TORONTO -- The two dogs reportedly owned by Cpl. Nathan Cirillo, the Canadian soldier who was killed Wednesday at Ottawa's National War Memorial, will now be cared for by his mother.
Kathy Cirillo will look after the German Shepherd mixes, according to CBC News. Nathan's 6-year-old son Marcus, who just started senior kindergarten, will also be under Kathy's care.
A photo of the dogs poking their heads under a fence at Cirillo's family home in Hamilton, Ontario, went viral after it was published Thursday.
Cirillo's dogs. Such a sad sight. pic.twitter.com/LTnPxOMlT6— molly hayes (@MollyatTheSpec) October 23, 2014
PHOTO: Emotional image of Cpl. Nathan Cirillo's dogs at family home in Hamilton by @CdnPress photographer Peter Power pic.twitter.com/j2CaNHmh0q— The Canadian Press (@CdnPress) October 23, 2014
Nathan Cirillo, 24, posted numerous photos of the two dogs on his Instagram account. In one image, he called the apparent German Shepherd-Belgian Shepherd mix "my baby girl." Cirillo also detailed his rescue of the apparent German Shepherd-English Mastiff mix, eventually revealing that he found the dog "a permanent home."
It appears both pets belonged to Cirillo, who called them "my family."
My family :) #germanshepard #malinois #belgiumshepard #rescue #rescuedog #stray. #dogs. #puppy #loveA photo posted by Nathan Cirillo (@ncitaly) on Oct 10, 2014 at 2:40pm PDT
She thinks shes stronger then me lol #servicesdogs #canadianarmy #germanshepard #belgiumshepard #malinoisA photo posted by Nathan Cirillo (@ncitaly) on Aug 8, 2014 at 2:15pm PDT
Pretty boy and I :) Found him a permanent home, hope he has a good life. :) #englishmastiff #germanshepard #adopt #rescuedog #army #prettyboy #puppy #cuteA photo posted by Nathan Cirillo (@ncitaly) on Sep 9, 2014 at 10:52am PDT
Sooo funny #germanshepard #servicedog #picoftheday #doglovers #puppy #animallovers #nature #woods # ball #collar #girl #baby #trees #water #country #army #canada #follow #swimming #prankA video posted by Nathan Cirillo (@ncitaly) on May 5, 2014 at 4:16pm PDT
Dream come true eating from the food stash. CAUGHT YA! LolA video posted by Nathan Cirillo (@ncitaly) on Sep 9, 2014 at 7:24am PDT
Gunman Michael Zehaf-Bibeau, 32, shot and killed Cirillo, before firing shots inside a Parliament building on Wednesday.
As of Friday afternoon, Cirillo's body is currently in transit on the Highway of Heroes, a stretch of Ontario's Highway 401 that runs from Trenton, Ontario, to Toronto. He is traveling from Ottawa, and will be laid to rest in his hometown of Hamilton. Cirillo's body left the McEvoy-Shields Funeral Home and Chapel after 1 p.m. ET. The trip from Ottawa to Hamilton, roughly 500 km (311 miles), takes about five hours by car.
People gathered along the route to commemorate Cirillo, many holding Canadian flags. Some participants and observers shared photos of the event via social media:
Cpl Cirillo travelling to Hamilton from Ottawa at 1300 #QuinteWest after 1430 #highwayofheroes http://t.co/w4mZaJPcyH pic.twitter.com/qlO53JDzN4— R. Litwiller -Author (@RLitwiller) October 24, 2014
Moving. Thousands of Canadians lining 401 overpasses like this one in Trenton. #RIPNathanCirillo #HighwayofHeroes pic.twitter.com/TyrepitksM— Derek Nighbor (@DerekNighbor) October 24, 2014
Ottawa you are beyond amazing #highwayofheroes #RIPNathanCirillo pic.twitter.com/Ov69Z3xMIK— Abby McCorriston (@abbyymcc) October 24, 2014
RIP Cpl. Cirillo you will always be remembered!