Stuffed tiger sparks 45-minute standoff with Scottish police

LONDON — Crouching tiger, hidden … toy.

Police in Scotland were called by a farmer who thought a big cat had invaded his cow shed. They ended up in a 45-minute standoff with a large stuffed tiger.

Police thought they had the tiger by the tail when they were deployed to a farm in Peterhead in Aberdeenshire, sending in a number of units, including an armed response team. The authorities eventually realized it was a toy.

Peterhead Inspector George Cordiner says “until you know exactly what you are dealing with, every option has to be considered.”

Police describe the incident as a “false call made with genuine good intent,” though they did allow that officers had a “roaring shift on Saturday night.”

The Scottish edition of the Sun newspaper reported that the farmer, Bruce Grubb, went out to check on his cows while he was having a housewarming party and saw the ‘tiger” on a ramp.

The paper quoted Grubb as saying: “I was stone cold sober, drink had nothing to do with me thinking it was real.”