Pigs Saved From Now-Closed Middlesex County Petting Zoo

MONROE TWP., NJ — Two pot-bellied pigs that used to be at a Middlesex County petting zoo have now been re-homed by an organization called Fluffy Butt Rescue in Milford.

In July, the Middlesex County Board of Commissioners decided to permanently close all three petting zoos run by the county after two of them, in Woodbridge and Piscataway, were badly flooded when Tropical Storm Ida devastated Central Jersey last year. Middlesex County also closed its third petting zoo, Thompson Park zoo in Monroe.

In that storm, a pig drowned in its pen at Merrill Park Animal Haven in Woodbridge.

The pig died when Merrill Park experienced sudden flash flooding from the south branch of the Rahway River, said a Middlesex County spokeswoman at the time. Two people passing by, plus park staff, noticed the flood waters were rising rapidly and had to rush in and free the animals trapped in their pens. But the pig was found dead in its enclosure. All the other animals were saved from the flood water.

Separately, photos of goats, horses and sheep standing knee-deep in murky brown floodwater in Johnson Park Zoo in Piscataway went viral on Facebook.

This prompted dozens of people to storm Middlesex County Commissioner meetings, begging the county to shut down all three petting zoos. The county has maintained that all the animals were well cared for.

Since then, hundreds of animals, such as alpaca, sheep, deer, fox, pigs, miniature horses, pythons, iguanas, rabbits, roosters and goats, from all three zoos have had to be re-homed.

The county plans to move some animals to a new animal husbandry program it will open next to East Jersey Old Town Village.

In Defense of Animals, an animal advocacy group, said that when the two pigs, Cosmo and Newman, came to the rescue group they were in extremely poor health. (The pigs came from the Thompson Park Zoo.)

One of the pigs, Cosmo, could not walk due to severe arthritis, said the shelter.

"Cosmo could only walk on his elbow when we got him. His legs were bent almost at a 90-degree angle. He was forced to hobble to get to his food," said the animal welfare group. "He is slowly using all fours now that he gets anti-inflammatories and joint supplements."

The other pig, Newman, "was very obese likely due to the fact that visitors threw just about everything to them over the fence. He cannot see due to the fat surrounding his eyes," said Siraj Gandhi, a 16-year-old Monroe Township teen who was one of the most outspoken voices to get the county to close the three petting zoos.

The teen said the pig had grown so obese because "The ground of (his) pen was littered with large amounts of apples, carrots and lettuce left by visitors, which most likely lured the pigs outside," he said. "Newman was clearly overweight. He had a large flap of skin over his eyes, which blinded him. Their struggle was painful to watch, and while parents and their children stood next to me, cheerily throwing food over to the pigs, my heart sank."

Before Middlesex County decided to close all three zoos this year, Commissioner Ronald Rios said he personally received dozens of phone calls and emails begging him to keep the petting zoos open. Families said the Johnson Park zoo was particularly beloved, and was known as an affordable and convenient petting zoo for small children.

Prior: Middlesex County Closes Zoo After It Was Hit By Ida Flooding (2021)

Johnson Park Zoo Will Permanently Close, Middlesex County Decides (April 2022)