Pig in a Madison poke

We’re rooting for Rudi!

We’ve seen chickens in the urban backyards here in the Emerald City. Would host a flock at the Experimental Work Farm and Penal Colony, ourselves, if we weren’t convinced foxes would make off with them. We’ve seen raccoons peering into our four-season sun porch, turkeys and sandhill cranes traversing the property, even a fawn eating our neighbor’s petunias. And the Work Farm is fenced in! So chickens wouldn’t last. (Nor petunias, for that matter.)

But spied a creature bordering the Southwest bike path, a little west of Commonwealth Avenue, that could stand up to a fox. Happily rooting under the straw of a backyard garden this 45° F Sunday morning: a Vietnamese pot-bellied Juliana miniature pig! 

Living his best life

“Oh, that’s Rudi,” a helpful passerby informed, while Rudi snuffled and wagged his little tail, oblivious to his audience. Off to the side, a dog house remains unused; the urban homesteaders shelter ol’ Rudi inside on bitter cold days, we were told. The little fellow was restrained only by a thin, 3-foot tall fence.

Apparently, Rudi has taken sides in the state supreme court race; he’s rooting for Protasiewicz. (Also on our perambulations, saw snowdrops (Galanthus) emergent. We’re getting there, gardening season!)

Pot-bellied pigs “can be charming, intelligent, and affectionate companions … [but] it can be difficult to keep them entertained.” 

‘Should you keep one as a pet?’

Blaska’s Bottom Line: Reinforces the old Yogi Berra adage: You can see a lot just by looking. Forgiving his yard sign, backyard Rudi is one of the reasons we do love Madison WI. 

What do YOU love about your town?