Lily was only looking for food scraps near a schoolyard in South Africa. She lived on the streets, like so many dogs in that area, with no owner or shelter. But a school principal decided that her presence was a problem and gave an order no animal deserves: that she be buried alive.
Two janitors dug the hole and covered her with dirt, leaving her there, a meter and a half deep, with barely any air. Someone anonymously alerted the International Fund for Animal Welfare, and its volunteers arrived to dig against the clock. They found her 30 minutes later, still alive, trembling beneath the earth.
Fortunately, the little one managed to survive, and the principal and the janitors were found guilty of animal cruelty, receiving fines and criminal sentences, while the workers lost their jobs. Her story prompted an animal welfare program at the same school, and Lily was adopted by a journalist, finally finding the home she deserved. ❤️🩹