NEED TO KNOW
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Kiana Baron’s son Nixon decided he wanted to keep his 4-H project this year, a pig named Dave
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The mom of three told her son he could keep Dave if he raised $500
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Through a combination of a soda stand and donations from friends, family and strangers, Nixon got the money together in less than a day
When Kiana Baron’s son picked a pig for his 4-H project, little did she know that he was going to become a member of their family.
In a series of videos shared to her TikTok, the Utah-based mom of three, 34, explained that her son Dixon is doing 4-H this year and does not want to get rid of his pig Dave.
4-H is a youth development organization in the U.S., where kids between the ages of 5 to 19 engage in hands-on, experiential learning projects. The 4 “H’s” stand for the values that the program focuses on: head, heart, hands and health.
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Kids each pick a project they want to focus on during the year. Some common projects can include things like raising animals, gardening, farming or even cooking.
“My son Nixon is doing 4-H this year and he does not want to get rid of his pig,” Kiana explains in one video. “So he’s doing a soda stand today to be able to raise money to try to keep his pig.”
The clip then shifted to show Nixon at his soda stand, which featured a sign that read, “Help me save Dave.”
Nixon Baron (right) with Dave the pig
Credit: Courtesy of Kiana Baron
Kiana continued to show Nixon’s progress on her TikTok, revealing just two days later that he’d reached his goal of $500. “Thank you guys so much, I reached my goal $510 on accident,” Nixon says in a video. “When I saw Dave, I knew he was the right one.”
Now, Kiana tells PEOPLE that her son decided quickly that Dave was going to be a member of their family forever.
“Nixon decided pretty early on that he did not want to auction off his pig,” she says. “We kept trying to convince him that it was always the plan. But he made a new plan on his own.”
“I was not on board initially,” continues Kiana. “I didn’t want a pig (or two) living in my backyard anymore. Pigs are stinky, mess makers. But I saw how much Nixon loved him, so I agreed to let him try to earn the money on his own.”
Kiana Baron and family
Credit: Courtesy of Kiana Baron
But little did Kiana know, it would only take her son less than a day to earn the required amount — $500 — to be able to keep Dave.
“Nixon earned about $100 from his soda stand and the rest of the money was gifted to him from friends, family and strangers on the internet,” she explains. “Nixon is so happy he gets to keep Dave and so thankful for all the kind donations he received.”
“He plans on earning more money to build Dave a nice shed with some air conditioning. It gets really warm in southern Utah in the summers, so Dave will need A/C!”
Read the original article on People