45-Minute Farm Standoff Ends When Cops Realize Tiger Is Stuffed

You don’t want to toy around with tigers, which is why police in Peterhead, Scotland, sprang into action Saturday night.

It started when local farmer Bruce Grubb called the North East Police to report the presence of a large fearsome cat with stripes on his farm.

“I got the fright of my life,” Grubb told The Scottish Sun.

The creature appeared to be crouched on a ramp in Grubb’s barn.

Officers immediately dispatched several vehicles, including an armed response team to the farm. In addition, police contacted a nearby wildlife park to check if a tiger might have escaped, according to the BBC.

There was a 45-minute standoff before officers realized the tiger in question was just a giant stuffed toy, according to the New York Post.

Inspector George Cordinor told the BBC he was happy at how the responding officers handled the situation, and emphasized that Grubb wasn’t a prankster.

“Our ultimate aim is to protect the public and keep our officers safe when faced with uncertain situations. Until you know exactly what you are dealing with, every option has to be considered,” he said. “We appreciate that it was a false call made with genuine good intent.”

The North East Police had fun with the call on Facebook a few days later, saying “officers had a roaring shift on Saturday night.”

 In addition, UK Cop Humour, a Facebook page geared toward British law enforcement, had lots of fun with the incident by posting pictures of people in tiger suits that it claimed could be “negotiators.”