Residents in the area were very concerned about an animal spotted alone at the side of the road.
On the 18th of November, Cromford police decided to share a false alarm story that is sure to make many people laugh.
A case of mistaken identity
Many locals and drivers were convinced they had seen an abandoned dog tied up at the side of a road. Several reports described a 'mastiff-type' dog tied up along the road, so a police officer was dispatched to the scene.
He was completely taken aback when he discovered the source of the confusion. There was no abandoned dog, or even a living animal... but a soft toy! To be precise, it was a stuffed Christmas reindeer, waiting patiently at the spot reported by the drivers.
A humorous response
Faced with this huge mix-up, the police shared a humorous post on Facebook. They explained that Father Christmas's helper was just resting after a test flight. They added in the post that they had, however, given the reindeer a warning for being out and about in the middle of November!
On social media, users shared their amusement in the comments: ”And yet, nobody stopped to check if it was a real dog, lol.” Another wrote: ”Actually, this soft toy is more effective at slowing down drivers than any sign.” And another commented: ”I'm sorry, but it looks more like Donkey from Shrek having an existential crisis!” We couldn't agree more!
