A dog named Lazarus is getting a second chance at life after he survived being injected with a chemical meant to euthanize the pup.
Lazarus, who is roughly 4-years-old, was never adopted from a shelter, so a vetenarian meant to put him down with the chemical. However, a mirace of sorts happened when the mixed-breed dog recovered overnight. One month after the euthanization the dog is fully back to health.
The shelter worker who adopted the dog after he came back to life claims he was resurrected by Jesus, reports The Associated Press. The dog was named Lazarus by his new owner after Lazarus of Bethany, who in the Bible was also resurrected by Jesus.
Animal Control officer Wanda Snell, who was present when the vetenarian attempted to euthanize Lazarus, tells AP she has a different nickname for the dog for escaping death before Snell and the vetenarian's eyes: Houdini.
No one at the shelter is certain how Lazarus escaped death, but they all have their theories.
"His body overcame and he had a will to live and somehow, someway he made it through," suggests shelter volunteer Cortney Blankenship to AP.
Dr. Robert Lofton, of the veterinary school at Auburn University, tells AP such cases are rare. He did not examine Lazarus, but from his vetinarian experience he suggests Lazarus survived because he may have been given an improper dose of the drug or the needle may have missed his vein.
The world may never know exactly how Lazarus escaped death. Today Lazarus is living with his new family in Alabama where he is happy rolling around in the grass and playing tug-o-war with his new dog-friend Tucker.
