Police refuse to return baby pig to owner

MEDIA, Pa., April 15 (UPI) -- A Pennsylvania man said police are refusing to tell him the whereabouts of his 10-week-old Vietnamese micro potbellied pig.

Brian Maguire, 24, of Ridley Township said the 6-pound pig, Steve, got out of his yard last week and was picked up by local police, the Philadelphia Daily News reported Thursday.

"He doesn't really have a neck, so he never had tags," Maguire said.

He said he learned of Steve being picked up by Ridley police by talking to the Delaware County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals so he and his girlfriend, Bernadette Broadhurst, went to the police station.

Maguire said police cited an ordinance preventing farm animals from being kept in Ridley and refused to turn over the pig. He said he told them he would give the pig to a trusted friend out-of-town, but police would only tell him Steve had been given to a farm near Reading.

"They said they had put the pig up for 'adoption.' You can't do that. That's my pet! I have the paperwork," Maguire said. "They won't give me an address, phone number, the name of the farm, anything."

He said he has contacted a lawyer to explore his legal options.

Ridley Detective Lt. Scott Willoughby did not respond to requests for comment, the Daily News said.