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OAKDALE–

Robert Delarm was walking with his 2-year-old daughter Maricella Sunday afternoon when he came across a makeshift grave.

“It says ‘Here Lies Baby’ and it spooked the heck out of me,” Delarm said.

In all, the marker read- Here lies baby. 6 weeks old. We love and miss you, Mom and Dad.

Delarm was visiting his wife at Oakdale Community Hospital when he saw the suspicious looking grave.

“I called police and they called the coroner’s and did what they had to do,” Delarm said.

Oakdale authorities came and did an excavation, thinking that a baby could be buried under the marker.

“I hope it was a hoax. I’d hate for it to be anything else,” Delarm said.

It wasn’t a hoax, but it turned out to be a 6-week-old dead puppy wrapped up in a baby blanket.

Police say that this is not the way to bury your pet, as this situation – where more than a dozen police and investigators were called out for hours – could have been avoided.