Woman Sets Up Camera to Catch Strawberry Thief, Quickly Finds the Culprit

A video of a dog caught acting as “the strawberry inspector” of some plants outside a home has gone viral on TikTok.

The clip was posted by the dog’s owner, Amber Bobnar (@imalineraway), and has amassed over 496,000 views since it was shared on June 22.

A message overlaid on the video says: “Someone was stealing my strawberries, so I set up my phone to catch the culprit.”

The footage shows a dog sniffing around some plants with flowers, near the bottom of some steps outside a home. The canine appears to be a Labrador retriever, according to a hashtag shared with the post.

The pup sticks its head among the leaves, appearing to nibble on something, before walking toward the other side of the plants.

The dog’s apparent inability to resist the strawberries could be due to genetics, according to a Cambridge University study in May 2016.

The study, published in Cell Metabolism, found that some Labradors have a mutation in their DNA that can predispose them to weight gain. Eleanor Raffan, a co-author of the study, said: “There is some hard-wired biology behind that persistent food-seeking behavior,” The Guardian reported at the time of the study’s release.

Among the dog breeds for which data have been reported, Labrador retrievers were found to have “the greatest documented obesity prevalence and have been shown to be more food motivated than other breeds,” the study said.

The study also found that a “deletion in the pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) gene” was associated with increased body weight, adiposity and food motivation in labrador retrievers as well as the closely related flat-coat retrievers.”

‘The Strawberry Inspector’

Users on TikTok adored the dog in the clip and were amused by its sneaky antics.

“Ma’am that’s the strawberry inspector. Didn’t you see the badge?” wrote @wkndgrltrp.

The original poster replied: “Oh my goodness you’re probably right!”

Kiki Mae wrote: “Nope. Strawberry tax collector.”

Kate S said: “Awww, the goodest pup! He doesn’t want them to go to waste.”

“The only acceptable thief in the world,” wrote @grneyezlala. Shuly agreed, saying, “Adorable thief. My dog also loves strawberries.”

MK wrote: “My dog did this to my neighbor once, the day her bush was in full bloom.”

Marisa said: “Awh .. my 2 labs eat off my raspberry bushes. I just let them have the bottom half of the bush.”

Newsweek has contacted the original poster for comment via TikTok. The video has not been independently verified.

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