Sisu and the Purple Unicorn

The dog is generally referred to as man’s best friend; however, have you given any consideration to what dogs consider their best friend? Is it you, maybe another dog, even a cat? Well, to today’s dog, his best friend appears to be a rather unusual one.

This fascination with his “best friend” appears to have no obvious explanation. Contrary to some beliefs that dogs only see in black and white, this is not the case. Dogs do see in colour, but precisely what they see is somewhat different from us. The colours that you are able to differentiate from each other are the result of the construction of the human eye. Without getting too far into the technical side of things, what the dog sees relies on the makeup of the canine eye. This includes light-sensing cells called photoreceptors, cones and rods. In humans, we have three types of rods, but our canine buddies only have two. This defines what the dog sees, particularly colour. How does this affect the colour purple? Well, this is where things get a bit odd. You see, if our assumptions are correct, a dog can’t see the colour purple; it will appear as a shade of pale blue. So the bright, vibrant colour cannot be the season for this love affair with the Purple Unicorn.

A serial shoplifter

So let’s go back to the beginning. Staff at the North Carolina Dollar Store were somewhat perplexed when they noticed a serial shoplifter. Before the felon was able to exit the store with his illicit contraband, his intention was thwarted by the eagle-eyed employees. His prize was confiscated, and he was shown the door and instructed not to return. Being a determined villain, our intrepid thief waited as each customer exited the store, then re-entered through the open door and attempted to steal the much-prized Purple Unicorn once again. Despite repeated confrontations with the staff, this lovable Labrador cross refused to abandon his attempts to acquire the object of his desire, prompting the staff to call animal control as the Labrador continued his efforts to steal the Purple Unicorn.

Enter Samantha Lane, the animal control officer who responded to the call, and who was so impressed by the dog’s devotion to the unicorn that she purchased the $10 toy herself. Having done so, the stray dog happily accompanied Samantha to the Duplin County Services shelter, where he happily settled. It was discovered that he was an absolutely adorable Labrador type, very affectionate and well-behaved, with a delightful temperament. He appeared well cared for and had obviously been in a home, so it was puzzling that no one had reported him missing and equally odd that no one came to claim him. The staff decided to call him Sisu after the cartoon dragon character from Disney’s Raya and the Last Dragon. It now became necessary to find a home, and the following post elicited numerous offers of a permanent home.

Duly sentenced

“This is what happens when you break into the dollar store and consistently steal the purple unicorn that you laid claim to, but then get animal control called to lock you up for B & E and larceny, but the officer purchases the item for you and brings it in with you.”

The post elicited numerous offers to adopt the delightful dog

Having found his forever home the North Carolina Dollar store decided to donate several Purple Unicorns to his adoptive family so that Sisu always had a purple unicorn in the years to come, they also gave a gift to officer Lane and donated pet food to the shelter.

As for why Sisu was so fascinated by the purple unicorn, the simple explanation is that when he was in his previous home, he had a soft toy of a similar appearance.