Puppy rescue filmed in India in 2019, not in Turkey or Syria after the recent earthquake

The recent earthquake in Turkey and Syria has wrought enormous suffering, a soaring death toll and some good news in its wake, such as the Feb. 10 rescue of a 10-day-old baby and his mother who were trapped in the ruins of a building. 

But a video of a dog desperately trying to reach her puppies is not new. Still, some social media posts have suggested that it’s more footage from the quake’s aftermath. 

"The dog’s child was buried under the ruins after the earthquake," reads the text of a video shared on Instagram on Feb. 8. The video shows a dog clawing at rubble with the help of a man who eventually pulls puppies from under the rocks.

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Instagram posts

stated on April 2, 2024 in an Instagram post

“The National Guard in the HISTORY of its life, gets called in AFTER a disaster, not BEFORE something happens.”

This post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram.)

Animal Aid Unlimited, an animal rescue center, hospital and sanctuary in India, posted the footage on its verified Facebook account in August 2019, writing that the dog was trying to "free her buried babies who were trapped after a house collapsed in the rain." The man in the clip can be seen wearing an Animal Aid Unlimited shirt. There’s no mention of an earthquake. 

We rate claims that this clip was filmed after the Turkey-Syria earthquake False.