THEY say a dog is a man’s best friend — and that was definitely the case for one patient of a hospital in northeastern Turkey, whose loyal pet waited by the entrance for six days until he was discharged.

When Cemal Senturk was transferred by ambulance to Medical Park Hospital in Trabzon on Jan. 14, his dog, Boncuk, escaped from their apartment and followed him to the facility, where she waited patiently each day.

Hospital staff informed Senturk’s family about the whereabouts of his canine friend.

But after Boncuk was brought back home, she managed to escape again — and returned to the hospital each day, Murat Ercan, the hospital’s international patient center director, said.

The hospital said Senturk’s apartment was nearby, and that the family were not sure how the dog kept escaping.

“His dog Boncuk has followed him to the hospital gate and refused to leave for six days until her owner was discharged,” Ercan said in a statement.

“Even though the family [took] Boncuk back home she managed to escape every day to wait at the hospital gate.”

To try to reassure and comfort her, Senturk communicated with Boncuk through the window during his stay at the facility.

But his dedicated four-legged friend refused to leave until Senturk did.

During his stakeout, the dog won the affection of hospital staff, who fed him and took care of him, Ercan added. “Cemal Senturk has been with Boncuk for nine years and he also stated that he missed her a lot during his stay at the hospital.” (SD-Agencies)