Two little piggies named Taylor and Travis will live to see another holiday season after the Miami-Dade mayor pardoned them from all Christmas activities.
On Thanksgiving each year, it’s long been the tradition for the current US president to pardon a pair of turkeys – saving them from a prospective fate of winding up on a family’s dinner plates.
But, Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava does things a little differently.
In the Latino community in southern California, roast pork is the most popular dish around Christmas, and so a few lucky pigs are chosen each year to be pardoned.
Mayor Daniella Levine Cava holding a very calm Taylor— (Fox26)
After many heartfelt applications, the winning pigs this year were Taylor and Travis – named after the star-studded couple pop star Taylor Swift and Kansas City Chiefs player Travis Kelce.
Owned by Alfonso and Lina Marena Berrio, the pair are the family’s favourite creatures and were named by their daughters Valerie and Melanie over their love for the celebrity couple.
The pardoning took place outside of local restaurant Latin Cafe 2000 this week.
At the ceremony, the mayor joked that Taylor was very calm because “she knows a lot about being in the media and the spotlight”.
Travis, on the other hand, was a bit more restless and ”seemed ready to be out on the field,” she said, according to NBC Miami.
The two pigs will go and live in a sanctury— (NBC6)
After being pardoned, the two lucky pigs can never be sent to market or be included in any Christmas activities.
Instead, the pigs will live a “lifetime of peaceful coexistence in a sanctuary” at the Bonanza Equestrian Center in Miami, NBC reported.
This is the sixth year the Miami-Dade mayor has granted a full mayoral pardon to some chosen pigs.
But, while Travis and Taylor have had a lucky escape, the mayor acknowledged that many others won’t be so fortunate.
In Florida, roast pork is a traditional meal for many, especially Cuban families, on Noche Buena (Christmas Eve), where the pork is often roasted in a traditional box called a La Caja China, made of wood and filled with coal.
