Everybody in life needs a best friend and for 9-year-old Julian Gil of Chandler, Arizon that’s his pet pig Maggie.
“Sometimes I just like to be with her if I don’t know what to do. She’s my friend.
But Maggie is more than just someone to have fun with after school because Julia suffers from Asperger’s syndrome and the pot-bellied pig is his family’s answer to bring a calmness to Julian’s life.
“She’s been his life for three years. She’s everything to him,” said Arlene Gil, Julian’s mother.
But the city of Chandler wants to change that.
Even though Maggie is restricted to their home and enclosed yard, someone in the neighbourhood complained and now Maggie has to go.
The city has issued an order to remove the pig because it’s illegal to have livestock living in their neighborhood zoning.
But her son’s psychiatrist believes Maggie should actually be considered a service pet and thinks she is the right animal to help treat Julian.
In the meantime, the family has 10 days to comply with the city’s order.
They’re hoping the city will see Maggie the same way they do. “We don’t want to break any laws, we just want to do what’s right for him,” Julian’s mom said.
Change.org has a petition for people to sign urging the city of Chandler to allow Maggie to stay.
h/t: 12 News Arizona
