Seemingly lost toy pig now this Ontario woman's holiday obsession

Lise Kingsbury has more than one theory about how a Peppa Pig doll wound up on the side of a local highway before her husband plucked it from the road and brought it home.

"Maybe a mom was belting in her child [and] put Peppa on the roof," Kingsbury wonders. "You know, [like] when you have your coffee cup, you put it on the car and drive away."

Perhaps a kid innocently dropped it without their parent noticing, she adds, or maybe they just chucked it out the window.

Whatever the reason, Kingsbury looked at the rescued pig sitting in her laundry sink — scrubbed clean with a suede shoe brush to avoid mucking up her inner wiring — and thought "God, somebody's missing her."

Now the retired business owner and Kemptville-area grandmother of three has taken to social media to try to reunite Peppa with her owner ahead of the holidays.

Here's what we know

Kingsbury's husband was driving on Dec. 1 along Highway 44, on the way to Kemptville for groceries, when he spotted the toy.

It was near the North Grenville Municipal Centre, she said. He'd recognized the pig from the popular animated TV show.

This is the area off Highway 44 near the North Grenville Municipal Centre in Kemptville where Lise Kingsbury says the toy was found on Dec. 1. (Submitted by Carter Kingsbury)

He took Peppa home and Kingsbury spent hours cleaning her. Peppa was muddy, she said, but showed no tire marks or signs of being run over.

"All the vital signs are good," Kingsbury said.

Kingsbury then spread word on various local social media pages, which is where Kemptville resident Sherrie Mullen heard about the cause.

Mullen said she paid to print nine colour posters she then hung up in the community.

"Each place I went to, as I started to explain, they would say, 'Oh, I'm following that,'" Mullen said.

Peppa cleaning materials (Submitted by Lise Kingsbury)

Owner may not be local

How is it that no one has come forward yet to claim the toy by now?

As both Mullen and North Grenville Mayor Nancy Peckford pointed out, the municipal centre — which features two arena surfaces — draws both locals and out-of-towners to the community just south of Ottawa.

"Her owner may not reside here in North Grenville," Peckford said. "That's why we've been working so hard to spread the word."

"Not everybody is on Facebook," Mullen added.

The toy is staying at Kingsbury's home until its rightful owner can be found. (Submitted by Lise Kingsbury)

High tea with mayor

Kingsbury said Peppa has one distinguishing feature she has has kept out of her online posts because she wants to ensure the toy is claimed by its true owner.

In the meantime, Kingsbury is documenting Peppa's temporary stay at her home: decked out in a holiday-themed red dress, hanging out with the Kingsburys' dog.

On Monday afternoon Peppa will join Peckford and the winners of a local greeting card colouring contest for high tea.

"I'm not attached," Kingsbury said. "I'm just fostering her."

The Kingsburys' dog sniffs out the stranger in its midst. (Submitted by Lise Kingsbury)