Last March, the Duplin County Animal Services in North Carolina received a very unusual call from a variety store in Kenansville. Apparently, a stray Labrador mix had kept entering the store and headed straight to the toy aisle to grab a big and purple stuffed unicorn.
He would dart inside every time a customer left the establishment and repeatedly did this about four to five times. When the employees finally had enough, they decided to lock the door and reach out to the authorities for help. Joe Newburn, Duplin County Animal Services’ supervisor, answered the call and admitted that it was indeed strange.
Nonetheless, he sent Animal Control Officer Samantha Lane to the scene to handle the issue. When Samantha heard the story, she was so moved by the stray dog’s dedication that she decided to buy the $10 unicorn plushie for him. She then watched as the Lab mix eyed her from afar, clearly interested in what she was holding.
When she placed the unicorn in her front seat, the pup willingly came to her right away. She took him straight to the shelter, where he was named Sisu after the dragon character in Disney’s new movie, Raya and the Last Dragon. The staff also checked him for a microchip in case he had a previous owner.
Unfortunately, they didn’t find one on Sisu, and since no one came up to claim him, he was eventually put on the adoption floor. Lucky for him, he had already made rounds on the internet. Several news outlets and TV stations covered his story, inspiring donations for him and the shelter.
The variety store he initially “robbed” even sent extra unicorn plushies for Sisu to keep. It didn’t take long for adoption applications to start flooding in, and soon enough, the shelter announced that he had an adopter in line. Look at the happy Sisu and his precious unicorn here.
Courtesy of Duplin County Animal Services
