3 min read Dog Digging Through Trash Was Actually Saving A Life She found the tiny puppy all on her own.

Earlier this week, a police officer in Novo Horizonte, Brazil, was leaving home to run an errand when he saw something quite commonplace: a neighbor's dog, rummaging through a pile of garbage bags amassed on the street for collection. As it turns out, however, the pup wasn't driven by an empty stomach - but rather by a full heart. When the officer returned home a short time later, he saw the same dog there. Only this time, she had something in her mouth.

Facebook/Marco Antonio Rodrigues

As the officer moved closer for a better look, he thought at first that the dog had found a dead kitten, as Diario da Regiao reports. But the truth ended up being quite uplifting.

Facebook/Marco Antonio Rodrigues

The dog had actually rescued a puppy who, aside from reeking of the trash where he'd apparently been left to die, was still very much alive.

Facebook/Marco Antonio Rodrigues

The puppy's canine rescuer clearly had the best intentions. She started whining when the puppy was taken, so she was allowed to watch over him as the officer contacted a local animal rescuer, Marco Antonio Rodrigues, for help. "She played the most important role by saving the puppy," Rodrigues wrote online about the heroic dog. But soon, another bighearted pup would be needed to help.

Facebook/Marco Antonio Rodrigues

Since the dog who had found the puppy wasn't producing milk, Rodrigues made an appeal on Facebook asking if anyone had a dog who was already nursing. And that's when the abandoned puppy met her new foster parent.

Facebook/Marco Antonio Rodrigues

While it's possible that the person responsible for cruelly abandoning the puppy will never be brought to justice, there's little doubt about whose love it was that saved his life. "One dog found the puppy in the trash and another is being his mom," Rodrigues wrote. "What a beautiful thing!"