Family's 2-year-old dog goes missing after a landslide, volunteers pull her out alive 3 days later: 'They heard a faint bark beneath the rubble'

Celeste Mello • Writer and Editor

Aug 26, 2026 6:45 AM EDT

For three days, Lexa's family didn't know whether they would see her again. The two-year-old dog went missing after a monsoon triggered a landslide through the family's property in the Philippines.

Imagine mud all over the place, broken material, heavy rubble covering the area… Finding the dog became an exhausting search with no obvious place to begin. Fortunately, the family wasn't searching alone. Volunteers joined them, working through the debris, but there was no guarantee that Lexa had survived the collapse. Stopping would have meant leaving that question unanswered, so they kept looking.

Until they heard it. A faint bark came from beneath the rubble.

That sound changed the search and confirmed to everyone that Lexa was alive, and also gave the team a specific location. Rescuers began digging carefully, using tools to break through the rubble without harming the poor dog who had been trapped beneath the rocks for three days. She probably barked with the little energy she had left, and rescuers were there, at the right place and at the right time, close enough to hear her and finally save her. This outcome belongs partly to luck and partly to people who acted fast and kept searching even when they had no clue about anything. Every hour mattered. Every move mattered. They had to keep going until they finally heard her. And of course, thanks to Lexa that barked and guided the rescuers to the exact place where she was trapped.

Poor Lexa, we're so glad she's now back in her house with her family again! Three days trapped between rocks, all alone without water. Can you imagine how hard that can be for a dog? Lexa emerging alive from beneath the rubble is almost a miracle. She survived a natural disaster. Imagine how refreshing that moment of being back in the open air might have felt for this doggo.

Lexa was a beloved member of the household, and a whole family, along with local authorities, were looking for her without losing hope. The pictures below show the exact moment Lexa came out of the rubble alive and reunited with her family. Hopefully, she's now enjoying lots of belly rubs and head scratches.

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