As sad as it may sound, our canine friends are just temporary visitors in our lives - however, we are usually their whole life. And the least we can do during our pets' last moments is stay with them, making sure that when their time comes, they know they were not just pets to us - they were part of the family.
Sadly, saying goodbye to your senior dog can be a heartbreaking experience not everyone can handle. That's just one of the reasons why some old or terminally ill pets get abandoned. However, like a ray of hope, one woman is making sure all abandoned animals spend their final days living life to the fullest.
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One woman is making sure abandoned dogs spend their final days living life to the fullest
Image credits: The Grey Muzzle Canine Hospice Project
Nicola Coyle (not pictured) is a retired nurse who established The Grey Muzzle Canine Hospice to take care of abandoned old, terminally ill or stray dogs. She runs the animal shelter from her own home in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire.
That includes ice cream and steak dinners
Image credits: The Grey Muzzle Canine Hospice Project
Nicola takes the adorable dogs through McDonald’s drive-thru and even takes them to the local pub for a nice steak dinner.
Nicola normally has a maximum of two dogs at a time
Image credits: The Grey Muzzle Canine Hospice Project
"We’ll only take them in if the vet says they’ve got less than six months to live, so we’re focusing on end of life care," said the former nurse in an interview with Metro. "I think the longest I’ve had one is around one year in my dog hotel and the shortest was about two weeks."
Even though she doesn't know when the dogs' birthdays are, she still throws one for every dog
Image credits: The Grey Muzzle Canine Hospice Project
"I don’t know when their birthdays are so we make sure we throw all of them a birthday party," says Nicola. "If they’re well enough, we take them for a day at the seaside, they get fish and chips on the beach and ice cream."
Image credits: The Grey Muzzle Canine Hospice Project
Nicola spends around £500 on each of the dogs she takes care of
Image credits: The Grey Muzzle Canine Hospice Project
She uses her own money and everything people donate to her dog shelter. You can help by donating to The Grey Muzzle Canine Hospice Project's PayPal here.
Sadly, there comes a time to say goodbye - and it's never easy
Image credits: The Grey Muzzle Canine Hospice Project
"We all get very attached to these cute dogs, it’s very emotionally intense and we do mourn and grieve for them," says Nicola. "We do need to have breaks between them."
"Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole" - Roger A. Caras
Image credits: The Grey Muzzle Canine Hospice Project
Just because a dog's fate is decided, doesn't mean it should be abandoned. Quite the contrary - the final days of their lives should be made as special as possible. And thanks to people like Nicola, these dogs get to spend their final days feeling important and loved before departing to Doggy Heaven.
Image credits: The Grey Muzzle Canine Hospice Project
Image credits: The Grey Muzzle Canine Hospice Project
Image credits: The Grey Muzzle Canine Hospice Project
Image credits: The Grey Muzzle Canine Hospice Project
Image credits: The Grey Muzzle Canine Hospice Project