It was the most unusual animal drop-off anyone at the shelter had ever seen—but it catapulted this stray dog to internet fame and even a new home.
On July 9, workers at the Riverside County Department of Animal Services, in California, witnessed something none of them could’ve expected.
In came a 9-week-old Maltese-Yorkie mix for their over-the-counter animal drop-off—carried inside a Cap’n Crunch Crunch Berries cereal box.
We have seen some creative pet carriers in our days. This @RealCapnCrunch cereal box has to be one of the oddest ways a pet came to us as an over-the-counter dropoff. We handled all its fleas and now hope an owner arrives. #RivCoNOW pic.twitter.com/yr2CHczswB
— RivCO animalSERVICES (@helpinRIVcoPETS) July 10, 2019
“This… has to be one of the oddest ways a pet came to us,” the shelter wrote in a tweet, posting the photo online.
The box was being used as a makeshift pet carrier. According to People, the dog had been found abandoned at nearby Bryant Park. She had a flea problem, but the RCDAS took care of it.
They named the dog Razz Berry after the berry-flavored cereal she was found in. Now, they just needed to find her a new home.
Fun footage of “Razz Berry” — available Saturday morning at 11 a.m. Enjoy! #RivCoNOW pic.twitter.com/xjr6cjO165
— RivCO animalSERVICES (@helpinRIVcoPETS) July 13, 2019
Luckily, cuteness can be a big factor in getting adopted, and the photo of Razz Berry in the cereal box melted people’s hearts. The original tweet had multiple people inquiring about bringing her home.
On top of that, she was featured in CBS Los Angeles’ “Pets2Love” segment.
In fact, demand was so high that the only fair way to find the right family was to hold a lottery.
Families interested in adopting Razz Berry were invited to the shelter’s location in Jurupa Valley Saturday morning. Roughly 20 families showed up, all hoping their number would be called.
But the lucky winners turned out to be a perfect family for the dog: the Sheets family, who had just lost their own dog the same day they heard the news about Razz Berry.
“I saw it the day we lost Ginger, and I was like, ‘Oh it’s too soon,’” Teresa Sheets said in a video posted by Riverside County Animal Services.
“It just all happened, I don’t know how this happened,” James Sheets said.
The Sheets family (Hayden, Teresa & James) of Riverside picked the highest number in a “lottery” for Razz Berry, the pooch that came to us inside a @CapnCrunchBerry cereal box. Roughly 20 families came to our shelter in #JurupaValley this morn to adopt Razz. #RivCoNOW pic.twitter.com/wd13spfoBt
— RivCO animalSERVICES (@helpinRIVcoPETS) July 13, 2019
The family also has a Maltese Yorkshire Terrier mix named Pepper, and happened to be looking for a white coat dog to name “Salt” to match.
But they don’t have any plans to change the name—it seems like Razz Berry has stuck.
The animal service posted an update tweet of Razz Berry with her new family—and it sure looks like she’s settling in quite nicely:
@RealCapnCrunch cereal box doggy, “Razz Berry,” settling in very well at the Sheets’ home in Riverside. We cannot help but get gooey over how cute and peaceful she looks. 🐶❤️🐶 pic.twitter.com/wjn54GaWE8
— RivCO animalSERVICES (@helpinRIVcoPETS) July 17, 2019
It’s a very happy ending for this dog—but that’s not all.
While about 20 other families showed up to adopt Razz Berry that day and came up short, they didn’t go home empty handed: CBS reports that they many families adopted the other dogs in the shelter.
And to think it’s all thanks to Cap’n Crunch.
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