“He knows the sound of the truck by heart.”
Most people wait all week for the weekend, but Floppy gets excited for a different reason. His favorite day is Thursday, because that is when the recycling truck comes by.
The moment the Apple Valley Waste truck gets close, Floppy, an 850-pound pig, hurries to the front of the yard to greet the crew. His run is more of a fast, eager waddle, but his excitement is impossible to miss.
His owner, Chelsey Weaning, says nothing can keep him from going over to say hello. Whether he is relaxing in the mud or spending time with the family dogs, he will stop everything the second he hears the truck coming. She says he knows the sound so well that he can recognize it from far down the street.
Floppy clearly feeds off the crew’s energy. According to Weaning, he gets just as excited as they do and often wags his tail, which in pigs is also a sign of happiness.
He loves attention from people in general, though not everyone stops to give it. Sometimes neighbors pass by without acknowledging him, and Weaning says she can tell he feels disappointed when that happens.
The recycling crew, however, never ignores him.
They always pause to pet him and enjoy a few moments together, and for Floppy, those visits are the best part of the week.
The crew feels the same affection toward him. Driver Mike Caprio says that even if he is having a rough day, seeing Floppy instantly lifts his mood and makes him smile.
Their friendship began about three years ago and has grown stronger with each visit. Caprio says that when he kneels down to talk to Floppy, the pig looks right at him. Over time, Floppy also learned to recognize his voice and the beeping sound the truck makes when reversing.
Now it has become a routine. Every week, Floppy heads straight for the truck to welcome the crew, and they make sure to spend a little time with him. Caprio says his company fully supports the tradition and loves that it happens.
In fact, Floppy has become something of a celebrity among the Apple Valley Waste team. Caprio often brings different helpers so more coworkers can meet him. He says people are always amazed by how huge yet gentle Floppy is, and once they meet him, they cannot resist wanting to hug him.
Around Christmas, Weaning leaves gifts for the crew on a table outside Floppy’s gate as a thank-you for how kind they have always been to him.
Even after ten years of driving for Apple Valley Waste, Caprio says Floppy is still the only pig he has ever seen on his route. Floppy lives in a suburban neighborhood in West Virginia near Washington, D.C., where seeing a pig in someone’s yard is definitely unusual.
But Floppy is not a farm animal. He is a member of the family.
Weaning and her husband, Wesley, took him in when he was only two days old to help a relative. He needed constant bottle feeding and around-the-clock care because he had a neurological condition called shaking head syndrome that kept him from nursing. The veterinarian said it was one of the most serious cases they had ever seen, and Floppy was not expected to survive more than a few weeks.
Now, at 6 years old, he is thriving. Weaning says his condition is barely noticeable these days, and that he has adapted beautifully and grown into a happy pig.
She believes Floppy has given just as much to her as she has given to him. They spend nearly all their time together and share a strong bond.
According to Weaning, Floppy came into her life unexpectedly, but at exactly the right moment. To her, he has become a source of joy not only for her, but for everyone who gets to know him.