Peruvian family dog turns out to be Andean fox

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

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.

• Abandoned dog sells for $25k at auction

• Spain grants joint custody of dog in rare ruling

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, but it is more closely related to wolves and jackals than foxes.

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.