Peruvian family dog turns out to be a fox

A family in Peru who thought they had bought a dog soon realised they had a fox on their hands after it attacked other animals in their neighbourhood.

The Sotelos bought the puppy for $13 (£9.50) from a small shop in the capital, Lima, believing it was a purebred husky.

But after a while, they received complaints from neighbours about their so-called dog named Run Run.

The canine impostor has since been caught by wildlife officials.

It became clear there was a case of mistaken identity when Run Run began to chase guinea pigs, chickens and ducks to kill or eat them, provoking the anger of neighbours.

"About a month ago, a woman from around here said that it ate three of her guinea pigs. And then two or three days ago, a local grandmother came and said that it killed guinea pigs," owner Maribel Sotelo told Reuters news agency.

Run Run turned out to be an Andean fox, which has thin legs, a bushy tail, a pointed head and prominent ears.

The National Forest and Wildlife Service in Peru says wild animals are often bought by traffickers from Amazonian areas and are illegally sold in Lima.