Local pet pig Chip enjoys walking in Kirkwood neighborhood

A pet pig known for notorious escapes in Kirkwood has become a local internet celebrity.

Katrina Todd and her daughter Isla are the owners of Chip, who resides at a home on Bates Avenue when he’s not wandering the streets.

He made an escape again on Nov. 8 around 7:30 a.m., to the delight of neighbors posting about it on social media.

This time, Todd said, he just wandered down the street, where residents spotted him at the corner of Delano Drive and Bates.

But last week he made it all the way to downtown Kirkwood and walked back on his own. On Nov. 8, Todd was working in her basement without cell reception and didn’t know the pig had escaped until she got a signal again, receiving five missed text messages.

“I went and got him,” Todd said. “He’ll follow me home.”

Todd said Chip is smart and has figured out how to open gates. The Nov. 8 escape led her family to reinforce their pen to prevent future excursions, a move sure to disappoint Chip and his fans.

“We’ve been redoing his pen today since he likes walkabouts,” Todd said.

The pig is a year and a half old, and Todd’s family took him in at eight weeks old.

“My daughter was obsessed with pigs,” Todd said. “For years she kept asking for one. We went to California and my parents had the bright idea of bringing her to a pig farm where she got to hold all the baby pigs, and she was super depressed until we got her one.”

Chip’s adventures have brightened everyone’s day.

One commenter quipped, “Can I pet that dog?”

Another said, “Snakes and pigs on the loose. I’m going to need whomever is playing Jumanji to stop.”

Todd said Chip is definitely a character. Isla and Chip even made an appearance in this year’s Lanta Gras parade.

“He’s a happy, happy pig,” Todd said. “He’s very social, so he’s always looking for something.”

This story was provided by WABE content partner Decaturish.