Dominique Schreinemachers has taken care of pig Pumba. She hopes that the animal will lose weight and start moving again soon. But the veteran thinks Pumba still has a long way to go.
“Good morning Pumba. I have some water for you, drink it,” Dominique says softly as she takes a look at the pig that has been staying with her since Saturday. Pumba was taken from a house on Saksen Weimarstraat in Rijen last week on a stretcher. She was much overweight and could barely walk. The judge decided that the house had to be evacuated and ordered the resident to leave the house.
Pumba stayed in the animal shelter in Breda for a few days. She has now been taken to Dominique. There she has her own piece of meadow with a house that her temporary owner quickly put together last weekend. “I am genuinely worried about Pumba. The animal has literally been taken from her house. She is not mentally well,” says Dominique. According to her, Pumba weighs around 180 kilos.
How do you make a pig lose weight?
The most important thing is that Pumba loses weight quickly. You can safely leave that to Dominique because she is a veteran and served in Afghanistan, among other places. “She gets a regimen,” she says, laughing. “I do my utmost. An animal deserves the very best. We start with her having a small meadow where she can run. When things get better, she will soon have plenty of space again.”
Her claws will be clipped on Saturday. They are still far too long, making it difficult for her to walk. “That will help so much because then she can move,” says Dominique, who was approached by the animal ambulance and an animal welfare organization to take care of the pig.
Pumba is now mainly in her cage. Dominique slowly tries to gain the obese animal’s trust. “That’s why I’m going to bring her something nice just to snack on. A piece of cheese and some peppers to entice her a bit. I hope she will like me more. Ultimately, I hope she will start eating pig food.”
Her peers Ted and Willemijn already do that. Those pigs have been living in Dominique’s meadow for a while together with geese, sheep and a dog. “Ted and Willemijn have also come from a house. Willemijn was also strong, but has now lost weight and is a normal weight.” Pumba’s house is positioned so that she can hear the other two pigs. But according to Dominique, the animals cannot yet be put together in the meadow because otherwise they will fight.
It is not clear how long Pumba will stay with Dominique. Officially, the animal still belongs to the resident of the house in Rijen. If it is up to Dominique, the pig will be completely fine. “Pumba still has a long way to go. But if you are doing well yourself, you should also give something good to someone else.”
