The story of a stolen dog letterbox got its happy ending when it was returned two months after it went missing.
Police contacted Launching Place man Tony to inform him the custom-made metal dog letterbox had been recovered on 12 January.
The quirky piece of metalwork was delivered on the back of a tow truck and Tony said it made his day to be reunited with the dog.
“I’m very grateful… it’s a good outcome and the police were lovely,” Tony said.
It sure would’ve been a bizarre sight for onlookers when it was delivered. The tow truck’s emergency lights were flashing as it pottered down the driveway, with a police car escort trailing behind.
The Dalry Road resident was left angered and upset last October when his metal dog letterbox was cut out of the concrete by thieves.
Commissioned by his wife as a birthday gift, the $2000 letterbox represented the many canines at the property and was crafted with an old gas bottle and other various bits of metal.
It left him feeling “really upset” as the gift was not only worth a lot of money, but it also held sentimental value.
He said when he received the phone call, he asked the police officer, “You haven’t found my letterbox have you?”
But he quickly realised his metal canine was found and he called his wife, who didn’t believe him at first.
“She didn’t believe me. I had to send her a photo to show it when they brought it back,” he said.
Police found the dog at a residence 20 kilometres away from its home and Tony wasn’t given much indication as to what had happened.
But he was grateful for the police’s assistance and said it helped him realise no crime is too small to report.
“It’s only a letterbox, you know, it’s not like the family’s crown jewels or something.
“So I’m glad I did report it, because otherwise they probably wouldn’t have really known anything about it. So when they say to report crime, it really pays off.”
When a Facebook post about the letterbox received over 400 likes and 52 comments, he was surprised at the amount of attention it got.
“What’s interesting is my wife put it up on Yarra Valley Noticeboard and there’s been people commenting, ‘Oh we love seeing that letterbox when we drive by on Dalry Road.’ “
“I’m thinking oh my god, I didn’t even realise it was a bit of a talking point.”
Tony decided to keep the metal dog letterbox close to home now and a replica will replace it at the entrance of his driveway.
“I’ve got a $20 letterbox from the hardware shop at the moment and I’ve bought myself a Christmas present, I’ve bought myself a plasma cutter.
“I’m not artistic at all, but I’ve bought some steel, I’m going to get a silhouette version of our dog and I’m going to cut that out and attach that to the letterbox. It might be maybe half a metre high and so there’ll be something back on the street but it won’t be the same letterbox.”
With the original dog letterbox tucked away 400 metres from the road, Tony and his wife will rest easy knowing it’s safe and sound.
