From his funny quirks to his winning smile, Mylo has brought nothing but joy into Liam’s life

I rescued Mylo from Spain when he was a pup. Ever since the first day he moved over, he’s never not had a smile on his face. He’s such a positive influence in my life, as his happiness takes away all the negativity.

He’s such a positive influence in my life

He has such a funny habit when I have a cup of tea. He sits there, waiting to make sure he gets a bit at the end. And if I tell him ‘no’, oh the back chat I get!

Mylo also has lots of love to give, as I rescued another dog called Oscar, and Mylo takes care of him like a brother.

Even though some people didn’t think Fibee was beautiful, it was love at first sight when Kat became her dog sitter

Fibee came to me through a dog sitting site, five years ago now. Her owners were French and wanted somebody to look after her when they went back to France, sometimes for weeks at a time. At first, Fibee was very nervous, but I took her everywhere with me and she slowly became more confident. She trusted me.

I didn’t even notice what bad shape she was in. She had decayed teeth, a scabby eye and no hair. I don’t really know how to explain it. Everyone else reacted with a slight recoil, but I thought she was lovely. And love is blind.

The more time she spent at mine, the happier she seemed to be there. Three years ago, her owners asked me whether I’d like to look after her full time. They were having babies so she was being more and more neglected, and she just loved her visits to mine.

I can’t believe how lucky I am

I honestly couldn’t believe it – I could have never imagined such an outcome when I first met her. But I said yes, without hesitation.

Before Fibee, I was a bit wild, spending weekends out with mates. Nothing too crazy, but nothing too healthy either. Fibee changed all that. She gave me a routine. I knew I needed to take care of her and make her feel safe.

No vets could tell me what was wrong with her skin. But I got her teeth sorted and slowly, with a grain-free diet, her eye got a lot better.

Now it’s like she’s had a second lease of life. She comes on hikes with me, 5+ miles on the trot. She’s a favourite at the leisure centres I work for, and she just helped me propose to my fiancée.

Sometimes I just stare at her and can’t believe how lucky I am that she chose me.

Kai struggles with eating, but his owner Sandra has always been there to help

Kai is a Boxer dog. We collected him on Valentine’s Day 2018, when he was eight weeks old. Right from the start, we thought there was something wrong as he was always sick. We took him to vets and the first x-rays told us he had a large oesophagus. Then we went to hospital for a Visio camera, and they told us he has megaesophagus, which means he can’t eat normal dog food, biscuits or anything hard. He can’t even have water.

Initially, all his food had to be blended so it was very soft, and we fed him by hand from a height so it would go down to his stomach. After feeding, he had to be held upwards for at least 20 minutes. He was fed in our arms up to five times a day.

As he got older, my husband made him his first Bailey chair, where I would feed Kai and then he would sit there for his ‘up time’. It was hard for the first couple of years but started to ease a bit in his third year. He’s now five years old, and last year he started having treats and drops of water throughout the day. He’s still fed three times a day in his chair, followed by his up time.

He's small for his age and he’s often mistaken for a puppy – he’s maybe only 50% of a normal dog’s size, but he gives us 100% love. He loves to snuggle up to us. He’s also a typical Boxer in many ways and he has all the usual traits. He knows what he wants and how to get it. We wouldn’t change him for the world.

He’s maybe only 50% of a normal dog’s size, but he gives us 100% love

Maureen is so proud of the way Buddy never tires of helping other dogs

Buddy is a dog with a great nature. He has just donated blood for the 12thtime. We have been told he has saved around 50 dogs now, which is truly incredible. He's always happy to go in and do his bit, and even now when Ican't accompany him into the room, it doesn’t seem to bother him. I think it’s probably because he knows he'll get pampered by the blood bank team!

He has saved around 50 dogs

Sam’s dog Indie is a bit of a mischief-maker, but that’s what makes her so adorable

Indie is a family dog. She absolutely loves our children, especially when they let her on the sofa for early morning cuddles.She also enjoys long walks in the woods when it’s dry and occasionally the beach too, although she isn’t a fan of the sea, or any water for that matter.

Often ends up licking people in the face

I wish I had kept a diary of everything Indie destroyed when she was a puppy. She was such a heavy chewer and sometimes you just couldn’t catch her in time.There was one infamous occasion when we were settingup my son’s new tent, and as we stood back to admire it, Indie put her jaws around the guide rope and brought the whole thing down!

Indie gets a lot of attention, which she loves, but she doesn’t quite know how to handle herself, and often ends up licking people in the face – she’s especially partial to those with beards. It’s always a challenge trying to keep from scaring away strangers in the park.

Poppy is an important and treasured member of Vicki’s family. Life simply wouldn’t be the same without her

Poppy has been my little ray of sunshine through some pretty tough times. She never fails to make me smile, no matter what’s going on in my life. She is also the apple of my husband’s eye, and was a big part of our wedding – she wore her flower collar with pride and posed perfectly for all the photos!

She makes us laugh every day

We welcomed a baby into our lives in 2019, who has since become a typical toddler. He adores Poppy just as much as we do, and calls her his little ‘Poppy dog’. She really is the gentlest and most understanding dog I’ve ever known. Sadly, she’s battled with arthritis for many years now and has also ruptured her ligament, so we’ve had to swap her field-sprints for some slow and steady pram-walks, but I don’t think she minds too much.

She makes us laugh every day, particularly because she thinks we don’t know that she steals the cat’s biscuits the minute we go to bed – unfortunately for her, she’s clumsy and always knocks the big bowl over, which gives her away every time! Poppy is our crazy pup, always full of energy and ready to play, especially when there are bubbles and balloons involved. She is my constant companion and best friend.