Loubo should accompany him to the grave Alain Delon is buried next to his dogs
Alain Delon, who died on Sunday, wants to be buried next to his 35 dogs. Because he would suffer without him, the French film legend also wanted to have his last living dog euthanized.
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- French film legend Alain Delon died on Sunday at the age of 88.
- The Swiss actor by choice will be buried next to his dogs on his estate in Douchy in the middle of the week, as he wished.
- Delon loved dogs. The Belgian shepherd Loubo was his last living four-legged friend and most loyal companion.
- In an earlier interview, the actor expressed his wish that Loubo should accompany him into the afterlife.
- He felt that Loubo would suffer without his master.
This was Alain Delon's wish: the actor, who died at the age of 88, is to be buried at his estate La Brûlerie in Douchy in central France in the middle of the week.
The funeral will take place in a small circle, the television station BFMTV reported yesterday (Monday). The funeral will take place in the chapel built for this purpose, next to the numerous dogs buried there.
It is no longer a secret that Delon loved dogs and that his pets meant everything to him. "Today there are 35 graves. If the dogs are a pair, I put them together. My whole life is here, in these graves. I want to be buried among my animals," the French magazine "Elle" quotes him as saying , based on a "Gala" interview from 2019.
Delon, who became famous for films such as "The Icy Angel" and "The Swimming Pool", died on Sunday at the age of 88. This was announced by the French news agency AFP with reference to his three children Alain-Fabien (30), Anouchka (33), Anthony (59) and his dog Loubo on X.
The statement said that the film legend, who also held a Swiss passport and lived in Geneva for a time, "passed away peacefully at his home in Douchy surrounded by his three children and his family".
Delon had suffered a stroke in 2019, since when his health had deteriorated and he was dependent on help. The actor himself had not often appeared in public.
If Alain Delon dies in front of Loubo, vet should euthanize him
35 dogs are buried on the estate of the French film legend. Loubo, a Belgian shepherd, was Delon's last four-legged friend - and by his own account his favorite dog.
Loubo found his way to him in 2014 when he was adopted by the French actor. He has been Delon's most loyal companion ever since.
In 2018, Delon told the magazine "Paris Match" in an interview that he wished Loubo would be euthanized by a vet if he died before the four-legged friend.
"I've had 50 dogs in my life, but I have a special relationship with this dog (...). If I die before him, I'll ask the vet for us to go together. He will euthanize him so that he dies in my arms. I'd rather do that than know that he's going to die in agony on my grave," Delon said at the time.
Will Alain Delon's wish be fulfilled?
Delon expressed his concern that Loubo would suffer without his master. His statements were widely criticized and animal rights activists expressed their concern.
According to the French media, Loubo was with Delon's three children when he died.
After the film star's death, BFMTV asked Véronique de Villèle, Delon's former assistant and a close friend, whether the Swiss actor's wish should be fulfilled. Villèle assured: "That will be the case." The family has not yet commented on the matter.
The assistant called Delon an "animal lover" and a "lover of his dogs". "He had an incredible kindness and warmth towards animals," said Villèle.
Temporary flight ban over Alain Delon's estate
According to BFMTV, after the funeral in a small circle, a ceremony may be considered at a later date to allow the public to pay their last respects.
The actor had made it clear on several occasions that he did not want a national tribute, like Jean-Paul Belmondo (1933 to 2021) or Johnny Hallyday (1943 to 2017).
As the regional newspaper "La République du Centre" reported, the prefecture has imposed a temporary no-fly zone over the huge estate in the Centre-Val de Loire region at low altitude for safety reasons.
Since the death of the film legend, numerous people have made a pilgrimage to the estate to lay flowers in front of the entrance gate. The flight ban is to remain in force until Wednesday, August 21, 10 pm.
