A two-week “porker invasion” by a family of pigs that spooked park picnickers and entered backyards in Tauranga has come to an end.

Authorities have captured and rehomed a sow and eight piglets that were reported roaming in the suburb of Welcome Bay.

It came after nine formal complaints and many comments on local social media pages about pig sightings in and around the sprawling Johnson Reserve.

This included a post reporting a “porker invasion” at a Welcome Bay property and another from a mother saying she complained to the council after she and her three young girls had a “pretty scary encounter” with a sow and lots of piglets while picnicking in the reserve a few days ago.

“Mama pig came at us trying to eat our snacks. I grabbed three girls in time and they [the pigs] were tossing our bags around to get food out.

“[A] nice gentleman helped us get our bags back … my kids and I were actually frightened by the whole experience. They came at us so quietly and quickly.”

Another post joked: “Plenty of bacon up for grabs.”

The Bay of Plenty Times tried to contact several posters.

Johnson Reserve’s Care Group spokeswoman Pam Thorpe says on Sunday members spotted four or five pigs snuffling around in the reserve. They were eating acorns underneath oak trees near the top of the Victory St entrance.

“Obviously these pigs shouldn’t have been there and the longer they are in the reserve there’s more chance for them to cause damage to the native plants.”

The small group of volunteers have worked in the reserve on and off for nearly 20 years, mostly weeding, planting and maintaining plants.

Tauranga City Council animal services team leader Brent Lincoln says it received nine complaints over about 10 days regarding a sow and piglets roaming the area of Johnson Reserve and nearby residential properties.

Brent says the council’s Keeping of Animals Bylaw 2018 stated pigs could not be kept in the city unless the land was zoned rural, and pigs on rural land must be behind a stock-proof fence.

Tauranga City Council's animal services team leader Brent Lincoln. Photo / Alex Cairns.

He says the sightings reported to the council were from across the Johnson Reserve and that made it difficult to try to trap them.

“Ideally, we would have located the owner of the pigs and, with their assistance, caught them or led them home, but no one had claimed them.”

Brent says the pigs had now been removed from the reserve and rehomed.

“Domestic pigs are highly food-motivated and can be quite intimidating. If confronted, the best thing to do is move away from where the pigs are. And if possible leave a small amount of food to distract them while you move away.

Johnson Reserve. Google Maps.

“Do not try to pet them or separate piglets from the sow as this may aggravate the situation. Once safe, report the incident to the council.”

Brent says owners were liable to pay compensation for damage by roaming stock and, if they failed to control their animals, could face a fine of up to $20,000 and loss of the stock.

He says there had been 32 complaints to the council about roaming stock in the 12 months to March 31 this year compared with 48 in the previous year, and 69 in the 2021/22 financial year, primarily about cows.

The sprawling, dog-friendly Johnson Reserve covers about 14.5 hectares and has large open spaces, bush tracks, a small waterfall and wetlands.

It can be accessed from Victory St and Pelorus St or Waipuna Park.

Sandra Conchie is a senior journalist at the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post who has been a journalist for 24 years. She mainly covers police, court and other justice stories, as well as general news. She has been a Canon Media Awards regional/community reporter of the year.

- Sandra Conchie, Bay of Plenty Times