Prince is my best friend and is just the greatest company. He was one of a litter of six, and we picked him because of his underbite, which we fell in love with!
He’s my best friend
Prince seems to instinctively know when you need a cuddle or cheering up, if you’d like a walk or just want to sit down. I got him after the death of my father six years ago, and he also was a huge comfort when my mother died this year.
Prince is a Pug who loves mountain walking and the beach. His personality is very human; he’s a mummy’s boy and loves a cuddle. He enjoys chasing birds and thinks he can catch them in the sky. He loves to eat (but luckily has never been into eating furniture or shoes!)
His best friend is our family dog Theo, a Bernese Mountain Dog. He also has the trick of sneezing on you when he’s very excited!
Milly is so loving and friendly. I suffer with depression and she seems to know when I’m not feeling good and will come and put her head on my lap. She is also a real hero because she has donated blood to the pet blood bank on a regular basis since she was two years old – in September just gone she made her 16th donation!
She has donated blood since she was two
She loves holidays by the beach with her other half, Daisy, and she has lots of friends that come to our house for play days. She acts all brave when she thinks she has to, but in reality, she’s a big sissy and wouldn’t hurt a fly. Milly always greets people with one of her toys, although she does do a submissive wee wee at the same time, so I have to tell them to watch their feet! She also loves to swim in any water she comes across on our walks and likes to get very muddy, running through all the puddles.
Sasha is my side-kick, my plus one, my absolute everything. I have grown up with Spaniels all my life, but when I lost my last boy Louis, I didn’t think I’d be able to ever get another one. Then, along came Sasha and she stole my heart from the moment I met her.
She stole my heart
She is the most sociable, friendly, loving dog I have ever known. It’s been just the two of us through lockdown and she has got me through it, getting me out and about on our walks every day and spending time in the garden with me.
Everyone needs a Sasha in their life.
The bizarre story behind us getting pup: one Sunday afternoon, my partner and I had a ‘heated debate’ which resulted in her going to stay at her mum’s for a couple of weeks. The next night, my son and I were talking about our old dogs, as it had been five years since we lost them, and something in my heart said, ‘is it about time we looked for a new dog?’ The look on my son’s face was answer enough and we googled ‘blue Staffordshire Bull Terrier pups for sale’.
We couldn’t imagine being without him!
The top search result was an advert for six white pups and just one blue. Here's where fate kicked in: the pups were in a Shropshire town, a couple of hours from us and not somewhere we would normally go, BUT I already had a work meeting booked in that very town later in the week!
I contacted the breeder and arranged to visit on the day of the meeting. I took my son and, as they say, Kush chose us by sitting on my son’s knee the whole time we were there. We brought him home and that just left the tiny issue of telling my partner I bought a dog!
Rather than ruin a good surprise, I said nothing and waited for her to come back from her mum’s. As she came through the door, I left pup on the floor right in front of her. Needless to say, she immediately fell in love with Kush and all was good. He's now a year old and we couldn't imagine being without him!
Yogi Bear brings light and love into our lives. We had a puppy before him, who was diagnosed with a congenital heart condition – we looked after him until the end. Then Yogi healed our scars.
Yogi healed our scars
I soon realised he was incredibly sociable, and people loved him. I started taking him to the care home that backs onto our garden. Some of the patients never speak, but they can all say ‘Yogi’!
He also visits a local nursery, and the kids LOVE him. You always want to give back to the community, and Yogi is my faithful pup helping me do that. He’s my shadow, so kind and gentle. But if you drive an Amazon van, he suddenly thinks he’s a Doberman!
Lola is a rescue dog who has been with us a little over a year ago. She came to us this fully grown dog who still had many many puppy tendencies. We rescued her just before she got to the rehoming centre.
She is this large oaf who doesn’t realise her size, thinking she’s a lap dog. Lola loves a cosy blanket, hates being cold, wet and hates when the wind blows her ears.
Life during lockdown would have been impossible without his companionship
We still have a long way to go with training but she has changed our lives so much. She’s like a wee companion for myself and we’re either playing in the garden together, going for fun walks or cosying in bed watching a movie together. Lola loves her comforts and believe it or not, she loves the vets.
When she jumps up her paws go on your shoulders and she gives you almost a human cuddle.