Morbidly Obese Pig Maybelle, Who Needs to Lose 80 Lbs., Is So Overweight, a Roll of Fat Covers Her Eyes

The Animal Rescue League of Boston has come to the rescue of a potbellied pig carrying around a deadly amount of extra weight.

The morbidly obese 1-year-old animal, who arrived there 6 weeks ago, weighed more than 196 pounds at intake, according to the ARL’s website. Maybelle, as she’s called, was only able to stand for a few seconds at a time and suffered from sores due to her lack of mobility.

“Her hooves were also overgrown and causing discomfort,” said the ARL. “Because of her size, Maybelle also couldn’t see because a roll of fat was, and still is, covering her eyes.”

The staff there, who are usually focused on helping cats and dogs, has devised a plan to help Maybelle shed the weight (the pig’s former owner has been charged with animal cruelty, the ARL said).

“It was a collaboration and it took some research,” said veterinarian Dr. Kate Gollon. “She needs to lose about 80 pounds and regain her strength, so once we had all the information, we decided to take a number of steps to begin moving Maybelle in the right direction.”

They introduced a new lower-calorie diet to Maybelle, who was allegedly only fed dog food in her previous home. Six small meals of feed and vegetables are served up to her every day, and the rescue is already seeing a change in her mobility, the ARL said.

“The staff are sitting with her, comforting her, and she enjoys petting and being scratched,” said Gollon, “it’s made a tremendous difference.”

Maybelle (featured in the video above) is too large to fit on a scale, so a fabric measuring tape will track her 80 lb. weight loss, which they predict will take 9 to 12 months time.

The hope is that Summer 2017 will be the best one yet for Maybelle, and that, as a part of her rehab, she’ll be outside and moving around more soon.

Maybelle is not available for adoption, but if you’d like to help the ARL care for her, click here. Check their Facebook page for frequent updates on her.