Rebecca’s days are always happy when they’re spent with her dog Annie

Annie is my beautiful best buddy. She is loyal, cheeky and always right by my side. Annie spends her days with me and my horse, and we pass manyhappy hours exploring the beautiful Scottish countryside together. Of course, Annie loves to steal the horse’s carrots given half a chance!

We pass many happy hours exploring the Scottish countryside

At night, we retire to the sofa for snuggles, where we’ll usually end up watching her favourite film, the Lion King. I’m so grateful to have her as my best friend.

Despite Lulu’s barking, shedding and laziness, Rob and his family couldn’t imagine life without her

This is Lulu. We got her from a rescue centre a few years ago after she'd clearly had quite a rough time with a breeder who'd definitely over-bred her. She just looked so sad when we saw her, and the kids fell in love with her on the first meeting.

She thinks she's a lot smaller than she is

We'd vowed to get a small to medium-sized dog, and she is NOT that! She's lazy as hell, she sheds everywhere, she barks too much for no reason, she has the most evil farts and she’s now a bit incontinent, but we love her to bits.

We even love it when she climbs up on the sofa between us, when there clearly isn't enough room for her. She thinks she's a lot smaller than she is, bless her!

Emma’s quality of life is significantly better with Sam by her side

I have owned Sam (or rather he has owned me) since he was a 12-week-old puppy. As I’ve been housebound for the last ten years, he’s been my constant companion while my husband’s at work

I love him, but he’s probably the most demanding dog in the world. He yaps and whines until he gets his own way and won’t leave me alone until I rearrange his bed for him!

He’s been my constant companion

Sam is particularly fond of cats and is friends with the three that live in the local area. He also loves walks at the beach with my husband. I treasure every single day I have with my dog, and I’m so grateful he cameinto our lives all those years ago.

Anna is in awe of how strong and resilient her dog Alfie is, even when life doesn’t go his way

In 2019, we noticed Alfie was starting to slow down a lot, and he seemed to be getting old before his time. Sadly, it turned out he was gradually losing his sight, and he became very withdrawn.

Alfie has shown such resilience

At the time, we were devastated, but Alfie has shown such resilience and found a way to overcome all his difficulties. He has so much strength and brings me endless happiness. He’s taught me to make the most of life andhe will forever be my best friend and inspiration!

Max and Millie might be chalk and cheese, but they are the perfect pair and together they’ve brightened up Charli’s life.

We had not long moved into our first home, and decided to adopt a rescue dog from the local rescue centre. After looking at a couple, we eventually went to Birmingham dogs home where we set our eyes upon Max. He looked so sad in his kennel, he had no name and apparently, he was a stray. After getting him out of the kennel into the exercise area, he loved being outside and running around. He gave us that ‘feeling’ and four days later we brought him home.

We noticed an instant change

It was the start of a journey — he was scared of everything. However as soon as you let him off his lead, his half-greyhound side comes out and boy does he love to run! The woods are his favourite place to explore and chase the squirrels and rabbits. Although we had made progress with him, it was clear he needed a friend so we were advised to get another dog— and this is where we welcome Millie!

From the same rescue home, Millie was six when she came home with us. We noticed an instant change in Max. He was more confident, not so scared of the big wide world. As Millie likes to socialise with other dogs (typical Labrador trait) we started to meet with other dog owners in the local park, and now at least once a week we meet up and let the dogs play.

Bear has taught his owner Trupti how to appreciate life’s simple pleasures

Bear was adopted in 2020 and became my ray of hope during the pandemic.

He’s my inspiration

He’s my inspiration for finding joy in the little things in life, too. For example, he loves rolling in freshly cut grass, jumping in puddles, running into the waves, soaking up the sun, digging holes and burying his favourite toys before forgetting about them.

He’s given me new meaning to the phrase ‘there’s nothing like the present’.