Woman facing mischief charge for giving water to pigs

Animal rights activist Anita Krajnc gives water to a pig in a truck in a handout photo. (THE CANADIAN PRESS / Handout / Elli Garlin)

A Toronto-based animal rights activist is set to appear in court in November to face a mischief charge after giving water to pigs on their way to a slaughterhouse in Burlington, Ont.

Anita Krajnc was on a roadway giving water to pigs on a hot day in June, after a truck transporting the animals stopped at an intersection.

Footage captured by a bystander shows a tense confrontation between Krajnc and Eric Van Hoekel, the pigs’ owner, as Krajnc tried to give the pigs water.

“These are not humans,” Van Hoekel is heard yelling before threatening to call the police.

“Have some compassion,” Krajnc said in return.

Van Hoekel filed a complaint with the police the following day and a charge was laid against Krajnc in October.

Krajnc, who founded Toronto Pig Save, an activist group aimed at protecting the animals, said a criminal charge will not stop her from giving the pigs a drink again.

“If you listen to your conscience, you know that a pig is like a dog,” Krajnc told CTV News. “They are living beings. They want to live and they have rights.”

On Wednesday, Krajnc and other members of Toronto Pig Save gathered outside the Milton, Ont., court house to protest the charge.

“Mischief is defined as interference with the use, enjoyment or operation of property,” she said. “The pigs are called property which is something we don’t agree with.”

If found guilty, Krajnc could face a fine of up to $5,000.

With a report from CTV Toronto’s Austin Delaney and files from the Canadian Press