Family hog killed after wandering into Roanoke Rapids

The hog—named Oinkers—was adopted by Mason and Lauren Price after it wandered into the family’s construction business from a farmer’s property next door.

The Price’s decided to let their daughter, Macie, 11, keep the hog after the animal refused to leave.

“She was a big baby, and we spoiled her,” Lauren Price said. “We spoiled her rotten.”

Macie Price said she believes Oinkers grew lonely insider her pen—made of concrete barriers—while the family was gone over the weekend.

Authorities said they received a phone call about the hog after it crossed multiple main highways near Roanoke Rapids city limits.

Roanoke Rapids police chief Chuck Hasty didn’t say what prompted the officer to shoot on Oinkers, but he said the department is reviewing the officer’s handling of the situation.

Macie Price said no explanation was provided when she spoke with authorities.

“My grandma took me to the police, and I was up there,” Macie Price said. “I told them I was mad at them, and it was just a sad day.”

Hasty said the officer who killed Oinkers fired multiple rounds.

“We just don’t understand it,” Lauren Price said. “She was never aggressive to anybody here; [she] never bit anybody.”