A volunteer attacked the shelter's cameras at night and saw something Antônio had never thought of showing anyone: he slept on a wooden table, without mattress or pillow, surrounded by the dogs he saved.
Antônio Anastácio Calheiros was 58 years old and at Marechal Deodoro, in the Brazilian state of Alagoas, his life had become inseparable from that of the abandoned animals he cared for.
Over 800 dogs arrived in time.
Such numbers involve a huge responsibility.
Every day it takes about 200 kilos of food, to which it is necessary to add medicines and a specific diet for sick animals, malnutrited or in need of greater attention.
In order to continue, Antônio even sold some of his furniture.
And that table on which he had been filmed while sleeping had not been prepared for a moving photograph.
It was just the place he spent the night.
Antônio explained that in the shelter there was not enough box and that he preferred to stay close to dogs, so that he could intervene immediately in case, during the night, a fight broke out.
To help him there were two workers and a cook, but behind that huge reality there was a story started with one animal: his.
Antônio had a pitbull dog to which he was deeply tied. When the dog fell ill and died, that loss changed something in his life.
He began collecting abandoned dogs.
First one, then others.
With the passing of time, what had begun as a gesture of help towards homeless animals became a daily mission capable of occupying virtually every space of its existence.
Until that night.
A camera on, hundreds of dogs around and a man sleeping on a simple wooden table.
Perhaps the most significant image of Antônio's history is not the impressive number of animals he has welcomed.
That's what that table says.
When space was no longer enough for everyone, Antônio did not decide which dog to leave out.
He gave up his bed.