Lick from a giraffe is a poignant goodbye for terminally ill man in the Netherlands

AMSTERDAM – A giraffe gave a lick to a dying man who asked as a last wish to be taken to Blijdorp Zoo in Rotterdam, Netherlands, where he had worked doing odd jobs for 25 years.

Mario Eijs had developed a brain tumour and had difficulty walking or speaking. He wanted to pay a final visit to the co-workers and animals he loved.

The Stichting Ambulance Wens offers free transport to terminally ill patients.

Several giraffes became curious when Mario was brought to their inside enclosure on March 19.

“Mario got a lick on his nose after a lot of snuffles,” Foundation worker Olaf Exoo said in a written summary of the day.

Exoo said it was “a last greeting to each other that gave everybody watching goose bumps.”