"Miracle" dog found alive over 40 feet down in Virginia cave, lured out by salami

One very lucky dog is recovering at a shelter after a group of cavers said their excursion into a western Virginia cave over the weekend turned into a rescue mission when they found her 40 to 50 feet underground.

Dave Jackson and Jesse Rochette of Colorado-based educational cave simulator company CaveSim on Sunday headed to Narrows in Giles County to explore Giant Caverns with a local couple, Jackson said by telephone on Wednesday. The first member of their party started down into the funnel-shaped cave and spotted something unusual - a dog.

"He said, 'Whoa! There's a dog down here!'" Rochette said. "And I asked if it was alive and he said 'Yes!'"