In a country starved for happy news, the story of a marooned puppy has offered welcome respite from the steady drip of terrorist attacks that have shaken Turkey and helped remind a deeply polarized nation that compassion and human kindness still exist.

It all began when residents of Beykoz, a verdant neighborhood skirting the Bosporus’ Anatolian shores, first heard the whimpers. They soon discovered the source.

A puppy had fallen 70 meters (230 feet) to the bottom of a borehole, and it was too narrow for any human to squeeze through to retrieve him. Professional help was needed, so the people reached out to the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD), the government-run disaster relief outfit that is globally hailed for its work with earthquake victims and more recently with millions of Syrian refugees. For 10 days, AFAD struggled to get the puppy out, using thermal cameras to monitor his location. Images showed a brown Anatolian shepherd with a black muzzle and big anxious eyes. He was adorable.

Animal lovers and rights groups rushed to the scene. The nation waited breathlessly as news of the puppy’s plight spread via social media and national TV. The public began referring to the pup as “Kuyu” or “well.” The hashtag #DirenKuyu, “ResistWell,” began to trend on Twitter.