It's been said cats have nine lives, but a chihuahua named Bruno has proven to be just as lucky as the agile felines.
The small brown and black pup was presumed dead after his owner's Philadelphia home collapsed over the weekend. But three days later, he was found alive in the rubble.
The three-story brick house along the 2000 block of East Sterner Street in the city's Kensington section came tumbling down in the rain just before 5 o'clock Saturday morning.
Homeowner Eric Carrol, 43, broke his back in the collapse. He was rushed to a nearby hospital where he remains.
Two pets -- a dog named Paws and a gray cat -- were found among the debris. Both were rescued by Red Paw Emergency Relief Team. The team also searched for Bruno, but after two hours, the volunteers assumed he had been claimed by the collapse.
That is until Monday.
"The father of the dog’s owner went to the house and called for Bruno and he crawled out from under the rubble," Red Paw Founder Jen Leary tells NBC10.
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Bruno was dehydrated from the ordeal and Red Paw is taking him to the University of Pennsylvania's Veterinary Hospital to be checked out.
Carrol is scheduled to undergo surgery Tuesday. He has a 50 percent chance at being left paralyzed, according to the man's brother-in-law Jose Feliciano.
“We’re all hanging in there and praying for the best," he said adding that Carrol is awake and in good spirits.
Feliciano and his family is caring for Bruno, while the other two animals will be boarded by Red Paw until the owner has recovered, Leary said.
Red Paw is accepting donations to cover the cost of caring for the animals.
The Department of Licenses & Inspections is investigating the cause.
