Terminally ill woman granted final wish to see beloved horse and dogs dies in hospice

Video of Denis Holman talking to Lucy Meacock on ITV Granada Reports

A terminally ill woman who was given the chance to see her beloved horse and two dogs for the last time from her hospital bed has died.

Jan Holman was diagnosed with terminal bowel cancer a few months ago and spent five weeks in the Good Shephard Hospice in Backford, Chester.

She was desperately missing her Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, Monty and Rowley, along with her piebald horse Bob.

Staff decided to surprise her by putting her loving pets on the list for a heartfelt reunion.

Her husband Dennis, who was married to Jan for 47 years, spoke to ITV's Good Morning Britain the day after she sadly passed away.

He said it meant the world for her to see Bob again, and it was wonderful to watch her face 'light up' as she fed him bananas, apples and carrots from her hospice bed.

"She was absolutely overjoyed to see them after a five-week gap away", he said. "The pecking order in our horse is the dogs come first, then the horse, then me.

"To see the smile on her face was absolutely wonderful."

He commended the work of the hospice, something he said Jan supported years before she was admitted.

Ruth Edwards, who helped transport the horse from his stable to the courtyard outside of Jan's hospice bed, said it was 'important to get Bob to see her.'

She said: "He behaved impeccably because he's got quite good manners. And it's all from Jan because she loved spending time Bob. He was happy to eat off her bed.

"It was just a bit of light in her eyes - a bit of happiness. You could see that she enjoyed seeing him again because she hadn't seen him in quite a few weeks."