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It was minus-16 Celsius on Thursday night when Christian banged on the doors of the Berri-UQAM métro station.

It was 2:30 a.m., and it was too cold to be outside — especially for his dog and life companion. Buddy, a Doberman, was wrapped in two blankets in his arms. Still, he was shivering badly.

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The shelters — the Maison du Père, the Old Brewery Mission, and the Acceuil Bonneau — were all full, as Montreal recorded its coldest-ever Nov. 22. But only one shelter in Montreal accepts dogs anyway — SOS Itinérance — and it had already closed.

So Christian went to the métro station and in a panic rapped on the glass as hard as he could. But when two inspectors arrived, they refused to let him in. The métro was closed.

Buddy died shortly afterward, a friend of Christian’s says, telling the story 12 hours later.

“(Christian) is very isolated. He doesn’t mix with people. That dog was his life. He was everything to him and now he has nothing to live for anymore,” says Susan Clarke, who runs Calling All Angels, a volunteer organization that provides clothes and hot meals to homeless people downtown.