WINNIPEG -- This little piggy is staying home -- for now.
Podgy the pot-bellied pig has been granted a reprieve by officials in Winnipeg.
The city ruled earlier this year that Podgy wasn't a pet and had to go. Under city bylaws, Podgy is considered a hog and isn't allowed in the city.
But Podgy's owner, Emily Sydor, then said the pig was a service animal that helps with her mental health.
Leland Gordon, with animal services, told a city hall committee Friday that Sydor has been issued a temporary permit allowing her to keep her pig, as long as it is trained as a service animal.
The Manitoba Human Rights Commission has a policy requiring a service animal be trained to provide assistance to a person with a disability, Gordon said.
"Animal services is open and willing to work with the applicant ... to help them align with the province's standard," he said. "So at the end of the day ... it's either a legitimate service animal or it's not."
Sydor is to return to city hall next year with an update on the pig's training.
Sydor, seated next to her father, told the committee that she's not sure what the training will include.
"As far as I'm concerned, he does what I need currently right now for me."
In the meantime, she wants to get Podgy outside for some exercise in her neighbourhood.
"If I'm expected to do more, I think I should at least be able to take him for walks," Sydor said.
Donna Pinchuk also spoke to the committee in support of Sydor's application. Pinchuk said she was forced to get rid of her pot-bellied pig three years ago and now wants to claim it as a service animal for her partner, who suffers from dementia.
He still asks about the pig and searches for it around the house, she said. The couple sometimes makes the 90-minute drive outside the city to visit the pig at its new home.
"I'm hoping we can open this up a little bit so that we can use pot-bellied pigs as these kinds of service animals," said Pinchuk.
"I have witnessed how impressive these animals are in helping people with disorders."
