A stray dog’s attempted thievery ended up getting him rescued! Animal control officers responded to an unusual call from a North Carolina Dollar General store after a stray dog kept on trying to steal a stuffed toy from their shop. The prize the dog had his eye on? A plush pink unicorn.
“He went straight for the unicorn, the same one every time,” Joe Newburn, a supervisor at Duplin County Animal Services told People. “It was so strange, one of the strangest calls I’ve ever dealt with.”
As strange as it was, it was also very endearing. According to the shop employees the dog tried to steal the toy several times before they locked the door on the persistent pup and rang Animal Services for help.
When Animal Control Officer Samantha Lane arrived at the store, she was so touched by the dog’s determination that she bought him the toy before taking him back to the shelter. He was given the name Sisu after an animated character in the Disney film, Raya and the Last Dragon.
Mary Shannon Johnstone/Duplin County Animal Services
Shortly after Sisu arrived, the shelter posted a picture of the pup and his unicorn on their Facebook page with a caption that read, “This is what happens when you break into the Dollar General consistently to steal the purple unicorn that you laid claim to but then get animal control called to lock you up for your B & E and larceny but the officer purchases your item for you and brings it in with you.”
Mary Shannon Johnstone/Duplin County Animal Services
After arriving at the shelter the sweet dog would curl up with his plush toy to go to sleep.
Mary Shannon Johnstone/Duplin County Animal Services
The shelter workers think Sisu must have had a similar toy at his previous home. They also noted he knows how to sit, shake a paw and is very obedient.
Mary Shannon Johnstone/Duplin County Animal Services
“The only thing we can think is that he came from a home where he had a similar stuffed animal or kids in the home did,” Newburn said.
Mary Shannon Johnstone/Duplin County Animal Services
After a mandatory hold period, Sisu was put up for adoption and quickly found a forever home. The dollar store plan to give Sisu’s new family a few extra purple unicorns for good measure. They also sent along a food donation to the local shelter to help them with the other homeless animals.
No doubt Sisu will be very happy with the extra purple unicorn toys, but he is probably more ecstatic that he has some real humans to cuddle up to!
Share this sweet story with your friends and family. And if you would like to help Duplin County Animal Services shelter care for their animals, visit their website to make a donation and see the animals they have up for adoption.
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