PHOTOS: Dog Desperately Tries To Revive His Dead Mate After She Was Hit & Killed By A Car

Heartbreaking: The male dog tries to nudge his mate awake after she was hit by a car

A stray dog stands guard over the body of his dead mate and in a moving display of devotion continues to lick her head in a bid to revive her.  

These heartbreaking pictures taken in Zhangzhou, in China's Fujian Province, show the animal carefully nudging the female dog after she was hit and killed by a car. 

After he fails to wake her, the male refuses to leave and stays within feet of his mate for six hours.

Vigil: The dog refused to move from her side despite the female lying in the middle of the busy road

The male was seen repeatedly licking the face of dead dog and keeping a watchful eye on her as he dodged the oncoming traffic. But he never strayed more than a short distance from her side. 

When he got tired the dog lay down next to her as he kept up his vigil for hours.

Moving: The male tries licking the top of her head as he tries to revive her

Xiao Wu, a butcher on the street, said: 'He stayed beside her the whole day, kept licking her and pushing her, trying to wake her up. It's very touching’.

Xiao said after the accident he saw the male dog running around and trying to 'hug' the female dog with his forelegs.

Mourning: Witnesses said he only left her side to move out of the way of oncoming traffic

The butcher added: 'Then he pushed her with his head, and licked her face. I even saw tears'.

Bereaved: The dog was tired he would simply lie down but would not leave her side

According to Xiao the female dog was a stray he had recently started to feed. Then a week ago the male dog turned up. He said: 'Then I realised she had a boyfriend. They were together all the time, playing and in love’.

Tragic: The male dog continues to cuddle the dead female even when her body has apparently been moved to the side of the road