Walking down Rugby Road today, students are likely to see a new face. Not a new fraternity guy or a face lift on one of the fraternity houses, but instead, a smaller change, and a pinker change, a rounder change ... Delta Tau Delta's newest acquisition, Charlie, the female miniature pig.
Even if you are not a frequent visitor to Rugby, Charlie is by no means a sedentary swine. There have been numerous sightings of Charlie all over Grounds, mostly on the Lawn, rambling past spectators. The sight has brought curious stares from both visitors and students alike, because it is not an everyday occurrence to spot a pig trotting around the Rotunda.
Once students learn the origin of this unusual pet, and its association with the fraternity Delta Tau Delta, they began to question the purchase and the point of the pig in a frat. The traditional animals for fraternities at the University are mainly dogs and fish, yet DTD chose to take a different route. Why, of all possible animals, would DTD get a miniature pig as a frat pet? And how conducive is fraternity life to the welfare of a pig?
Fourth-year Commerce student Andrew Wilson, president of Delta Tau Delta, was responsible for the purchase of the pig and feels the addition of Charlie to his fraternity is justifiable. He claims that the fraternity had not previously considered getting a pig pet for their house. In fact, Charlie was purchased on a spur-of-the-moment decision by Wilson and another brother while they were out on other errands.
"My pledge brother, Jordan, and I went to a pet store on [Rte.] 29 a few weeks ago to get fish filters for his fish tank," said Wilson. "We were confronted by a cute little piglet in a glass box in the front of the store while there. We instantly fell in love with her and bought her on the spot."
Wilson and his fraternity brothers previously thought about getting a dog for their house before the impulse purchase of Charlie. They are happy with their new pet because as Wilson claims, "Pigs are cleaner and way smarter than dogs."
From this warm beginning, Charlie has become an irreplaceable figure in DTD. "Right now, Charlie weighs about 10 pounds, is about 12 weeks old, and is growing quickly," Wilson said.
The DTD guys all pitch in to help out with the upbringing of their pet, and overall concern that goes into the care of Charlie is incredible.
"We've been acclimating her to frat life by getting her on a sleep in/stay up late sleeping schedule, and we try and take her to the Lawn as much as possible," Wilson said.
With this schedule, the frat guys are able to give Charlie the attention and care she needs during the time she is awake. Charlie even has her own living quarters in DTD.
"She lives on the third floor of our house in her own room, formerly the academic room, now 'Charlie's room.'" Wilson said.
In other words, move over books, because the pig is moving in.
Third-year Commerce student James Harb, social and rush chair for DTD, described Charlie's diet. "She'll eat most things we give her. Although we have a certain kind of pellet-like pig food we usually feed her, she also really likes vegetables, especially lettuce. Her favorite food is raisins," Harb said.
The origin of Charlie's name is interesting because it's not a traditional name for a female.
"Although Charlie is a girl pig, we knew we couldn't have a pig with a female name running around in a frat house, so we decided on the more masculine 'Charlie,'" Wilson said.
Charlie's name actually stems from a combination of two ideas introduced by the fraternity brothers. At first, the brothers wanted to name him Wilbur, like the pig from the movie "Charlotte's Web." "But Wilbur was a male in the movie, so we couldn't just name her after a male character," Wilson explained.
Upon further consideration, the brothers thought of another option for their pet pig's name. By naming the pig after Charlotte in the movie instead of Wilbur and by reducing the name Charlotte to the more masculine version Charlie, the frat could cleverly find a manly name for their beloved pet while also connecting their pig's name to Charlottesville. Thus, the pig's name represents their strong sense of school spirit by serving as a tie to the community of Charlottesville.
DTD also reserves sentimental nick-names of their own for their pet for use in their frat house. Just as an affectionate parent creates baby names for his or her children, DTD is debating just the right name for their treasured pig.
"We're working on her official title but thinking 'House Sweetheart' would be pretty good," said Wilson.
Although most people in the fraternity are fond of Charlie, others question Charlie's role in the fraternity. Fourth-year College student Ryan Hymel, first vice president for DTD, is a member of the latter camp.
"I'm not sure why we purchased her in the first place. Although everyone likes to spoil the crap out of her, I don't see the point of having Charlie here." Hymel said.
However, Harb believes that Charlie is a great addition to their fraternity.
"She really has become the frat mascot. She's really smart, and most everyone here is happy that we got her," Harb said.
Charlie, although she is a miniature pig, should reach anywhere from 50 to 80 pounds at full growth. Delta Tau Delta is anticipating the inclusion of the pig in many of their upcoming events, and they hope for a long future with Charlie. Ask any member of Delta Tau Delta, and their answer will be the same: their sweetheart of choice is a pink, four legged beauty named Charlie.
Read More
Students brave the cold for a whirlwind sorority rush
By Mia Tan | YesterdayStudents recount a mix of emotions from rush, with some disappointed after dropping from the recruitment process and others ecstatic to join Greek life.
Top 10 ways to avoid burnout this semester
By Sam Saks | 2 days agoAs you settle into this semester, try implementing these 10 tactics to take care of yourself and wave goodbye to burnout.
Top 10 things I learned the day TikTok went dark
By Elizabeth Parsons | 4 days agoI am poised to bestow newfound pieces of wisdom from my short-lived TikTok detox.
