Nearly 500 pigs hoarded on farm will be euthanized if not rescued

PENDLETON COUNTY, Kentucky -- Animal rescue groups are trying to find homes for nearly 500 pigs found on a farm before they are euthanized.

Cotton Branch Farm Animal Sanctuary in South Carolina is helping clean up this muddy situation and find homes for the pigs.

They said that the woman who leases the property took in 15 pigs a few years ago, which eventually resulted in a number she couldn't handle.

"It multiplies, multiplies, and multiplies," said Joshua Carpenter Costner, director of the Cotton Branch Animal Sanctuary. "So when you have 10 pigs who give birth, then they each have six to 10 pigs who now could possibly give birth."

Costner said that it wasn't until people living nearby saw these pigs roaming free that authorities were notified.

When Costner got there, he found many pigs malnourished and several of them pregnant.

"If they're not properly vetted and if they're not spayed or neutered, it just continues ballooning and ballooning and ballooning until it's out of control," Costner said. "What we've found on multiple cases like this that we've worked, is it ends up with animals dying of starvation. It ends up with horrible illnesses."

The organization has about six weeks to find a home for these animals or else they say the state will euthanize them.

As of Aug. 26, 458 pigs still need to be adopted.

It's not clear if the woman who owns the pigs will face any charges.