Some pig

Not only is Newton’s famous mini-pig a celebrity among locals, she’s somehow spreading joy all across the country.

As fans of Joy the mini-pig lined up Saturday morning to see her in action or snap a picture with the noble swine, a boisterous bunch of ladies wearing novelty pig noses hovered around the lobby of the Capitol II Theatre with a contagiously energetic aura. They greeted folks with large smiles and admired Joy sitting in her special room inside the downtown movie theatre.

Out-of-towners? You betcha! Some had even crossed state lines just to support Joy and her owner Dawn Bleeker, who had organized a community celebration party this past weekend. There was much to be celebrated, too. It’s not every day a pig appears in the latest edition of the Guinness World Records. Kim Olson, of New Hampton, certainly sees the value in Joy’s achievement.

“It is just phenomenal!” Olson said, describing herself as a “pig person” who owns several potbelly pigs and mini-pigs at home and is even connected with fellow enthusiasts through social media communities. “We are a really tight community from all over the United States. Dawn had no idea we were coming.”

More than a hundred people attended the celebratory get-together, which included a coloring contests for kids, a silent auction featuring artwork painted by Joy’s snout and a showing of the animated film “Charlotte’s Web,” a fitting choice for whom the out-of-town pig community deem an outstanding pig. The money raised is going to be donated toward other mini-pigs in need.

Joy is included in the Guinness Word Records 2020 edition and was featured in a Sept. 30 article and accompanying video published by the same company. The 7-year-old mini-pig claimed the record for most tricks by a pig in one minute. In 60 seconds, Joy can perform 13 tricks ranging from honking a horn, removing rings from a toy and playing keys on a piano.

Bleeker was shocked to see her fellow pig community supporters at the movie theater.

“There were (people from) six states here, including Iowa,” Bleeker said Sunday. “Colorado and Indiana flew in. Missouri and Nebraska and Minnesota drove in … It was a surprise!”

Paula Davis, fellow pig enthusiast from Indianapolis, was happy to see the local community support Joy, who she had never met until this past weekend. Having a pig as a pet, she said, is much different than owning something like a dog or a cat. But there’s just something about pigs that she loves.

“I had pets my whole life — dogs, cats, everything — but (pigs) are just more human,” Davis said. “Like Joy, look at her eyes. It’s not like looking into a dog’s eyes. When you look into a pig’s eyes, they’re there. They know. There’s just something about them that is just amazing. And they all have different personalities to ‘em.”

Also supporting Joy was Stephanie Matlock, the president and co-owner of the American Mini Pig Association (AMPA). Joy, she said, is an AMPA-certified therapy pig licensed to visit nursing homes and schools and educational events to provide “comfort, therapy and advocacy for pigs.” Much like certain breeds of dogs, pigs can be “highly trainable.”

Matlock added, “But they do take a lot of work to have a good routine and everything so they’re fighting you on every little thing. They can be kind of like toddlers with tantrums if they don’t get enough outdoor time to explore and everything — then they can get destructive. But that goes with any pet.”

It takes hard work. Bleeker began training Joy when she was just 10 weeks old, and the work has certainly paid off. So much so that Bleeker often rescues or rehabilitates pigs or helps piglets become more social toward humans, which some folks may be unaware of. The community finally got to see that side of Bleeker in addition to celebrating Joy’s accomplishments.

“I wanted to celebrate it with the community and at the same time show there’s more to Joy just being here at the theater,” Bleeker said.

Contact Christopher Braunschweig at 641-792-3121 ext. 6560 or cbraunschweig@newtondailynews.com