Advertisement

We need your help now

Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.

You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.

If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.

Ethan the dog: soon to be renamed 'Lucky', no doubt. AP
mon dieu

Jack Russell terrier survives being poisoned and buried alive

Ethan the terrier only made it out alive because someone saw the ground move while he was convulsing underneath.

A JACK RUSSELL terrier has survived after being poisoned and buried alive — and he can thank the man who saw the ground wiggle.

Ethan came back to life on his third birthday after someone tried to kill him. He had a whole chain of saviours: the man who dug him up, the firefighters who rushed him off and a veterinarian who nursed him back to life.

Sabrina Zamora, president of an animal association in Charleville-Mezieres, 125 miles northeast of Paris, said the little white dog with a black ear was “flat as a pancake” when he was dug up from his grave near a lakeside pedestrian path last week.

“It’s extraordinary. We only see this in TV movies,” said veterinarian Philippe Michon. “He came back to life and without a scratch. It’s rather miraculous.”

The vet said when firemen brought the dirt-covered terrier to his office “he was completely cold, he was barely breathing.”

Michon used hot water bottles to warm up Ethan’s seemingly lifeless body. The dog was so cold his veins had collapsed and it was hard to find one to hydrate him but within 24 hours the dog was back on his feet.

According to the veterinarian and Zamora, a man walking by just happened to see the ground moving — an apparent result of convulsions from the dog’s poisoning. The man then got a shovel and dug the dog up.

Ethan was identified through a microchip that showed all this happened on his third birthday.

His owner says he had given the dog away but police are investigating, Zamora said.

Ethan “had an unbelievable chain of luck,” Michon said. “If the ground hadn’t trembled, no one would have taken a shovel to it.”

Author
Associated Foreign Press
Your Voice
Readers Comments
69
    Submit a report
    Please help us understand how this comment violates our community guidelines.
    Thank you for the feedback
    Your feedback has been sent to our team for review.