Three-Legged Dog Mourns The Deaths Of His Animals Friends

Tricycle is a three-legged Golden Retriever who has developed his own mourning ritual whenever he has to say farewell to a beloved animal companion. It’s the purest thing ever – whoever said dogs don’t have feelings was clearly wrong.

Tricycle is a rescue dog who lives in the Horse Creek Stable Rescue Sanctuary in Mineral Bluff, Georgia, with his owners, Lester Aradi and his wife, Diane. Both Diane and Lester have stated that Tricycle began his mourning process 4 years ago when the dog lost his friend, Major, a St. Bernard/mastiff mix that the couple laid to rest on their large property.

The couple at the Georgia animal sanctuary noted that Tricycle was there for the burial, and then the next day, the couple “spotted him laying on Major’s grave.”

Talking about that moment, Lester said, “It touched us so much that we posted pictures on Facebook.”

In regards to Tricycle’s feeling, he said to PEOPLE, “Like many of us, there is a sense of loss that we all need to work through. Animals also have that sense of loss.”

The couple noted that Tricycle, once again, displayed his same habit of mourning, after he had to say goodbye to his friend, Trixie, a 21-year-old alpaca.

Once again, the couple uploaded another picture from their sanctuary’s Facebook, adding that Tricycle grieves for “typically three days.”

Lester revealed, “He normally spends his day laying on the gravesite until he comes in at night.”

Tricycle, who also is the subject of a children’s book, is used to living with a wide range of different animals. Throughout his time at the sanctuary, he’s been best friends not just with other dogs, but also animals such as horses, goats, llamas, and alpacas.

As Lester said, “We are a foster home for many larger animal rescue groups who place animals with special needs in our care.”

It’s these kinds of diverse bonds amongst animals that makes Tricycle’s mourning very heartfelt. And Tricycle’s connections last well past their passings. But it could be that he is just emulating what he sees since both Diane and Lester put in their respective efforts to honor the departed animals.

Lester explained, “Every animal that has passed over the Rainbow Bridge has been buried on our farm so their spirits can live on where they spent the latter years of their lives. For the smaller animals, such as our cat and dogs, we marked their grave with a circle of stones.”

Lester had also stated that the larger animals they have are typically buried with a fruit tree, so that they “continue the circle of life” and provide visitors with the opportunity to harvest fruits, such as the apples, cherries, and pears.