In a simple experiment, researchers at the University of Chicago sought to find out whether a rat would release a fellow rat from an unpleasantly restrictive cage if it could. ... The free rat, occasionally hearing distress calls from its compatriot, learned to open the cage and did so with greater efficiency over time.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/a-new-model-of-empathy-the-rat/2011/12/08/gIQAAx0jfO_story.html

https://news.uchicago.edu/story/helping-your-fellow-rat-rodents-show-empathy-driven-behavior