Capalaba Produce urges thief of beloved guinea pig Nibbles to come forward

A heartbroken Bayside retailer is urging a thief who abducted the store’s favourite guinea pig to hand the pet back after the bizarre act was caught on CCTV. It comes after thieves recently used a buzzsaw to cut their way into the shop. WATCH THE VIDEO

A Bayside store owner has been left heartbroken after the abduction of their beloved pet guinea pig, Nibbles.

Capalaba Produce at Old Cleveland Rd, Chandler posted multiple pleas for an unidentified woman, who stole the pet during a school holiday workshop, to come forward.

The act was captured on CCTV, manager Nicholas Walls said.

Mr Walls, who has worked at the shop for 28 years, said it often held a petting zoo for children during the school holidays.

“We have chooks, goats, sheep and pigs for the children to play with and guinea pigs for them to have a hold of,” Mr Walls said.

“We struggled to have guinea pigs available for the July school holidays so had to make an extra effort to reach out to breeders.

“We had a special guinea pig, Nibbles, that captured everyone's attention.’’

Mr Walls said Nibbles, an eight week old brown guinea pig, was much loved as he was comfortable being held and also being around children.

Mr Walls, a Capalaba Produce employee for 28 years, said the company has been robbed many times.

“We had multiple offers from customers who wanted to buy Nibbles but we decided as a store that we wanted to keep him,” Mr Walls said.

On July 4, about 30 minutes after the last petting zoo workshop ended, a woman was captured on CCTV holding Nibbles and placing him in the pocket of her jumper.

Mr Walls said the store did not notice Nibbles’ absence until several days later when the petting zoo team returned and carried out a stock take.

“We suddenly realised we were one guinea pig down and asked all staff members if someone had accidentally sold Nibbles,” he said.

“I went through the tapes day by day before I found the footage. When I did I was disgusted.’’

The business recently had new CCTV cameras installed after thieves used a buzz saw to gain entry to the business in May.

“We have (lost) chooks, budgies, fertiliser, even goldfish,” Mr Walls said.

“The woman was helpful in that she stole Nibbles right beneath one of our new cameras that captured her perfectly,” he said.

Nibbles was stolen shortly after a petting zoo workshop on July 4, 2024.

Capalaba Produce contacted police about the theft.

They urged the woman to come forward and return Nibbles.

“I have a feeling Nibbles will return safely to the store in a box or we will be notified that he has been left somewhere for us to collect him,” Mr Walls said.

“I hope he is not out in a garden in this weather.’’

Mr Walls said the incident has been a learning experience and in future staff would be on the lookout for similar, suspicious behaviour.

Originally published as Capalaba Produce urges thief of beloved guinea pig Nibbles to come forward