No butter for Dee-Dee: Giant lobster saved

Big Dee-Dee the giant lobster owes a big thanks to a Vancouver woman who saved his tail from ending up in a pot of boiling water.

Vancouver resident Laura-Leah Shaw paid $1,000 to buy the 10-kilogram crustacean that had been on sale at a fish market in New Brunswick. Two anonymous organizations in Ontario also chipped in $1,000 each to save the lobster, according to the Vancouver Sun.

Shaw said she plans to release the lobster back into the water.

The Big Fish fish market in Shediac, N.B., had put Dee-Dee up for auction at a starting price of $1,000.

It was caught in the Bay of Fundy early July. Since its capture, two Facebook groups have been set up calling for the lobster to be freed.

Big Fish owner Denis Breau had estimated that more than 1,000 tourists have already stopped into the shop to see and photograph the lobster.

But he had said he didn't care whether the lobster was returned to the ocean or landed on a dinner plate.

Shaw told the Sun she plans to fly out to the Maritimes on Monday to witness Big Dee Dee's release back into the water.

The Department of Fisheries and Oceans has said the lobster's health would have to be assessed before it can be released, to make sure it has no diseases.