Mar 22, 2014 1 min read

AMSTERDAM (AP) – 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 done odd jobs for 25 years.

Mario Eijs, who is mentally disabled, had developed a brain tumor 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 Eijs was brought to their inside enclosure 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.”