Thomas Barnes, 58, lives in North Carolina, USA, with his beloved dog, an innocent-looking Bichon Frise named Marino.
An innocent slip of the paw
According to Barnes, Marino leapt onto the bed and stepped on the remote control. When Barnes looked at the screen, he quickly realised his pet pooch had subscribed to a pay-per-view 'adult' channel.
Barnes called the TV company within minutes to explain what had happened. They promised to deactivate the naughty channel and remove the cost from his bill.
But when it arrived in the post, Barnes noticed a $70 charge for the rude content. Mr Barnes, who lives off social security payments, was not happy. He said:
"That 70 dollars, you're taking food out of my mouth. It's like you're stealing it. They refused to see how that was pertinent."
Barnes refused to pay the unwarranted costs, so the TV company cut off his service.
The angry customer then filed an official complaint with the Federal Communications Commission. After explaining it was the pup who ordered the porn, the commission took over the case.
A few weeks later Mr Barnes received news that the TV company would be crediting the full amount onto his next bill.
Reporters contacted executives from the TV company, but they declined to comment.
We think Mr Barnes is telling the truth
It's unclear why the matter escalated. Did the TV company doubt the somewhat outlandish story? After all, I'm sure it's not the first tall tale they've heard from an embarrassed customer.
Only Mr Barnes and Marino will ever know what really happened that night. But, given the lengths he went to prove his innocence, we're willing to give Mr Barnes the benefit of the doubt on this one.
As for the little Bichon Frise, well, he's utterly oblivious to all the trouble he's caused!
