When most people come across stray dogs, they bring them to animal shelters. There, they can be cared for by professionals, assessed by veterinarians, and set up to be adopted by their forever families.
Sometimes when people find stray dogs, they integrate them into their families, which is exactly what a monastery in Bolivia decided to do when they found a sweet stray dog.
St. Francis Monastery in Cochabamba, Bolivia, knew exactly what to do when they found the pup: they adopted him.
The dog, who they named Carmelo, began living in the monastery with the monks and quickly became a member of their family.
When they realized how important little Carmelo was to them, they gave him a more formal title: Friar Bigotón, which means Friar Mustache in Spanish.
In Catholic tradition, St. Francis, whose name this monastery is in, is the patron saint of animals, so it only makes sense that Friar Bigotón would himself become a monk.
[H/T The Dodo]
After finding an adorable stray dog, a monastery took him in as their resident pet.
They named him Carmelo, but once he established himself as a fixture of their community, they dubbed him Friar Bigotón.
Now, Friar Bigotón spends his days playing with the monks and loving his new life.
Friar Jorge Fernandez told The Dodo, "His life is all about playing and running. Here, all of the brothers love him very much. He is a creature of God."
The monastery grounds are perfect for a dog to run and play — there's a lot of space for him to explore and friends to meet everywhere.
Friar Bigotón even gets to play with the fish who live in the koi pond.
Kasper Maiusz Kaproń Ofm, who posted the photos of Carmelo to Facebook, wrote, "Brother Carmelo preaching to the fish," as the caption for the above photo.
Friar Bigotón's adoption will hopefully help other stray dogs as well.
"Carmelo's adoption was made possible by a local animal rescue group, Proyecto Narices Frías (Cold Nose Project), which hopes his story will serve as an inspiration for more monasteries to open their doors to needy pets," The Dodo explains.
Programs like this one — where monasteries take in stray animals — can be beneficial for not only the strays, but also for the monks.
Many people feel that having a pet boosts their spirits and keeps them positive, so a dog could be a truly wonderful addition to many monasteries.
What do you think of more monasteries implementing dog adoption programs like this one?
If you think everyone should have a dog in their life, please SHARE this article with your friends and family!
