In October 2022, Canadian Mike Nayler had to do the unthinkable: hand over his beloved four-legged friend Minnie to a shelter. The man was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer a year earlier and his health was so bad that he could no longer take care of his dog. However, in June of this year, Nayler was told she was in remission and that her Minnie was still at the zoo. So a reunion was inevitable. “It’s like he never left,” she says. “What a dream.”
The Humane Society of Greater Niagara Shelter shared photos of the heartwarming reunion on Facebook. They have been taking care of the four-legged friend for the past two years. “When Minnie’s owner was diagnosed with cancer and couldn’t leave her bed for 36 hours, Minnie faithfully stayed by his side. She was his constant, his comfort on the hardest days.” “When her health declined, Mike selflessly agreed to give her up because he wanted a better life for Minnie, even if it meant breaking his own heart. Mike and Minnie separated for the first time since she was born.
Minnie spent two years at the Humane Society of Greater Niagara’s shelter — © Humane Society of Greater Niagara
Nayler tells CBC Hamilton that the next few months were torture. She checked the shelter’s website every day to see if he was still there and secretly hoped she was. “But in 2023, he was adopted into a family,” she says. “Then I gave up because I knew I would never see him again.”
Minnie’s new owner eventually gave up, and in June of this year, Nayler saw her again on the HSGN website. That same month, she was also told she was in remission, so she contacted the shelter to ask if she could re-adopt her four-legged friend. “It was like he never left,” Nayler said after the reunion. “What a dream.”
© Humane Society of Greater Niagara