Slatington residents are questioning borough police actions over the shooting and disposal of a loose pet pig.

Slatington police responded to a complaint from a resident on Hill Street regarding a loose pig at 11:33 p.m. on July 21.Kathleen Williams said that she had been filling out paperwork with her husband, Charles, when he went outside to retrieve some documents from their car."I heard him scream, 'Kathy! Get out here right now!' I went out to the door, and there was a pig that was the size of my dog. I was thinking, 'What is this thing doing here?' I didn't know if it was friendly or not," Williams said.Williams went to retrieve a collar and leash to restrain the pig, with her dog following her. Once the dog saw the pig, it began barking. Williams, being unsure of where the pig had come from and whether or not it was safe, called the communications dispatch, which sent the police to her home.Williams went out to tell her husband that the police would be arriving soon, but her husband had not yet restrained the pig."He kept jumping and knocking me over," she said, pointing out that she could not run due to numerous leg and knee injuries.Police Chief David Rachman said that once officers arrived on the scene, the woman who had made the call was "crying hysterically." The callers allegedly had red marks on their skin from bites, but Rachman said that the animal did not break the skin.Williams said the police told her to go back into her home. She asked them not to kill the pig, as it appeared to be somewhat domestic."The pig chased the officers, grunting. After it went back to where it was originally standing, the pig chased an officer around the hedges again. At that point, the officer drew his weapon and shot the pig," he said.Williams said that she heard one shot at first, followed by screams from the pig."I was crying my eyes out. Next thing you know, there were three more shots, and then it got quiet," she said.Williams said the officers originally told her and her husband that they would leave the dead animal on their lawn, though when they argued against it, the police took it with them. According to Rachman, no one present at the scene knew who owned the pig, so the police disposed of it near the Lehigh River and Slatington airport.Missing from homeLance Sherer, the owner of the pig, whose name was Oscar, was not aware of the shooting until the next day, when he could not locate his pet within his home."I searched the house, there's not much for him to hide behind. I don't know how he got out of the house. He doesn't move too fast, since he's a 100-pound pig. Within 15 minutes I flagged down a police officer and told him the story," he said.Sherer said that the officer told him there was an incident involving a pig that happened nearby, though the pig in question was described as "150 pounds, with fangs."Sherer claimed that this was an exaggeration.He said he had difficulties trying to obtain information about his pet. He said he was told that an officer would get back to him in relation to the incident."At that point, I had the worst ideas running through my head," Sherer said. "I tried locating him, but I didn't have much luck with that."It was only later on that he heard the story from the Slatington police.Sherer said that he holds no ill will toward Kathy and Charles Williams, though he does question the response by the police."They tried to do the right thing, they tried to leash him," Sherer said. "When the police arrived, something went terribly wrong. They told the people to get in the house, to get their dogs in the house, and they shot (Oscar) down. That's how they dealt with it. Nobody went to the hospital. No pictures were taken. It was a big dramatization."Donna Henry, who is familiar with Sherer and Oscar, was shocked by the response of the police."Why couldn't they have called animal control and tranquilized or Tased him? And then to just throw him away and not tell anyone where he was ..." she said.Slatington has not had an animal control officer since 2015, when the position was eliminated after the retirement of Linda Steets. The Lehigh County Humane Society handles animal cases for Slatington.According to Rachman, it is illegal to own a pig in the borough of Slatington, and it is also illegal to have an animal at large."We feel bad for the owners, but we had to resolve the situation. It was being aggressive toward the people who called us, and the officers. It's a 100-pound pig that could do damage, and we had to mitigate that," he said.Sherer still contests the response of the police. Numerous friends on social media have been offering condolences as well as outrage for how the police handled the situation. He said he will continue to raise awareness for what he considers aggressive actions against docile pets, in order to protect animals like Oscar."I've had him for over a year now. He nudged your feet and toes to show love and affection. He was like my baby," Sherer said. "If I don't push this issue, this is how animals will be treated here in Slatington."