i Still Love Dogs

By all accounts, reservist Cpl. Nathan Cirillo, who was shot to death in an Ottawa terrorist attack Wednesday, was a devoted dad to his 6-year old son as well as the two dogs he’d rescued from a shelter.

In a photo posted yesterday by Molly Hayes on Twitter, Cirillo’s German Shepherds peer under their gate in Hamilton, Ontario, anxiously watching for their dog dad’s return.

“Cirillo’s dogs. Such a sad sight,” wrote Hayes, a reporter for the Hamilton Spectator, of the photo that’s broken thousands of hearts.

Hamilton Mayor Bob Bratina told the Associated Press Cirillo, 24, was a lifelong military enthusiast who joined the cadets 11 years ago. He was training to become a soldier, and had been assigned to his post — standing guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, where he was shot — for only a couple of days.

“When you’re a soldier you understand that when you go into harm’s way that there’s always the possibility that the worst could happen, but who would ever think of it standing in ceremony?” Bratina said.

Cirillo’s friend Ashley Moerschfelder told the AP, “He knew what he liked and what he wanted, and being a soldier was one of his main goals. He loved watching war movies, and his son, he absolutely loved his son and tried his best to be a loving, fun parent.”

Another friend, Danielle Townsend, said Cirillo was the most compassionate person she’d ever met. “He was all about family, friends and loyalty,” she told the AP.

Cirillo was a dedicated animal lover. Just last month, he rescued a sickly, abandoned puppy, according to the Independent. After taking it to a vet and ensuring it was nursed back to health, he found a forever home for the pup.

The majority of the photos Cirillo posted on his Instagram account were of his dogs. He obviously adored them, and they appear to have adored him right back.

“Ok I guess I’m a pillow…<3,” he wrote in the caption for the photo on the right.

Today Cirillo’s body was transported, fittingly, in a procession along the Highway of Heroes from Ottawa to Hamilton, where he will be laid to rest.

His funeral will be held Tuesday. Hopefully the guests will include his dearly beloved four-legged family members.

Photos via Twitter and Instagram

OCT. 23, 2014 UPDATE: “I Want to Touch a Dog” event organizer Syed Azmi Alhabshi has gone into hiding after receiving online abuse and death threats saying he “should be stoned to death,” TIME reported today.

“I didn’t realize that kindness is now considered despicable, but then the world has turned upside down,” wrote Malaysian human-rights activist Marina Mahathir in her column for The Star. “Never mind that the intention of those who attended was to learn about one of God’s own creatures and how to treat them kindly.”

What a shame — maybe petting a dog would help mellow out those who condemn it.

More than 800 people showed up at the first-ever “I Want to Touch a Dog” event in Malaysia this weekend. The event title makes it pretty clear what encouraged them to attend — because of their Muslim religion, many had never petted a pooch before.

The event, held at a shopping center in Petaling Jaya, was planned only three weeks ago as a small get-together. But after news of it spread on Facebook, hundreds of people showed up, about half of them Muslims.

Why don’t some Muslims keep dogs as pets? The religion considers dog saliva is to be impure, according to Dogs in Islam. It’s also apparently bad luck to have a dog. The website notes that the Prophet said, “Whoever keeps a dog, his good deeds will decrease every day by one qeeraat (a unit of measurement), unless it is a dog for farming or herding.” And: “Angels do not enter a house wherein there is a dog or an animate picture.”

At the I Want to Touch a Dog event, Muslims who wanted to pet a pooch dressed in yellow. Those who came just to observe the dogs wore orange. Volunteers with dogs wore red.

Volunteers demonstrated how to approach and pet the dogs, and how to perform the Islamic cleansing ritual afterward (i.e., wash once with earth and rinse six times with water).

“I came here to learn more about interacting with dogs, about ‘samak’ and ‘sertu’ cleansing,” a woman named Fatimah, who wore a black veil covering everything but her eyes, told Asia One. “I’ve never done such a thing before.”

Many children were brought to the event, and for some, it was their very first encounter with a dog.

“I am very happy. I touched many dogs and carried them,” seven-year-old Nur Aliyah Mohd Nasir told Asia One. “My favorite is the Huskies.”

Along with Huskies, the four-legged attendees included a purebred Afghan Hound and Chow Chows, as well as lots of rescued mutts.

The event organizer, Syed Azmi Alhabshi, told Asia One it was a way of getting over his own fear of dogs.

“This is just a baby step for us,” he said. “I don’t know whether people will now understand not to throw stones at dogs, but we want people to know that if they are not knowledgeable or are curious about things, they should just ask.”

Religious teacher Ustaz Mohd Iqbal Parjin started off the event with a speech about dogs. He said that while Muslims must be in an environment of cleanliness when conducting religious rites, they should not treat dogs as “hina” (contemptible).

“Do not harm them and do not throw things at them,” he said. “In fact, we should not even take the stand that we as human beings are better than dogs. What is most important is in the heart.

“I feel happy to see that all those who came, came with good and open hearts.”

Photos via Facebook