http://zululandobserver.co.za/afp/207306/romeo-the-miracle-dog-survives-italy-quake

“O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?”

This question wasn’t from Shakespeare in recent days, it was from the owners of a golden retriever lost in the rubble of Italy’s earthquake.  Although it had been 10 days since the devastation, they never gave up hope that their dog was alive.

Firefighters heard the dog barking and began pulling away the rubble.  Eventually, as you can see in the video below, Romeo emerged from the dust.

Romeo appeared to be bewildered as he first scampered down the mountain of broken concrete.  But it wasn’t long before he took a few steps and his tail was wagging.  He actually looks relaxed when his rescuers give him his first sips of water in 230 hours!

The firefighters were not there originally to find the dog.  Who would blame them, it had been nine days.  They were there to help the

homeowners retrieve essential belongings from their severely damaged home.

The August 24th quake has claimed almost 300 lives, injured hundreds and left thousands of people without homes.  Three towns were almost completely flattened.

That is what makes this story like a ray of hope amidst darkness.

For these pet owners, the end of their story is not a Shakespearean tragedy that ends in death.  Romeo is alive, and wagging his tail!