A veterinarian working on a remote farm in Turkey helped rescue a mother dog and her puppies after a sudden landslide trapped them underground.
Veterinarian Soner Büyümez was on the property when he heard a sound he could not ignore. It was coming from a distance and sounded urgent. He followed the noise and quickly realized something was wrong.
“I immediately ran to the spot,” Büyümez told The Dodo. “There had been a landslide. I saw a dog was trapped in the ground. Only her head remained above the soil.”
The dog was stuck in the collapsed earth, unable to move. Her condition was serious, and the situation was distressing to see.
“When I first saw her, it was very upsetting,” Büyümez said.
Without hesitation, he knew he had to act. He grabbed a shovel and began carefully digging away the dirt that had buried the dog. As he worked, he focused on freeing her without causing further harm.
While digging, Büyümez heard something else. The sound was quieter but unmistakable.
“I heard the cry of puppies,” he said. “They were under the ground.”
It became clear that the mother dog had not been alone. She had been protecting her litter in an underground burrow when the soil collapsed. Though trapped herself, she had continued crying, not just for help, but for her puppies.
After freeing the mother dog, Büyümez immediately began digging again. He followed the faint sounds coming from beneath the soil, moving carefully to avoid injuring the puppies. One by one, he uncovered them.
In total, seven puppies were pulled from the collapsed burrow. All were alive. Once they were reunited with their mother, she stayed close, clearly relieved to see them safe.
The rescue happened just in time. Without intervention, the dogs would not have survived being buried. Büyümez believes the mother dog was a stray who had been living on her own in the area.
Despite her difficult circumstances, she had chosen a place to give birth and protect her puppies. The collapse of the burrow left her trapped, but her cries were loud enough to reach someone who could help.
After the rescue, Büyümez checked the condition of the dogs and made sure they were safe and stable.
“Their general condition is very good,” he said. “The mother and her puppies are protected. I will care for them as my own.”
The veterinarian plans to continue caring for the family and ensure they remain safe. What began as a routine workday turned into a life-saving rescue that changed the fate of eight dogs.