Rescue founder: Scammers are trying to profit off of Narwhal, the puppy who looks like a unicorn

JACKSON, Mo. -- Scammers are trying to profit off of Narwhal, a rescue puppy getting a lot of attention due to his resemblance to a unicorn.

According to TMZ, who spoke with Rochelle Steffen, the founder of Mac's Mission Animal Rescue in Jackson, Missouri, where Narwhal is being cared for, fake accounts have popped up on social media -- run by scammers asking for donations for Narwhal's medical bills.

Steffen told TMZ she was made aware of several scams -- reporting them to Facebook and Instagram in an effort to get them shut down.

In the meantime, they've set up an official donation link on the Mac's Mission Animal Rescue's Facebook page, and more than $2,000 was raised in three days. Steffen said another $4,000 was donated through PayPal.



Steffen told TMZ Narwhal's medical care was pretty much taken care of, so the money would be used for current or future rescues.

She stressed that the shelter is not looking to profit off of the unique pup -- even noting that someone offered to pay $7,000 for him, but that offer was turned down by the shelter. Steffen said Narwhal is not for sale, but he is up for adoption, with the application fee $150. However, Steffen told TMZ shelter officials are worried about people applying to adopt Narwhal with the wrong motivations.

Those who donate through the shelter can take comfort in knowing 100% of the donations will go towards the care of Narwhal and other rescues like him.

As for his extra tail, Steffen said he doesn't seem to notice it and is otherwise a happy, healthy puppy. She noted that although it looks like a tail, Narwhal cannot wag it.



For now, the 10-week-old pup is staying at Mac's Mission so officials can monitor his tail and make sure it doesn't grow out of proportion to his face and cause problems.