud to be part of this, too. We're pretty darn lucky to get to live with Momma. She simply will not give up on us because she thinks we're worth it. Well, I'd have to agree with that sentiment. We love you, Momma!
Now that she is on a treatment plan, weāre all hoping that she will get to meet her very first piggy friend: Dawson! I suspect youāve seen reels about him a time or two.
Their integration has begun, with each of them eating separately outside near the tomato house. This is to get them accustomed to each otherās scent. Integrating two pigs is a complex process and there are many steps involved. It can take a lot of time. But Momma will keep everyone posted on how theyāre doing. Hopefully everything works out and Rosie and Dawson can fulfill their Titanic dream of becoming besties!
But what about her spay, you ask? Excellent question! Rosie and Dawson are only able to meet because Dawsonās previous owner had him neutered. Rosie will eventually get spayed, of course, but that doesnāt hold up the timing of their introduction.
I sure canāt wait until Rosie has a friend! She really doesnāt know yet how much piggy joy that will bring her.
Rosie has been an incredibly lucky pig to have his loving Auntie Linda Gorun as his monthly sponsor.
But too many of my potbelly friends are still looking for that special someone to sponsor them.
Would you like to be someoneās auntie or uncle? You can sponsor a potbelly for only $23/month and have your own piggy to love and spoil! If you donāt live close enough to visit us in person, you can FaceTime with your special pig! How cool is that?
If sponsoring one of us isnāt right for you, you can also support us by signing up to be a Saving Snouts Fan ($2/month), a Saving Snouts Supporter ($5/month), or a Saving Snouts Friend ($10/month). You can join via Patreon by following the instructions below.
As I mentioned above, Rosieās new sun tent is on the way to her as we speak. Here are the links I promised if youād like to contribute a bit to her new tent:
https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=ZEYMSVHA4NXJQ
Venmo
Checks can be sent to: Saving Snouts N255 DeBruin Rd Kaukauna, WI 54130
If youāve decided youāre ready to be a piggy auntie or uncle, please tell me in the comments who youād like to sponsor (or I can help you select your special piggy) so I can put you on our list and then you can head on over to Patreon to sign up.
First click on this link https://linktr.ee/savingsnouts
Then click on āPatreonā and go to the āmembershipā tab. Select your Support Level, or scroll down to āSponsor a Potbelly Pigā
You can also access our Amazon Wish List via the link above.
And be sure to check out all the adorable pictures of Rosie! You will fall in love!
Thank you so much for reading all about Rosie, and for supporting Saving Snouts in so many ways.
Sending lots of snout kisses to you until next week,
~~Jenkins
