Originally published in Pop Quiz, Hotshot on 4/30/2007.
According to Snopes.com, the urban legend debunking site, and a few other sources, the sheep-sold-as-poodles story that Pop Quiz, Hotshot! reported on last week is 100 percent false.
That’s sad news for this PQH! staffer, and apparently a lot of other media outlets too. It was such a good story that it was nigh impossible to let it slide. It was great for jokes. Really — sheep being confused for poodles? How could that not be good for a few laughs.
So how could this intrepid writer fall for such a nonsense story? I blame the media. After all, it’s easy to blame the media for anything these days. More specifically, I blame the British media, which went hog wild on the story. I found the story at Metro.co.uk during my daily search for news of the strange and unexpected.
Now, if you’ve never visited Snopes.com before, it’s an essential bookmark for your Web surfing experience. The site sheds a harsh glare of reality on every crazy viral e-mail story and wild news tidbit you might come across.
From legends of Hollywood to the latest story of a Make-A-Wish kid who wants you to send him postcards, Snopes surveys every rumor and “friend of a friend” story it comes across and debunks or verifies each.
For your daily browsing convenience, the site offers a “What’s New” section that covers all the latest buzz. Around every major holiday, such as Christmas, the site also offers a collection of recurring legends that pop up from year to year.
Ah, if only we had waited a day or two before publishing our story PQH! would have been spared from this little embarassment.
Still, just in case you were thinking of buying a poodle in the near future, we still advise that you make sure it barks. Really, it’s the least you can do.
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