Woman tried to post live puppy

A US woman has been charged with animal cruelty after she parcelled up a live puppy and tried to post it more than 1,100 miles.

Police say Stacey Champion, 39, tried to air-mail the dog from Minneapolis to Atlanta, Georgia, for a child's birthday.

She was stopped from posting the parcel when a stunned postal worker saw it move and then heard it panting, reports the Star Tribune newspaper.

Within minutes, postal workers had unwrapped the tightly sealed box and rescued a four-month-old puppy, called Guess.

Police Sgt Angela Dodge said it would have taken at least two days for the box, which had airholes - unfortunately covered up with tape, to arrive at its destination.

"It's just crazy," she said. "It was supposed to be a birthday gift for a family member. It would have been kind of traumatising to get a dead puppy.

"If you don't identify it so that it can be handled properly, it goes into the cargo hold of an airplane. And there was no food or water. Puppies can't go for long periods without food or water."

Thompson Ojoyeyi, supervisor at the post office, said the woman cautioned postal workers to "be careful, be careful" as they handled the box because "it was so delicate".

On the outside of the package she had written: "This is for your 11th birthday. It's what you wanted." She told the clerk not to worry if she heard sounds from the package as it contained a toy robot.

Guess has been taken in at the city's animal control facility and will be put up for adoption if Champion is convicted of animal cruelty.