A dog on top of an Egyptian pyramid: journalists learned the name and living conditions of the dog (3 photos)

As animal rights activist Ibrahim Elbendary explained, the mother of this dog decided to climb to the top of the pyramid to give birth to her puppies in a protected place. Since then, she and her offspring have made the pyramid their home. Apollo himself is about three years old.





The dog that barked at birds on the Egyptian pyramid in Giza is one of eight stray dogs that live on top of the Khafre pyramid, and his nickname is Apollo.

He was recognized by the co-founder of the American Cairo Animal Rescue Foundation Ibrahim Elbendary.

Apollo, his siblings and their mother, known locally as Laika, are among dozens of stray dogs in the pyramid complex and millions in Egypt. They are cared for by animal rights groups.

Most of the strays in the pyramid complex near Cairo live on or near the ground. But Laika ventured to the top of the pyramid to give birth in a protected area. She and her offspring have made it their home ever since.



Elbendari said the "most shocking thing" was seeing them hunting birds at the top of the Khafre Pyramid, the second tallest of Giza's three main pyramids. They sneak up on the crows and leap into the air to catch them hundreds of feet off the ground on rough rocks.

The rescue organization cares for stray dogs and other animals that live in the famous 4,500-year-old pyramid complex and elsewhere, but what the group can do is "a drop in the bucket," said co-founder Vicki Brown.

It provides food, water and medical care for the dogs, and facilitates their adoption in the U.S. It also traps, vaccinates and spays or neuters strays before releasing them into the wild, but Apollo has so far eluded capture.

The 31-year-old said he is an Egyptian army veteran who left the service about seven years ago, traumatized by the bloody fight against the Islamic State in the Sinai Peninsula in the northeast of the country. He worked for an American company but "didn't feel like my life was worth living" until he began caring for strays dogs.



"I felt like I was making a difference in their lives, and they were making a difference in mine," he said.

Elbendary and Brown said they were thrilled when they saw the video of Apollo on top of the pyramid that went viral around the world.

They hoped it would bring more attention to Cairo's street dogs and help convince residents and authorities to take care of them.

"Maybe someone will finally come and support us here so we can do more work to protect dogs here in Egypt," the man said.

Apollo, he said, looked happy and healthy when he saw him on Monday morning. He came down from the pyramid to eat food laid out near the foundations, with no memory of his moment of glory.