Port Orchard family says pet pigs were slaughtered after butcher business got wrong address

PORT ORCHARD, Wash. — A Port Orchard family said they’re calling for more safety protocols after their pet pigs were allegedly slaughtered after a butcher business got the wrong address.

KIRO 7 News spoke with Natalie and Nathan Gray, the owners of Patty and Betty.

Natalie said they purchased the pigs in 2022 from a local breeder to expand their family, which now includes cats, dogs, ducks and a chicken.

“They were adorable. They were so cute. They were the size of a small little dog,” said Natalie. “We haven’t had them before. By not eating meat, I heard they were just like dogs and super fun to have, and I wanted my girls to have pigs.”

The Grays treated their beloved pet pigs with care, she added, celebrating special occasions with them including their birthdays.

“I would go out every morning and hang out with them and make sure they had the attention they needed before I went to school and would feed them, give them fresh water, make sure their bath was full,” she shared.

But on Wednesday, May 1, their hearts were crushed, they told KIRO 7 News.

“Both Patty and Betty were laying in a big pool of blood, and a mess, and one of them had shackles on her,” Nathan said.

Nathan told KIRO 7 News that he was away from his home for about 20 minutes Wednesday afternoon after he had left his front gate open.

He later received an alert on his phone that someone was on his property.

Nathan and his wife rushed home after he had asked one of his employees to check out his home, he said.

The Grays found a white box truck parked on their property and their beloved pigs shot to death in their pig pen, they told KIRO 7 News.

The workers of a local butcher business got the wrong address, they said.

“How could you be so neglectful to be at the wrong place?” Natalie said, “They (pigs) were never meant to die like that. They were supposed to die of old age.”

“How could you take something that was so dear to me and my daughter’s heart? Were you in a hurry? Were you not paying attention?” Natalie asked.

Nathan and Natalie said no one was home and they did not receive a phone call before their pets were allegedly killed.

Their address also did not match the address the workers had on file, Nathan said.

“This (address workers had on file) is not this address. Our address is on our mailbox, on our gate, on our house,” he told KIRO 7 News.

Natalie said the workers did not only take away their loved ones, but they also took away their sense of safety.

“There’s a feeling of unease when your home isn’t your safe space anymore,” she said. “There’s some unrest here and it’s not easy.”

“Now my youngest, she doesn’t want that (new animals). She said, well, what happens if someone comes over? I don’t want that to happen like it happened to Patty and Betty.”

KIRO 7 News received a report number from the Grays after they said they had filed a report with the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office.

We reached out to the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office to get more details about its investigation. We’re still waiting to hear back.

The Grays buried both of their beloved pets in their backyard near a headstone that was made by their daughters.

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The Grays told KIRO 7 News that they are urging for more safety protocols when it comes to slaughtering animals on private properties.

Nathan said this situation could’ve been prevented if the workers followed thorough safety measures.

“I was even more angry when they said their boss said they were going to a house with nobody at home, and that seems to be the protocol for this sort of thing,” he said.

Nathan said he’s also concerned for people safety after his family’s beloved pets had been allegedly killed in broad daylight near their neighbor’s house.

“Patty and Betty were shot 16 feet from my neighbor’s fence,” he said. “Her garden is right on the other side. Is that protocol?”

Nathan said the family would like to see additional safety protocols for workers scheduled to slaughter animals, including making sure the property owners are home, animals are marked, and a signed paper document is present that outlines an agreement between the property owner and business.

“If you’re bringing a firearm on someone’s property, they should have to be home,” Nathan said.

“There needs to be better protection for people like me and my family. To not have this happen again. Someone needs to be home. There needs to be boxes checked instead of coming to your house and kill an animal without someone there,” said Natalie.

The Grays told KIRO 7 News they have hired an attorney, but do not have details on their plans moving forward.

We reached out to their attorney, Adam Karp, who shared the following statement with us.

“I represent the Gray family. The law treats Betty and Patty no differently than were they Golden Retrievers or Norwegian Forest Cats, except that pigs are defined as “livestock” under certain laws. Intentionally causing physical injury to any animal without lawful justification is a felony under RCW 16.52.205(1). And there is a civil cause of action for theft of livestock under RCW 4.24.320, which allows for treble exemplary damages and attorney’s fees. The elements of felony animal cruelty under RCW 16.52.205 furnish a basis to sue under the civil theft of livestock statute when the animal harmed is livestock. A recent appeal I won out of Yakima, Thorley v. Nowlin, held that this statute permits recovery of emotional distress damages (trebled) in the case of malicious injury to livestock, theft of livestock, or felony animal cruelty to livestock.

I think it is important to observe that there is absolutely no relevant dissimilarity between pigs and dogs or cats. We can form close relationships with all mammals if we have the time, skill, desire, and respect for the sanctity of life – as do the Grays. I have been retained to explore criminal, civil, and regulatory avenues to do justice for Betty and Patty and to ensure no horror like this ever happens again.”

KIRO 7 News also reached out to the Washington State Department of Agriculture about the alleged incident.

A spokesperson said the agency does not handle incidents like this, adding that they also have not received a complaint report about the alleged event.

“Almost all meat processing facilities are regulated by USDA (not WSDA, federal vs state). However, some operations can be exempt from federal jurisdiction. That’s where we step in.

The WSDA Food Safety Program licenses and inspects three types of custom meat operations: custom meat facilities, custom slaughter establishments, and custom farm slaughterers. The firm that you’ve mentioned is one that we have licensed as a custom meat facility and as a custom farm slaughterer.

RCW 16.49 gives our agency the authority to then license and inspect these custom meat facilities.

It should also be noted that USDA has the authority to withdraw a firm’s exemption if they violate the conditions of that exemption. Our inspections of custom facilities generally look at suitability of equipment and facilities as well as sanitation practices. There are some minor labeling and recordkeeping requirements as well. Most of these can be found in Chapter 16-19 WAC referenced above.”

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