“[H]e thinks she’s the most beautiful pig in the world” đź’•
Every rescued pig who enters Sisu Refuge is promised a happy life on an expansive farm surrounded by other curly-tailed survivors. But one lucky pig, Elmer, got more than he was promised. In addition to securing a dreamy new home, the sweet boy unexpectedly found the love of his life.
It all started when Elmer met Hermoine, a beloved resident of Sisu Refuge, while the two were in medical quarantine. Hermoine, who’d been at the refuge since 2019, had a famously “beautiful, tough [and] wickedly smart” personality, which made it difficult to bond with other residents.
But Elmer, who arrived with severe social anxiety, was immediately drawn to her.
“Elmer was smitten!” Sisu refuge wrote on Facebook. “For months, Elmer courted Hermoine. He would share his snacks, and he would even fluff her side of the barn with fresh straw.”
You can see more pictures of the couple here:
While Hermoine wasn’t quite interested in Elmer at first, his kind gestures eventually won her over. They soon became an inseparable couple, taking the refuge by storm with their loyalty and dedication to each other.
“Elmer is obsessed with everything Hermoine does, and he thinks she’s the most beautiful pig in the world. He shares his food with her and lets her pick the best spot next to the air conditioner in the barn,” Sisu Refuge wrote. “Hermoine doesn’t mind that Elmer is half her age, and she also ignores the weird way he drinks water. [They’re] the cutest couple in the world.”
You can watch Elmer and Hermoine’s love story unfold here:
The sweet couple eventually moved into a custom mini cottage, and they began to raise a family of foster piglets. Elmer loved being a dad, and while Hermoine was a little less patient with the kids, she was happy to have a family with her partner.
“She tolerates all the foster kids he’s always bringing home and tries to be more patient for his sake,” Sisu Refuge wrote.
You can see their cottage here:
After nearly two years together, Elmer and Hermoine’s demeanors changed for the better. Elmer became more confident in socializing with the other pigs on the farm, and Hermoine learned to be more patient and easygoing.
“They really [complement] each other,” Sisu Refuge wrote.
Unfortunately, Hermoine was suddenly hospitalized in August 2024 after her caregivers noticed an infection in her foot. They rushed her to the hospital, hoping that her foot could be treated promptly and that she’d return to the refuge soon. But medical exams soon confirmed their worst fear: The infection was a lot worse than it appeared, and she sadly could not be cured.
Hermoine passed away at the clinic, leaving her devoted caregivers in a pool of sorrow. When they returned to the refuge without their sweet girl in tow, they noticed Elmer sleeping by the gate where he’d last seen her leave.
The refuge owners were heartbroken for Elmer, who wasn’t able to accompany Hermoine on the 6-hour drive to the clinic. There was no way for them to communicate to Elmer what happened, but they promised to stay by his side and help him through the grief of losing his soulmate.
“We don’t know if he realizes she isn’t coming home yet,” Sisu refuge wrote on Facebook. “It breaks my heart to think of him sitting and waiting forever for his girl to come home.”
Elmer’s been receiving an endless amount of apples and affection in the year since losing Hermoine, and he’s slowly started to heal. Thanks to the social skills he learned through Hermoine, he’s been able to make more friends at the refuge and has now rebuilt his family. It took a few months, but Elmer is finally smiling again.
Luckily, Elmer has attentive and affectionate caregivers who, in addition to monitoring him at all times for signs of grief, know just what he’s going through. They miss Hermoine as well, but they promise to always keep her memory alive by continuing to love and care for her sweet Elmer.
Though Hermoine is gone, in Elmer’s big heart, her transformative spirit will always live on.