It is more common to read and hear stories of domesticated animals coming in to rescue their owners but incredibly rare to see wild animals saving people’s lives. 

While it’s true that wild animals and humans can be friends through bonds and trust, it’s incredibly extraordinary for a wild animal to save a complete stranger’s life. And though it’s unlikely, it is possible and some people live to tell the tale. 

Lions and a kidnapped little girl

In 2005, a 12-year-old Kenyan girl was walking home from school when she was kidnapped by four men. It could have ended in a tragedy but a pride of lions stepped in to save the day. 

A week after the abduction, three lions chased off the kidnappers and guarded the victim until the police arrived. The police say they found the girl shocked and terrified and surrounded by the lions. Once the massive animals saw the officers, they went on their own way. 

The 12-year-old girl has bruises from being maltreated by her kidnappers but no signs of injuries from the lions. 

Experts say it is possible that the lions were hunting and planning to eat the girl  It was theorized that her crying resembled the sound of a baby lion cub that discouraged the lions. 

Mama Gorilla saves a 3-year-old boy

Gorillas are territorial animals. This makes them dangerous to come in contact with, whether in the world or at the zoo. Giant gorillas can kill full-grown men so when a 3-year-old boy accidentally fell into the gorilla’s enclosure at Brookfield Zoo, employees were expecting the worst. 

But by some chance, Binti, a 7-year-old female gorilla, has a changed heart. With a baby on her back, she ran over to the boy and picked him up. She carefully put him down to the door of the exhibit where the rescue workers could retrieve him. 

Pig saves owner from heart attack

You’d expect your dog to save you from any medical-related scenario that you might encounter. But what about a pig? Here’s the story of LuLu, the pig, who saved her owner’s life. 

LuLu was a birthday gift for a woman but sadly, she wasn’t wanted. The woman’s mother took her in instead. And look at where that led her. When LuLu’s owner JoAnn suffered a heart attack at home, the pig ran to find help, despite not knowing what the world outside the fence was. 

LuLu managed to open the gate latch and ran into the middle of traffic. She laid down in the middle of the road as a signal for people to stop. Unfortunately, everyone ignored her and LuLu kept running back and forth to the street and to her home to check on JoAnn. 

Eventually, a kind man stopped and followed LuLu home to see JoAnn suffering from a heart attack. He immediately called for help and JoAnn was saved. 

Horse save farmer from cow attack

Believe it or not, cows kill four times as many people as sharks do every year. And Scottish farmer Fiona Boyd was almost included in that count. 

Boyd was attacked by a mother cow who thought the farmer was trying to hurt her calf, when in fact she was just trying to help. The mad mother cow butted and stomped on Boyd and would have continued until she was lifeless. 

Fortunately, Boyd’s horse Kerry saw her owner’s distressing situation and kicked the attacking cow, allowing Boyd to roll to safety. 

“I am in no doubt Kerry saved me. If she hadn’t been grazing in the same pasture, I really believe I would have been killed. Kerry was fantastic. She saved my life,” Boyd told reporters.

A whale, a snorkeler, and a shark

Marine biologist Nan Hauser was doing a dive when she felt a 50,000-pound humpback whale nudging her. She was confused as this was not typical behavior. 

“I’ve spent 28 years underwater with whales, and have never had a whale so tactile and so insistent on putting me on his head, or belly, or back, or, most of all, trying to tuck me under his huge pectoral fin,” Hauser told the Daily Mirror.

The reason behind its gentle nudge would touch your heart. 

When Hauser looked around, she immediately noticed a 15-foot tiger shark, lurking in a distance. And that’s when she realized that the humpback whale was trying to protect her by tucking her underneath its fin. 

The whole act was caught on video, proving that even the biggest of animals can have the gentlest heart. 

Pet rabbit saves owner from diabetic coma

Rabbits are not the smartest creatures out there but the next story will surely surprise you. 

U.K. resident Simon Steggall was sitting at home watching TV with his wife when he went into a diabetic coma. He could have died if it weren’t for his pet rabbit. 

The animal knew was something was wrong and she jumped onto her owner’s chest, thumping and licking his face. The wife who thought that her husband had just fallen asleep while watching television caught the rabbit’s odd behavior and called the paramedics and saved his life. 

Dolphins, lifeguards, and a great white shark

Rob Howes, along with three other lifeguards and his 15-year-old daughter, was swimming off the coast of New Zealand when all of a sudden a pod of dolphins swam towards them, formed a circle, and started slapping the water violently. 

The lifeguards were confused at first then Howes spotted a great white shark in the distance. 

“The form came and traveled in an arc around me. I knew instinctively what it was,” Howes said.

But the dolphins were enough to keep the shark away until a rescue boat was close enough to scare the predator away. The dolphins stayed close until the group was safely back to shore.