Dog mistaken for baby lion in Virginia

NORFOLK, VA (WHDH) -- In Virginia, 9-1-1 calls poured in from people who thought there was a baby lion on the loose. Turns out though, it was just a dog with a very wild haircut.

This morning, the story has the community "roaring" with laughter.

"I'm driving down the street right before the zoo and there's a lion that ran across the street, a baby lion,” said a concerned woman on a 9-1-1 call.

Emergency calls about a lion loose near the Virginia Zoo quickly came to the attention of the zoo director.

"At first we all looked at each other like could it be,” said the director.

Workers rushed to see if Zola and Mramba escaped. The sleeping cats hadn't moved a muscle.

"And immediately I knew the other lion in town,” he said.

When you see the face that caused all that fear, you can't help but laugh... at the Labradoodle they call "Charles the Monarch."

"I bought him as a puppy. My daughter was going to ODU as a freshman and their mascot is a lion, but when he grew as a puppy his fur just blew out,” said the dog’s owner, Daniel Painter.

And that's when Painter got the idea to shave Charlie's fur and dye some of it a darker color. The goal was to make the dog more popular at ODU tailgates.

"Now he turned into so much of a celebrity, so now it’s her dog again and I’m fine with that too,” said Painter.

So the next time you see a lion on Granby Street or Colley Ave, remember, if it looks like a lion,

And it hunts like a lion....

It's probably just a dog with a funny looking haircut.