We have been house/pet sitting at a beautiful cabin home in Western North Carolina for the past 6 weeks. It is our first caretaking “job” and was found via the Internet. When we arrived, the household included two dogs, three cats, four roosters and a hen. More on that later…

Yesterday when many were tuning into NFL pigskin games, we had our own unique lineup. About midday while enjoying a typically quiet rural Sunday, we were startled to hear some cussin’ and swearin’ coming from the woods near the end of the drive. It sounded like a serious ruckus. Unnerved a bit, we slowly made our way down the drive to find the neighbors in a sweat with visible scratches.

Before we could ask if they rather be left alone, we noticed this humongous pig slowly and laboriously making its way toward us.

Jubilee introduces herself

Come to find out, the neighbors were trying their best to convince Jubilee to come home. From what we could tell, there really is no way to move a pig when it is rooting and having fun. The pig was having no part of their plan no matter how hard they prodded and/or cajoled. So after tempers cooled down a bit, wiser heads prevailed and the neighbors decided to go home and see if Jubilee would eventually follow.

Being unexpectedly left to babysit, we decided it would be best to ignore the pig and  enjoy a beautiful September afternoon at the pool. Did I tell you the cabin has a pool?

View of the pool from the deck

You can guess what happened next. Jubilee seems to be a people person pig so sure enough just as we got comfortable, we heard an unfamiliar clamor and bizarre snort-like noises coming from behind. Not being pig people we were unnerved by being one-on-one with Jubilee. She did her best to put us at ease.

Jubilee making friends

Maybe if we had grown up around pigs or had picked up some knowledge about the potbellied pig along the way, this sight would not have been quite so stupefying. What we now know is that they are huge, have big hooves, are single-minded and may or may not have teeth. So sharing the pool with this beast seemed absurd on the one hand and inevitable on the other. Tootles the rooster was on hand to witness the scene.

Jubilee took to rooting and then seemed tired from all the commotion. What could we do — we got her a drink of water and shared the pool.

Jubilee taking a pause to refresh

Jubilee finally took up a spot on the cool cement to enjoy her Sunday afternoon. The neighbors tried one more time Sunday evening to coax Jubilee home. She decided a sleep-over was in order. The following morning we found Jubilee sleeping under a tree.

The neighbor came over with apples, grapes and pig goodies. Maybe we were not hospitable enough for the pig. She decided it was time to go home for breakfast.

Pigskin Sunday will never be the same.