Dog Survives Being Buried Alive for 2 Weeks

February 6, 2008

VICTORIA, Australia –A Jack Russell terrier that spent two weeks buried alive in a cemetery outside Warrnambool, Australia, hasn’t lost any of his spunk, owners say.

No one’s sure how Billy got stuck in a 100 year-old grave, but he’s certainly lucky to have survived. It’s believed that the two-year-old pooch was chasing a rabbit down a hole next to a 100-year-old burial plot.

The pup couldn’t get out because concrete crumbled behind him, filling in his escape route.

Billy’s owners, the O’Sullivan family, say they thought the dog was bitten by a snake or stuck somewhere. The three O’Sullivan boys thought the dog had died, their father said, and they wondered if the dog had gone to Heaven.

Apparently, it wasn’t Billy’s time yet.

Donna Cobbin-Agatic was on holiday in Warrnambool when she decided to visit the cemetery, hoping to find the headstones of her ancestors.

While searching the grounds, she heard Billy’s muffled yelps. Uncertain of the sound’s source, she investigated further.

“Eventually I found a little crack in a grave and looked in and saw his little nose,” Cobbin-Agatic told the Herald Sun.

She then called authorities who, with the help of a crowbar, were able to pry the concrete lid that was concealing Billy.

The dog was reportedly “skin and bones,” but still as excited as ever.

Authorities contacted Billy’s family, who were ecstatic that their four-legged friend survived his ordeal. It’s been about a week since the dog was found. They say Billy is regaining his lost weight and doesn’t appear to have lasting issues.

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