Old Piggy Named Nunu Safe After Surviving Beating and a Bullet

A community pig named Nunu was beaten and shot in Phoenix last week. He’s alive and safe because his heroes fought for him when all hope was lost. KwaZulu-Natal,... The post Old Piggy Named Nunu Safe After Surviving Beating and a Bullet appeared first on Good Things Guy.

May 17, 2026 - 11:12

Old Piggy Named Nunu Safe After Surviving Beating and a Bullet

A community pig named Nunu was beaten and shot in Phoenix last week. He’s alive and safe because his heroes fought for him when all hope was lost.

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa (17 May 2026) – On the evening of Saturday, the 9th of May, the team from SAFE were called to assist PACT on a scene in Phoenix.

A large male pig had been beaten and was lying on his side in the road, unable to get up. The SPCA were present, the pig’s owner had given telephonic permission for euthanasia, and it wasn’t looking like he had much of a chance.

SAFE wasn’t ready to accept that yet. The wounds weren’t near his spine or any vital organs. They asked for a moment to assess him, and called for some fruit and sugar water, which he ate and drank readily. After a medicinal spray was applied to his wounds, he stood straight up on all four legs and started walking around.

It was then that his story came out.

“He had lived in the community for many years. He was a free roaming pig but owned by the scrap yard up the road. He had arrived as a piglet according to people who worked at the scrap yard in 2004. If that is accurate, that would make him 22 years old. In the many years, according to residents, that he had lived in the community, he had not been harmed. He was well loved, fed with apples and fruit by them, and even petted by some of the residents’ children.” shares SAFE, recounting the story.

Someone on the scene said his name – Nunu.

Over the next few days, SAFE checked on him daily while plans were made to build a proper enclosure at the scrap yard. A local resident even sponsored the materials. Labour was booked for Wednesday morning. On Tuesday night at 9 pm, Shaun from SAFE drove out to check. His handler was there, Nunu was sleeping, and the build was set to begin in just a few hours.

Then at 5 am on Wednesday, the SAPS called. Nunu was, again, lying in the centre of the road and nobody could move him. Shaun went straight out, found the handlers back at the scrap yard rather than with Nunu.

“At that stage we had no idea what had happened. Was he lying in the road for the warmth of the tar, had he been hit by a car while crossing? Where had his handlers gone? When Shaun found the handlers at the scrap yard he went back to Nunu with them and asked them what had happened, and why they were not with him. They could not answer.”

With a canvas stretcher and helping hands, SAFE managed to get him safely to the side of the road. Then they noticed a small amount of blood on the back of Nunu’s neck, and a small entry wound consistent with a bullet.

“Shaun then noticed a small amount of blood on the back of his neck, he noticed that there was a small entry wound under his fur, consistent with a 9mm bullet. We made the decision to remove Nunu and get him veterinary treatment.”

The SAFE team’s only focus became Nunu. Frantic phone calls were made from the side of the road to find a vet who could come on scene, source a horse trailer large enough for half a tonne of pig, track down the right drugs and dosage, locate a vet practice with portable X-ray equipment and the right expertise in large animals, and figure out how to get Nunu up a ramp.

“From the moment we were called out to the moment we got Nunu treated… We were flat out focusing on Nunu, and getting him the help he needed… We were not on social media, we were not focusing on posts. We were focused on Nunu.”

Five hours later, somehow, it had all come together.

Then Nunu’s owner arrived, more than two and a half hours after being notified, and said Nunu should simply be euthanised. SAFE pushed back. The vet on scene believed the bullet hadn’t hit any major areas and may have lodged in the fat layer of his neck. They asked for the chance an X-ray would give. The owner finally relented.

“We then manually loaded Nunu into the horse trailer using the canvas stretcher under him and many individuals to help get him up the ramp.”

He was transported to an equine and large animal vet specialist in Summerveld, and from there to a sanctuary where the full X-ray assessment could be completed. The results confirmed that the bullet had indeed only travelled approximately 15cm into the fat layer of his neck. It was fragmented but hadn’t hit any arteries or vital organs.

The good news is that Nunu is alive and safe now, and that he’s on the road to recovery.

He’s resting in a secure, private sanctuary with grass, shelter, and his own space to wallow. His location will remain confidential given threats made against him, but he is protected, eating, and on the mend.

“We want to thank the community and the professional teams who stepped up to save Nunu’s life. We will provide further updates as he continues his recovery.”

Two decades of mud puddles and love abruptly ended by one awful week of cruelty. Thankfully, a new chapter is on the horizon for Nunu thanks to a group of people who did not give up.