Dog dies after 2-day hunger strike following owner’s death

August 23, 2022

A dog in China tugged at the heartstrings of several Chinese social media users after it died while on a hunger strike following the death of its owner.

The man’s granddaughter, surnamed Sun, told Chinese media that the village dog accompanied her grandfather for more than 10 years since it was a puppy.

The canine companion went on a hunger strike after its owner died from an undisclosed illness. It spent two days beside the man’s coffin, refusing to eat, drink and move, according to reports.

Although the man could not fulfill his dying wish, his dog was able to do it in his stead, according to his granddaughter.

“The dog then went to my family’s old house and died there, which was also my grandfather’s unfulfilled wish,” Sun said. Coincidentally, the dog died on its owner’s birthday.

Posts about the canine’s hunger strike went viral on Weibo, with one post receiving over 7.1 million views. Countless users were saddened by what happened, and many of them shared their experiences with their own dogs.

“My grandfather passed away on the 13th, and his dog did not sleep after that,” one user wrote. “The dog eventually fell asleep while lying on one of my grandpa’s clothes, which my grandmother had taken out and laid on the floor.”

Other users commented that the dog and its owner are now together again in heaven.

“The dog was afraid that the grandpa would be too lonely by himself in Heaven, so he went to keep him company,” one comment read.

“They are reunited in Heaven and will be together forever,” another user commented.

In 2019, a stray dog from the Philippines went viral for refusing to leave its owner’s side during his funeral. A similar incident occurred in Malaysia in 2017 when a devastated cat refused to leave its owner’s grave after his funeral service. Funeral attendees tried to remove the cat from the grave but were unsuccessful.

Featured Image via Diosa Marie Aguila (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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