It happened with one of my German shepherds. We were in the country (we have a country house not far from Moscow). That summer was rather rainy and wet so all the fields and meadows around were full of mice. The dog found it rather enjoyable to dig out their holes and hunt them. I fairly doubt if she could have caught any. At that time my father was staying with us for a while. Actually he didn't approve my keeping dogs at home and tended to be more of a cat-lover. I'd like to point out that he payed no attention to my dog, in fact he hardly noticed what she was doing all days long and he was unaware of her mice hunting.
I don't remember how we happened to meet on the meadow: my father with a spade and I with the dog. While we were talking about something the dog was chasing a mouse - I could even see its tail in the hole. The hole being so deep and the mouse so quick, there was no opportunity for the poor dog to catch it. I was going to borrow the spade when the dog gave a quick glance at my father. I was really amazed to hear my father saying 'OK, if you ask, I'll dig here' as if he were answering the dog. When I asked him what had happened, he told me that the dog asked him for help and he understood her pretty well.

As a rule, animals are guided by their instincts, but not only and not always. Actually, you can hardly guess who is the best in doing one's duty by overriding natural instincts and even the one of self-preservation.

It should be admitted that both humans and animals are creatures of instinct and emotion as well as reason. It's Spirit (or 'soul' as we usually call it) that draws a distinct line between the human and the animal world.