Boncuk: The Dog Who Waited Outside Her Owner’s Hospital in Trabzon

In January 2021, a dog named Boncuk repeatedly returned to a hospital entrance in Trabzon, on Turkey’s Black Sea coast, while her owner was being treated inside. Her wait drew attention from staff and the owner’s family, and the eventual reunion became a widely shared glimpse of their bond.

Boncuk, which means 'bead', in Turkish, sat patiently for days after her owner, Cemal Senturk, was taken to the hospital in the Black Sea city of Trabzon on January 14, 2021. It is believed that she followed the ambulance that took her owner away and then returned daily to the hospital, a short distance from her home.

Senturk’s daughter, Aynur Egeli, said she took Boncuk home, but the dog kept returning to the hospital. The repeated visits made the entrance a familiar place for Boncuk and made her a familiar presence to the people working there.

Hospital security guard, Muhammet Akdeniz, said of the dog's visits:

"She comes every day around 9 a.m. and waits until nightfall. She doesn't go in. When the door opens she pokes her head inside."

On Wednesday, January 20, Senturk was brought outside in a wheelchair for a brief meeting with Boncuk. Their reunion was captured on video, turning the days of waiting into a moment the family and hospital staff could finally share with them. In the video Boncuk can be seen wagging her tail and jumping up and down after being reunited with Senturk.

Senturk told reporters:

"She's very used to me. And I miss her, too, constantly."

The Associated Press reported that Senturk was discharged later that Wednesday and returned home with Boncuk. The report established their reunion and his discharge, rather than providing a medical account of his longer-term recovery.

Through history, cultures all over the world have stories of loyal dogs who either stayed with their sick owners or by their graveside after they passed. One of the best-known examples is Edinburgh’s Greyfriars Bobby. In the familiar account, the terrier remained associated with his owner’s grave for fourteen years, until the dog died in 1872. A small statue commemorates Bobby in the city. The story has become part of Edinburgh’s local memory, although a much-retold historical narrative is different from a filmed reunion with living witnesses.

Cádiz, Spain, has its own remembered hospital dog, Canelo. Local accounts describe him waiting for twelve years after his owner died while receiving hospital treatment for kidney problems. A plaque honours the dog near the hospital. Like Bobby’s story, Canelo’s has endured because people recognised something moving in an animal returning to a place connected with a familiar person.

Boncuk’s story ended with a return home together. That gives the Trabzon episode its particular warmth: the waiting was followed by a reunion, rather than becoming a memorial to someone who never came back.

h/t: AP News