Loyal Dog Still Waiting Outside Hospital 8 Months After His Owner Died

Many things in life come and go, but the love of a faithful dog endures.

This sweet pup named Negão lost the one person in the world who mattered to him most. Sadly though, he has no way of knowing.

For the last 8 months, the loyal pup has been holding vigil outside of the Ruth Cardoso Hospital, in Santa Catarina, Brazil. It all began late last year after his owner, a homeless man, was taken there after falling ill with what turned out to be a fatal infection. Negão had raced after the ambulance all the way to the hospital and watched him be wheeled inside on a stretcher.

Being a loyal dog, Negão then sat out front - eagerly awaiting a reunion that would never come.

Unaware that his owner had in fact passed away, Negão continued to wait. Even as the days passed into weeks, and weeks into months, he didn't move far from the spot where he'd last seen his only friend alive.

It wasn't long before those working at the hospital took notice of Negão. Every time an ambulance arrives with a patient, he perks up and follows to see if it's carrying his owner, as it did so many moons before.

Hospital staffers have been far from callous to Negão's sad situation. They've made sure he's had water and food, and shelter from the elements. In fact, as Zero Hora reports, twice they even found families willing to adopt him, but on both occasions he escaped - only to return to the grounds of the hospital.

Now, rather than try to dissuade Negão from his vigil, the hospital has taken a different tack. They've coordinated with a local animal charity to make sure Negão is healthy, gets checkups with a veterinarian and is regularly taken on walks.

While this chapter of Negão's life began with an immeasurable loss, in the end there's been something to be gained - a glimmer of the incredible loyalty he's shown to his owner reflected back at him by those who've seen it all unfold.

"He will stay here with us until he decides if he wants to leave or not," one hospital official said. "As long as he remains here, we will give all the care, warmth and love he needs."