A Rowan County woman has been charged with stealing a puppy from the county animal shelter.

Cynthia Georgia Wilson, 47, of the 300 block of Shore Acres Road, was charged with felony larceny. She was released on a written promise to appear in court on Thursday.

The Rowan County Sheriff’s Office began investigating May 26 after Rowan County Animal Control reported a woman came to the animal shelter and asked to see a brown Labrador-mix puppy.

The woman took the puppy from a back room and walked out of the building, got in her car and quickly left the parking lot.

The puppy had been at the shelter for only a few days and had not yet been offered for adoption, authorities said.

During the investigation, the Sheriff’s Office received information that Wilson may have taken the dog. Detectives went to her home near High Rock Lake and found the stolen puppy there, the agency said in a news release.

The puppy has been returned to the animal shelter.