Dog Walks a Risky 4-Mile Trek Each Night to Get Leftovers and Run Back to Feed Friends

(Illustration - dezy/Shutterstock)

From the archives: This story was last updated in September 2019.

The Brazilian junkyard dog in this story could have devoured the leftovers herself, but instead, she saved them for somebody else! Her selfless gesture teaches us an important lesson about sharing.

Lilica the mutt was abandoned in front of a junkyard in São Carlos, Brazil. Though destitute, she soon found warmth in her new home after befriending other stray dogs, cats, and chickens living in the junkyard. And later, Lilica had a bigger family after giving birth to eight puppies, according to the junkyard’s owner, Neile Vãnia Antônio, as shown in a viral video in 2013.

To feed her pups, Lilica had no choice but to hit the road in search of food.

Lilica started to wander away from the junkyard, risking her life by traveling through dangerous roads and highways at night.

“In the beginning she brought food to her puppies, but in time she began bringing food for the other animals here in [the] junkyard as well,” said Antônio.

And even after her puppies were adopted out, her commitment continued. For three years, Lilica walked 4 miles in the dark to meet Lucia Helena de Souza.

Every night at 9:30 p.m., animal lover de Souza waited for Lilica at an empty lot near her home.

“I don’t travel, I don’t go to places and stay for too long because of her. I know she relies on me, so it’s a commitment that I have with her, and a commitment she has with me too ‘cause she comes every day,” de Souza said.

“One day, she stopped eating, grabbed the open food bag and ran away with it. And the food was dropping from the bag along the way,” de Souza recalled. “Then, the following day when she finished eating I tied the bag. And she took it.”

So, from then on, after feeding Lilica, de Souza would always tie up the bag of food so that the dog could carry it away. She was curious about Lilica’s behavior.

Then one day, she decided to follow the dog to find out whom it was she carried the bag for. After following Lilica all the way back to the junkyard, de Souza finally found out. Incredibly, the selfless dog went the extra mile to take the leftovers for her junkyard friends.

A dog, some cats, a mule, and a family of chickens all took turns digging into Lilica’s bag of food!

“We as human beings barely share things with others but animals sharing things with other animals is a lesson for us,” said Antônio.

The viral video of Lilica’s story amassed over 9.6 million views ever since it was uploaded to YouTube on Jan. 14, 2013. Many netizens are in awe of the dog’s selfless gesture.

“Human and dog coming together for the sake off goodness and love. I cried, I smile, I laughed, I sighed and I felt all the emotions in between,” one YouTube user wrote.

“This dog alone could change the world if everyone acted in that spirit,” another added.

Thanks Lilica for teaching us an important lesson about sharing!