Meet the animal lover who takes her 110lbs pet pig everywhere - even to brunch
- last year
Meet the animal lover who is best friends with her 110lbs pet pig and takes him everywhere - even to brunch.
Amanda Quick, 35, adopted Carlton four years ago, when he was just a few months old, and has been caring for him since.
Amanda, who works in real estate, says Carlton is like "typical toddler" - she often takes him on long walks and even to brunch with her friends.
She has spent close to £2,500 ($3,000) to renovate some storage space under the stairs and turned it into Carlton's own air-conditioned bedroom.
Amanda, who lives in Austin, Texas, USA, said: "It's kind of like a Harry Potter room.
"We spent a week putting up the walls and a door. It's air conditioned and stays cool. It cost a bit less than $3,000."
Amanda adopted Carlton after finding out that miniature pigs are often abandoned by their owners when they get bigger.
She said: "I discovered that miniature pigs get to like 300 pounds and need homes a lot.
"So I got into a Facebook group for people who need to rehome their pigs."
Carlton, who is now four years old, has become a local celebrity in Austin and Amanda often gets stopped on the streets when on walks with him.
She said: "The first year I had him he escaped and stole a jack o' lantern that made him famous.
"I meet people from three or four hours away from me that know him.
"I'm very introverted so I'll wear noise cancelling headphones, shades and a hoodie when I go on walks with him, otherwise my walks will take three hours because of people stopping me."
Carlton now weighs 110lbs and could get bigger as pigs continue to grow until the age of six, but that doesn't stop Amanda from taking him to brunch with her friends.
She said: "Most people freak out when they see him, my friends have gotten used to it.
"When we take him to brunch they know we aren't going to talk much because people will stop us every three seconds."
Amanda has also trained Carlton to be a therapy pig and she often takes him to schools and hospitals to comfort patients and schoolkids.
However, owning a pig comes with its own challenges.
They are incredibly strong and instinctively root around for food.
She added: "I had to put tiles up until waist height in his room, so he can't bust through the drywall.
"One thing I will say, is that you can't have a nice lawn if you have a pig, because they'll root around and destroy it.
"I'd rather have Carlton than have a nice lawn."
Amanda Quick, 35, adopted Carlton four years ago, when he was just a few months old, and has been caring for him since.
Amanda, who works in real estate, says Carlton is like "typical toddler" - she often takes him on long walks and even to brunch with her friends.
She has spent close to £2,500 ($3,000) to renovate some storage space under the stairs and turned it into Carlton's own air-conditioned bedroom.
Amanda, who lives in Austin, Texas, USA, said: "It's kind of like a Harry Potter room.
"We spent a week putting up the walls and a door. It's air conditioned and stays cool. It cost a bit less than $3,000."
Amanda adopted Carlton after finding out that miniature pigs are often abandoned by their owners when they get bigger.
She said: "I discovered that miniature pigs get to like 300 pounds and need homes a lot.
"So I got into a Facebook group for people who need to rehome their pigs."
Carlton, who is now four years old, has become a local celebrity in Austin and Amanda often gets stopped on the streets when on walks with him.
She said: "The first year I had him he escaped and stole a jack o' lantern that made him famous.
"I meet people from three or four hours away from me that know him.
"I'm very introverted so I'll wear noise cancelling headphones, shades and a hoodie when I go on walks with him, otherwise my walks will take three hours because of people stopping me."
Carlton now weighs 110lbs and could get bigger as pigs continue to grow until the age of six, but that doesn't stop Amanda from taking him to brunch with her friends.
She said: "Most people freak out when they see him, my friends have gotten used to it.
"When we take him to brunch they know we aren't going to talk much because people will stop us every three seconds."
Amanda has also trained Carlton to be a therapy pig and she often takes him to schools and hospitals to comfort patients and schoolkids.
However, owning a pig comes with its own challenges.
They are incredibly strong and instinctively root around for food.
She added: "I had to put tiles up until waist height in his room, so he can't bust through the drywall.
"One thing I will say, is that you can't have a nice lawn if you have a pig, because they'll root around and destroy it.
"I'd rather have Carlton than have a nice lawn."