‘Means a lot to other people too’: Qld pet store Capalaba Produce urges thief to return stolen guinea pig Nibbles

A pet store owner has urged a thief to come forward and return a beloved guinea pig after she was caught slipping the furry friend into her jacket pocket.

A pet store has made a heartfelt call for help after a beloved guinea pig was stolen from the store.

Footage from inside the Capalaba Produce petting zoo in Queensland shows a woman putting guinea pig Nibbles into her jacket pocket before walking away.

Store owner Nick Walls said Nibbles was set to become the store’s new mascot, with many “quite fond” of the furry friend.

“Even though Nibbles had only been with us for a short while, the number of people attached and the kids that came multiple times were quite fond of him,” he told Sunrise on Wednesday morning.

“We tend to have a lot of mascots in the store and we adopt them over the period, and Nibbles was going to be one of the new ones.”

A pet store owner has made a heartfelt call for help after a thief was caught stealing a guinea pig. Picture: NewsWire handout

The pet store owner has urged the thief to return Nibbles the guinea pig, who means a lot to ‘other people too’. Picture: NewsWire handout

Mr Walls said he had an inkling Nibbles was gone a couple hours after the guinea pig was out in the store’s petting zoo.

“The animal manager thought something wasn’t quite right. When I had a chance to go back through the footage, that’s when we identified that Nibbles was taken,” he said.

“The person in question did have Nibbles for probably five to 10 minutes walking around the store, and it wasn’t until this point when there was no staff around that you actually see her, right in front of the camera, stick Nibbles into her shirt and make her way out of the store.”

People have reportedly come forward to identify the thief, with Mr Walls hopeful that Nibbles will be brought back to the store.

“We’re yet to contact everyone but I do have a feeling we might see Nibbles returned,” he said.

“I hope the person who has taken Nibbles is a pet lover and wants a pet of their own. If you are watching and you have Nibbles, (he) means a lot to other people too.”

Originally published as ‘Means a lot to other people too’: Qld pet store Capalaba Produce urges thief to return stolen guinea pig Nibbles