Dog rescued from drainage pipe after missing for days

She was a real trooper!

Lilah, a 13-year-old golden retriever, went missing Friday afternoon near Binghamton, New York. 

On Sunday, her owner, Rudy Fuehrer, was walking his other dogs — both Lilah’s pups — when he heard a noise that reminded him of the missing pooch. Coming from inside a culvert pipe, the noise was familiar: ​​“I said, ‘Oh my God, that’s Lilah!’” Fuehrer told the AP.

After failed attempts of trying to get Lilah out himself using peanut butter treats and cheese, he dialed 911.

Within minutes, State Trooper Jimmy Rasaphone and his partner arrived on the scene. He volunteered to crawl into the pipe after noticing that he was the smallest of the three people there.

“He crouched down and literally disappeared into the hole with a lead that had a choker on it,” Fuehrer said. “He was able somehow to manipulate his arms and get the choker around the dog’s head.” 

After crawling 15 feet through an estimated 2-foot-wide pipe under a dirt road, Rasaphone was able to get both Lilah and himself out — although both got wet.

Fuehrer appreciated the trooper’s willingness to squeeze his way through such tight quarters to rescue his dog.

Lilah is currently on the road to recovery and is going on regular walks again.

“Needless to say, I took her out on a leash,” he said, “because I didn’t want any more escapades.”