It's a toy story with a happy ending... Big H the stolen Highland Coo has been rescued from the wrong side of the tracks.
A thief snatched the giant stuffed bull from a car in Coatbridge, and his owners feared they would never see him again.
Big H had been due to be the star lot in a fund-raising raffle to buy Christmas dinner for 100 people who would otherwise have spent the day alone.
And after we told the story, kind-hearted Scots came together to make sure he got home.
First, Shannon Helen Molloy, 21, spotted a Facebook post about a giant Highland coo that someone had dumped near the tracks at Blairhill railway station in Coatbridge.
She got in touch with us, we alerted Network Rail, and track section manager William Howie wasted no time in getting the big fella to safety.
Sarah Brand of Big H’s owners Silver Stag Scotland, who provide job opportunities for vulnerable Scots, said: “We’re over the moon. I was devastated when Big H was stolen because he was going to help raise a lot of money for charity.
“But the response was amazing. There are so many kind people out there. We are so grateful to The Daily Record, Network Rail and everyone involved.
“He really is a special coo because he has brought so many people together. Us Scots have really stood together on this one.”
Shannon, of Airdrie, is an expert at recognising animals – she works at Pets At Home.
She said: “I had a chuckle at the Facebook post because it’s not the kind of thing you see every day.
“But when I saw the appeal for Big H, I put two and two together and contacted the Record.
“It was too much of a coincidence. It’s not often there are four-foot Highland Coos spotted in Coatbridge.
“I’m so glad to have been able to help, especially because he was for charity and was going to help so many people.”
A Network Rail spokesman said: “We were happy to be able to help reunite Big H with his owners after what must have been a hair-raising experience.”
Big H, who was stolen as he sat with his three smaller siblings, is worth £750.
He was taken from the car of a photographer who was helping to publicise the raffle at the Royal Highland Show in Edinburgh.
After we told the story, Silver Stag were inundated with offers of help.
Scots firm ArtFe, which makes bespoke metal artwork, donated a Highland cow sculpture worth £1175 as a replacement. And Robert Barr, who runs pet portrait page Rob-Art , gave a Highland cow drawing worth £120.
