Police were scrambled after a dog walker found a "human leg" on a beach - but it could just be a chunk of "walrus".
Malachy Fisher, 32, was out walking his two dogs along Lisfannon Beach in Donegal, Ireland when his American Bully Cheeka appeared to have a human limb in its jaws on December 27.
He shared a picture online of the distressing find and phoned police after many feared it would be human.
Police scrambled to collect the suspected leg and launch an investigation.
An initial investigation has so far revealed the limb could be from an "aquatic animal" - most likely a walrus.
Test results have yet to confirm if it is indeed part of an animal or not.
Malacky said he first noticed it, he got the attention of a fellow walker who suspected it was a fake limb Halloween decoration.
He said: "When I first saw the dog holding something I thought it was a bit of driftwood, but when I got closer I was shocked and confused.
"I posted it on Instagram but didn't think anything more of it until I got home and saw I had tonnes of messages.
"People were urging me to report it to the police because they feared it was human, and that got me worried.
"I realised the sand dune where we round it would have been an ideal place to bury someone.
"Police said it's probably from walrus - but we're still waiting for the test results to come back. Until we hear back, I don't know for sure that I didn't find a human leg."
Malachy was out with his girlfriend Christina McGinley, 28, and their two dogs when Cheeka didn't return after chasing a stick playing fetch.
Malachy walked up to see Cheeka carrying "a strange sort of leg."
Confused Malachy left the item on the sand dune, after posting it on Instagram asking his followers what they reckoned it was.
He said: "I thought it looked human but when I asked a passer-by, he said it looked like a Halloween decoration, so I didn't think that much of it.
"When we got home with the dogs a little while later, I was horrified to see 30 to 40 messages on my phone.
"People were telling me I need to report it because it looks like a human leg from the knee down."
Police have sent it off testing with a forensic anthropologist.
Malachy said: "Christina couldn't sleep that first night because she kept thinking we'd found a dead body. It's all we've talked about since then.
"Now I'm thinking about it, those sand dunes would be the ideal place to bury a body.
"Until we hear back, I don't know for sure that I didn't find a human leg."
Police said it is understood to be partial remains of an "aquatic animal."
A spokesperson said: "Gardaí responded to reports of a discovery of partial remains on Lisfannon Beach on Monday 27th December 2021.
"The remains were removed by An Garda Síochána and the county coroner was notified.
"The services of a forensic anthropologist have also been engaged."
