Kevin Bacon the pig eludes capture in New Jersey

WOOLWICH TOWNSHIP, N.J., Oct. 23 (UPI) -- New Jersey high school students whose pot-bellied pig, Kevin Bacon, has been on the loose since September said they hope the animal will return for homecoming.

Cassandra Hagstoz, Shane Murray and Angel Ekpo, seniors at Kingsway Regional High School in Woolwich Township, said the pig, initially named Dubbsy after their vice principal, ran off the same day they picked him up from a local farm in early September, ABC News reported Wednesday.

"The guys on the farm said it took forever to catch him," Hagstoz said. "They said 'He's really fast, so don't let the pig go.'"

The pig, which has since been redubbed Kevin Bacon, has since been sighted multiple times in the area, but has yet to be caught.

Geralynn Castano, director of Gloucester County's Society to Protect Animals, said the pig might not last much longer on the loose, with coyotes and motorists posing a constant danger.

Kelly Castano, a veterinarian with the society, said there is reason to hope Kevin Bacon will return home on his own.

"It's not afraid of people. It's been raised by them," Castano said. "So it's likely that as it gets colder and the pig becomes hungrier, it will stop caring so much and head towards people."

Hagstoz said she and her friends are hoping their mascot will come home in time for the school's homecoming celebrations.

"We figured homecoming, since it means everything is coming home, and everyone's all together, that it would be really great," she said.