Esther the Wonder Pig dies aged 11

Esther the Wonder Pig has died aged 11, her owners announced.

The friendly Canadian pig gained social media clout with more than 1.5 million followers on Facebook.

Taking to her Instagram page, Steve Jenkins and Derek Walter wrote that “the day we all wished would never come has arrived.”

“She was calm and peaceful, and fell asleep with her dad Steve by her side. While we understand many of you will have questions, and we will have the answers for you, but we are going to take a little break to process the situation.

“Even though Esther is no longer physically with us, her memory and legacy will live forever.

“Esther is immortal, and we will continue to show the world that all animals deserve to be loved just like she was.”

Esther moved into Jenkins’ and Walter’s home in Toronto, Canada, in the summer of 2012. It was during the micropig “trend,” where small-sized pigs became all the rage on social media. The couple were told that that’s what Esther was, and that she would never weight more than 70 pounds.

But Esther kept growing. And when she was a full-sized pig they gave her the nickname Esther the Wonder Pig. While she was 600 pounds and had outgrown their home, they decided to keep Esther, describing her as “family.”

Thousands of social media users have expressed their condolences.