Sept. 8 (UPI) -- An Illinois woman shared video of her dog displaying an unusual behavior -- rescuing earthworms from the hot road.

The video, recorded amid sunny weather in East St. Louis, shows Holliday the border collie/German shepherd mix gently picking up earthworms from the hot asphalt with her mouth and placing them in the grass.


"On walks, she will run around the neighborhood and look for stray earthworms and bugs to save," Holliday's owner wrote. "She will spot the worms far in advance, and run over as fast as she can to save them. Sometimes, she even tries to save the dried, dead ones."

The owner had a theory as to how Holliday learned to save the worms.

"She was never taught this behavior, although when she was a puppy, my mom would take the earth worms from the road and throw them in the grass," the woman wrote. "The only way I can think that Holliday learned this behavior, is from watching my mom when we come home for the weekends. Holliday has been doing this for about a year and a half now."