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Great
British Dogs

Meet Bea

Mandy enjoys endless adventures with her canine companion, Bea

Bea is my best friend. We go practically everywhere together and are quite well known in my neighbourhood. Her favourite things are food, affection, her cuddly bumble bee toy and riding in the back of my vintage American ‘Woody’ truck.

She’s a diva with the sweetest heart

Bea also loves the camera and has appeared in a couple of UK TV commercials – she thrives on the attention! She’s a diva with the sweetestheart and we are truly inseparable.

Having travelled extensively together, Bea is a total globetrotter, but we have now been happily settled in London for the past eight years. Here’s to many more years of love and fun with my best buddy.


Meet Miele

Egle’s kind and caring dog Miele is more like a human than a pooch!

People meet Miele and tell us she’s a human. She has this piercing, soulfullook, so when you stare into her eyes you can’t help but think ‘she gets me’. She makes you want to tell her your secrets and talk your heart out. After spending some time with her, people always feel a sense of relief and an overwhelming calmness. She’s therapeutic!

Miele is an old soul

We take Miele with us to work, and people come in just to see her. They even bring their friends! We believe Miele is an old soul and is here to share her wisdom, something we can all benefit from. And, in return, she gets our unconditional love.


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Meet Ozzie

Whether he’s sunbathing, sleeping or showering her with good morning kisses, Ozzie has brought joy to every part of Abby’s life

I have struggled with my mental health for as long as I can remember, and nothing has done more for me than Ozzie. From the minute I wake up until the moment I fall asleep, he brings me so much joy.

Oz is a retired racing Greyhound and, after a lot of training, he's now got great recall and is allowed off lead. Nothing makes me happier than seeing his smiling face as he goes hurtling past me at 40mph with his helicopter tail spinning at full force.

Every morning I wake up to him in my bed (all 100lbs of him). As soon as he hears me say ‘Good morning!’, he attacks me with kisses and throws himself into the cockroach position so I can rub his belly.

From the minute I wake up until the moment I fall asleep, he brings me so much joy

He's obsessed with sunbathing, just like me, and will do it at any opportunity. Two degrees outside? As long as the sun’s, out Oz will be on his sun lounger soaking it up. Out for a walk? Who needs exercise when you can sunbathe!

One of his favourite ways to show affection is by ‘nitting’, where he uses just his front teeth to nibble at me when I'm stroking him. His favourite game is ‘smacky bum’ where I tap his bum like bongos and we chase each other round in circles.

Ozzie goes into a deep sleep about 50 times a day, usually with his mouth agape, tongue hanging out and legs twitching (presumably chasing cats in his dreams). I also suffer from endometriosis and whenever I'm having a flare up, he just knows. He sticks to me like velcro and follows me everywhere.

I could sit and write about him forever. He really is my best friend and has changed my life more than he'll ever know. He gives me a reason to get out of bed each day. I love Oz more than anything and would be totally lost without him.


Meet Ziggy

Alison knows her strong-willed dog Ziggy is one of a kind – but that’s what makes her so loveable!

Our Ziggy is a real character. She’s extremely friendly with everyone but like most dogs, she has no concept of ownership and is very proud of the fact that she can carry two tennis balls in her mouth at once. This would be funny, but usually, the tennis balls belong to other dogs, and she’s stolen them without any remorse!

She’s stolen them without any remorse!

It’s now getting so embarrassing that we’ve had t-shirts and neck ties printed for her. They read ‘Tennis ball thief’, and the idea is to give other dog owners a heads-up, as Ziggy tends to steal a ball or two and then head off into the distance as fast as she possibly can. I usually have to take the owner’s number so we can return their pet’s favourite ball at a later date.

The goal for 2021? To finally break the habit of a lifetime and stop that thieving Madam in her tracks!


Meet Lucas

Though Lucas finds the outside world pretty daunting, he’s always happy when he’s at home with Julie and her family

Lucas is my boy, my shadow and my fur baby, and he means the world to us. He came into our lives when he was 13 months old. We don't know an awful lot about his past, other than he had two previous homes before he found us.

At home, he’s adorable. He’s the funniest, most loving dog who greets us with a happy dance and a smile. When it comes to the outside world, he just doesn't understand it. He becomes anxious, scared and is obviously uncomfortable. We’ve done everything we can to help him through this, but after five years, we’ve decided to just follow his lead.

I always say that Lucas found us

Lucas is happiest as a sofa surfer. He likes nothing more than curling up or stretching out in the sunniest spot. When I’ve been ill, he’s been at my side. When I cry, he comforts me. When we laugh, he gets excited too.

I always say that Lucas found us, and I truly believe he did. It was only when we got him home for the first time that we realised he was born on the day that my mum passed away. He was meant to live with us, support us and love us, and we were meant to return this in abundance. He’s also the reason I started my small business. So, thank you Lucas, my child with four paws.


Meet Chester

Chester started life as a lockdown puppy and ended up in a rescue centre at a very young age, but now he’s getting the lifetime of love he deserves thanks to Ezza

I was looking online to find volunteering vacancies in local animal shelters when I saw Chester’s photo on the Irlam rescue centre website. I was surprised to see such a young dog in a shelter already.

It turns out that he was lockdown dog – someone bought him, played with him as a puppy during lockdown and then dropped him off to the shelter when he became an inconvenience. His behavioural and health problems indicated physical abuse too. I couldn’t help it, I had to adopt him, even though I wasn’t really looking to get a dog in the first place.

I couldn’t help it, I had to adopt him

From the minute he got home, he did everything he could to fit in and thank me. He would come and lick my hand after every meal, he would jump around happily every time I said ‘walkies’, and he’d give me little kisses when he was happy. He also learnt to be quiet when I worked from home. Now he will just chill until 5pm without disturbing me, and appear when I finish work to remind me he’s ready for fun.

A couple of weeks after I got him, his harness broke when we were on a walk and he started running towards the street off the leash. I thought ‘that’s it, he’s gone’, as that was a very busy street and I couldn’t chase after him because I had injured my knee recently.

I stood there not knowing what to do as we had only known each other for a few weeks back then. But then something magic happened – he turned around and came back to me. He sat down, looked at me and stayed there still until I got him back on the leash. I knew then that it was meant to be.


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