Canadian dad tattoos his son’s birthmark to make him less self-conscious

It was when he noticed his 8-year-old son was refusing to swim shirtless that Canadian father Derek Prue Snr decided to get a tattoo.

Her son, Derek Prue Jnr, has a large birthmark that covers a significant part of his chest.

Seeing him become aware of it, the father decided to tattoo a replica of his son’s birthmark.

Little did he know, the tattoo would mean sitting for 30 hours of pain. Still, he says it was worth it.

“I knew he was self-conscious,” Prue told CBC News. “I saw how he was reacting, and it made me want to do it so that he wasn’t the only one.”

It took six to eight weeks to complete the tattoo.

Prue enlisted the help of tattooist Tony Gibert of Juicy Quill Tattoo in Alberta.

“I think it’s amazing to be able to comfort your son like this,” said the tattoo artist.

“It’s more than just having your child see your name, or something, you can really change the way he feels about himself.”

Gibert said the tattoo was “quite painful.”

“He’s been through the wringer sitting down for that,” he added.

The father admitted that he did not know that the process would be so long and painful.

Still, he says, “it felt good to do it.”

“I’m kind of glad I didn’t know how long it was going to take,” he added.

The father is happy with the result and does not regret the pain he endured to help his son feel better about his birthmark.

“Now we have the same brands for life.”