Professional Courtesy? Stray Dogs Save Abandoned Baby

May 10, 2001 Romania

An abandoned baby was found in the street, miraculously still alive and unharmed in a small Romanian village.  The baby's apparent rescuers were a group of street dogs, who dispersed without comment.

Villagers reported hearing a baby crying and dog noises all through the night before, but at the time it was extremely cold, and the snow discouraged people from venturing outside to investigate the disturbance.

In the morning they found a naked baby, born several days earlier, huddled closely amid the pack of stray dogs who had kept the infant warm throughout the night.

The baby was alive and without a single scratch.

Life-savers.  Stray dogs in Romania.

This amazing rescue happened some time ago and made national headlines and widespread TV coverage in Romania.

But today, much of the Romanian news media chooses to steer clear of the controversial topic of street dogs.  In a nation where the anti-dog sentiment has triumphed over benevolence, the spotlight of coverage is more often on isolated "dog attacks" (many of which are later determined to be knife-inflicted injuries).

But in the midst of it all, there are a few people who still remember the story of a dreadful winter, a helpless baby and a bunch of dogs.

Thanks to Iulia for the news tip!

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