Court upholds fine for Sherwood Park family’s pig possession

Hearing over injunction to have Eli removed was adjourned

The Court of Queen’s Bench upheld a lower court guilty verdict Wednesday over a $100 fine for a Sherwood Park woman who keeps a pig in violation of Strathcona County’s animal bylaws.

Michelle Kropp’s pot-bellied pig, Eli, has been a family pet for almost five years. The county first received a resident’s complaint about Eli in March 2014. It issued a violation ticket later in June that year. Kropp fought the fine and was found guilty of the infraction in provincial court in August. She appealed.

Kropp said the black and white pig is a part of her family. Pictures on the Save Eli the Pot-bellied Pig Facebook page feature her two daughters snuggled up with the stiff-bristled pet.

The family’s plight was championed on social media, with almost 1,000 followers on Facebook and several offers of free legal assistance.

A written statement from Strathcona County officials revealed that its application for an injunction that would require Kropp to relocate the pig was adjourned at the trial Wednesday due to time constraints. The hearing date for the injunction application has not been decided.

David Churchill, director of transportation and agriculture services within the county, said that the onus lies on Kropp now to voluntarily find a new home for Eli outside municipal boundaries.

“We can’t pick and choose the bylaws that we enforce,” Churchill said Thursday.

He said that if Kropp refuses to comply and relocate the pig, the matter would have to go back to court to determine the next step. He said that Strathcona County has no jurisdiction to seize the animal.