Loyal dog refuses to leave hospital where owner died four months ago

A pet dog whose owner was fatally stabbed has made a home for himself in front of the hospital where the man died.

The animal, who has no name, has been waiting in front of the Santa Casa de Novo Horizonte hospital in Brazil for four months, according to local media reports.

The dog first arrived at the unit after chasing after the ambulance that was transporting his owner, a 59-year-old homeless man, to hospital in October.

The man, who had been involved in a street fight, died from his injuries but two months on, the dog continued to wait for him in front of the hospital, Brazil's O Globo newspaper reported.

Staff at the hospital gave the dog food and water, and they eventually found a local kennels, 3km from the hospital, willing to take him in.

But with a new owner lined up to take him, hospital workers were shocked to find the dog turn up back to the hospital not long after, having escaped the kennels.

It is not the first story of a dog showing unwavering loyalty to its owner.

In 2016, a dog waited for a week outside a Spanish hospital while her owner recovered from surgery.

And pictures of a family’s two pet dogs were widely shared after they refused to leave the side of a terminally-ill baby girl.