Hero passerby saves stray puppy sinking in mud with moments to spare
This is the heartwarming moment a brave passerby saved a stray puppy that was sinking in thick mud in the Philippines.
Jeric Irog, 20, was riding a motorcycle delivering water gallons when he noticed the puppy's tiny head poking up through the sludge of the quarry waste dump site in Rizal province, the Philippines, on March 31.
The worker thought the pooch was already dead when he sped past on his bike.
However, the image of the pooch stayed in his head and he turned back around and stopped at the edge of the ditch where he could see the dog was moving and crying faintly.
With moments to spare before the puppy sank below the surface of gunge, Jeric took off his shoes and risked his own life by jumping into the knee-deep quicksand-type mixture of crushed rocks, sludge and garbage.
When he reached the tired dog he slowly lifted its legs that were stuck in the mud and carried it back to the road while his friend Jake Lester Supnet, 20, filmed the rescue mission.
They carried the dog to the nearest home, where locals washed him and helped the two lads, who were both covered in mud.
The pooch - which was weak and hungry - was also inspected for injuries but it appeared unharmed so they gave him food and fresh water before letting it rest with a kind villager, who nicknamed him 'Lucky'.
Jeric believes the hungry stray dog was searching for food when it ventured into the muddy pit before starting to sink.
He said: 'We don't know for sure how it reached the dumpsite but it appeared hungry so it must have been looking for food and accidentally fell.
He must have been stuck there for hours.
'I saw the dog and at first I thought it was dead because he wasn't moving.
But then I had a second thought and went back to look.
I'm so glad I did.
Saving him was special.'
The stray dog is now staying with a nearby resident who volunteered to take care of him.