This is the tear-jerking moment a soldier was overcome by emotion as he bid farewell to his terminally ill military working dog.
The touching scene was captured in China before two-year-old Labrador Wu Yi was to be put down due to advanced bone cancer.
Its handler Ye Huaibin knelt on the ground and begged the medics to let him stay for the operation, but the devastated serviceman was dragged away by two officers.
Chinese soldier Ye Huaibin holds his military dog Wu Yi before it gets put down due to cancer
The serviceman begs the medics to let him stay for the operation with tears in his eyes
The incredible bond between Ye and his dog Wu Yi was featured by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV on Saturday.
Ye, a soldier based in Beijing, said he discovered Wu Yi was seriously ill during a training session when it suddenly threw up after biting on a ball.
Feeling strange about the dog’s reaction, Ye inspected its mouth and was surprised to see a large tumour.
In the eight months to follow, the soldier took Wu Yi to seek medical advice around the capital city.
‘I wanted to try to save it no matter what,’ said Ye.
Ye is overcome by emotion while being dragged out of the operating theatre by two officers
He repeatedly calls Wu Yi’s name and refuses to follow order and leave the dog behind
The man said he could see that Wu Yi, whose name meant ‘five one’, was also ready to fight for its own life.
‘The way it looked at me – it might be hard for you to understand – was a way for us to communicate. It was saying it also wanted to keep on living,’ the serviceman said.
But after four surgical operations, Wu Yi’s health continued to deteriorate.
Doctors at the China Agricultural University Animal Hospital discovered that the dog had osteosarcoma, a condition which occurs when the cells that grow new bone form a cancerous tumour.
Dr Li Gebin told Ye that she and her team would not be able to save Wu Yi.
After hearing about the diagnosis, the soldier with tears in his eyes that his biggest hope was for his dog to live as happily as possible for the remainder of its life.
‘I don’t wish it to suffer anymore. I cannot bear it,’ an emotional Ye said to Dr Li.
The incredible bond between Ye and his dog Wu Yi has been featured by Chinese state media
Ye (middle) and other officers attend Wu Yi’s funeral after the military dog was euthanased
Before Wu Yi’s euthanasia operation, Ye held the pooch by its face and repeatedly called its name.
After failing to get medics’ permission to stay in the operating theatre, two of his comrades grabbed Ye by his arms and carried him away.
Ye broke down in tears still calling Wu Yi’s name again and again while trying to look at his loyal companion for the very last time.
After the operation, the dog was given a funeral attended by Ye, who escorted its remains to be buried.