16 and a half years ago I made the long drive from San Marcos to north of Georgetown to go see some four week old pot-bellied pigs. The minute I saw the tiny, pink piglets, I knew I had to take one home. She was so tiny I could hold her in one hand and had to feed her out of a bottle.
Morgan lived inside with me for 4 years while I was in college. She went to the door and oinked when she needed to go to the bathroom and was pretty much like a dog. She had a bed in my closet that she would bury herself in under a comforter. Most of the time, all you could see was her piggy snout sticking out. I really got a kick out of not telling people about her and surprising them when they saw her. In this picture, I found her hiding in a pile of laundry.
I must admit that she used to sleep in bed with me too. I would come home from work and she would be snuggled under my bed covers. She was the best foot warmer ever.
Morgan was still small enough to pick up when I went home for Christmas my sophomore year of college. One day all my family was gone and Morgan and I were home alone. All of the sudden, I saw my parents' very decorated Christmas tree falling over. Morgan had gone under the tree and tipped it over. I stood there holding up the tree for 30 minutes so the ornaments wouldn't fall off until my parents came home. Good times.
She was sneaky, smart pig. One time I saw Morgan sneaking from my roommate's room and running back to my room. I knew she was up to no good the moment I saw her. Sure enough, Morgan had found a candy bar in her purse and was hiding in her bed eating it.
Morgan still lived inside with me when Eric and I first started dating. When I moved to Austin after I graduated, I moved into an apartment that did not accept pot-bellied pigs. Morgan moved to the Valley to live with my parents in their backyard for a year. It was a big adjustment for her, but she loved their backyard full of all-she-could-eat acorns. She went from weighing about 75 pounds to 125 and could barely walk. When my lease was up, I moved into a house and got my piggy back. From then on, she was strictly an outside pig. She had always been territorial and tried to bite people she didn't know and she seemed to like living outside in her own little pigloo just fine.
When we moved into our house, Eric built a fence so Morgan would have her own little space to live in. She was comfortable in her little "pig area" and liked being in charge so she could relax under the rose bush or push around her bowling ball without Kirby chasing her around.
The kids loved looking at the pig, but were a little scared of her since she would sometimes try to bite them. Morgan was territorial and only liked a handful of people... me, my parents and sometimes Eric. Even though Eric called her "my baggage", he took good care of her and grew to like her over the years.
Today my sixteen and a half year old pig is gone. It was her time. I will always remember my Morgy and her sweet "huff huff" sound she made only for me.
We will miss you Morgan!
