Watch This Amazing Tale of a Rescued Tail

What would you do if you heard strange cries coming from somewhere around you, even if you couldn’t pinpoint from where? Would you investigate and try to help? That’s exactly what Vadim Rustam and his family did for a complete stranger in the Russian town of Voronezh.

 

Startled when cries were heard within earshot, Rustam and family tried to make sense of what they were hearing. What they heard were whelps and barks coming from beneath the sidewalk of their housing unit. After speaking with neighbors, they learned that the sidewalk and stairs were recently repaired and repaved. Before that, there was an open sinkhole at the site that had been exposed for about three weeks.

Rustam and his family appealed to the city’s housing department for help, but were turned away. The reasoning was that since they were not the ones who did the work, they were unable to address it. So, Rustam did what any compassionate person would do and decided to dig it up.

In the video, a woman can be heard describing their rescue attempt, step by step. Since the bricks were laid only a few days before, the mortar was still a bit pliable. Using a small hammer and his bare hands, Rustam began chipping away that the first brick. After it loosened, he removed it from the sidewalk and went for the next one. He stacked another brick, moved dirt with his hands, and kept chipping, digging, and stacking.

Closer and closer to the stairs now, Rustam pooled a huge mound of dirt where the bricks were removed. There was a gap under the bottom of the staircase, but a large rock was blocking the hole. He pulled it out and continued to scoop out heaps of sand with both hands. Finally, a snout and two round, dark eyes could be seen, and the woman recording could be heard getting emotional. Her cries were those of joy and relief, even though the stranger turned out to be a dog.

After a few more digs, the kind man was able to pull the pooch out from under the steps, where she greeted her rescuers with a wagging tail. As it turned out, she was pregnant! She had been trapped under the paved walkway for two days without food or water before being saved. Strays were known to wander in and out of the area, and it’s assumed that somehow she got trapped while the concrete was being repaired. What remains unclear, though, is whether she was sealed up on purpose or by accident.

Named Belka, the pregnant doggie was sent to a local shelter. What a happy ending to this rescue story! Things could have totally gone in a different direction for Belka and her puppies had it not been for the kind actions of strangers. We hope Belka and her babies were able to find forever homes! What do you think of this animal rescue tale? What would you have done? Tell us in the comments!