HOULTON, Maine — Police are investigating an incident at the Houlton Agricultural Fair in which a woman allegedly left three piglets she bought at the fair in a hot car, which caused one to die.
The woman, who is not being identified since she has not been charged with a crime, acquired three piglets during the fair on Friday evening, Houlton Police Chief Joe McKenna said Tuesday.
The animals were in a burlap bag that the woman put in her car with “no ventilation,” McKenna said.
It was not clear how long the piglets were in the vehicle, but Paul Cleary, president of the Houlton Agricultural Fair, said Tuesday that a gate attendant contacted fair officials to report that the animals had been left in the vehicle unattended and that one of the piglets “did not look good.”
Cleary said fair board members used the fairground loudspeaker to try to contact the owner to return to the car. They also called police.
The doors on the car were locked and there was no water inside for the animals, McKenna said.
It was 83 degrees in Houlton that day, according to the National Weather Service in Caribou.
“By the time that we responded, one was dead, one was injured, and one was in pretty bad shape,” the chief said.
Cleary said that when the woman returned to her car, she wanted to keep the two piglets that lived, but that the board members told the officer that should not happen, and they were given custody of the animals.
He said the woman had not won the piglets as previously reported but had bought them from the children who won them in a pig scramble event at the fair.
“We have rules you have to follow [for the care of animals],” Cleary said.
He indicated that winners are given instructions on how to care for the animals and there is an area at the fairgrounds in Community Park where the piglets could be kept and cared for while owners continue to enjoy the fair.
McKenna said Tuesday that the town’s animal control officer would be checking with the state’s animal welfare office to discuss appropriate charges.