Mell has worked hard to bring her dog Bess out of her shell, and now there’s only one thing that can scare her...

Bess is a rescue Border Collie. We’ve had her for just over two years now. When we first brought her home it was quite difficult, because she wasn’t used to living in a house. She would just hide under the trees in the garden all the time – but now she has fully settled in.

Particularly dislikes the TV show, The Chase

She’s a very gentle dog, and doesn’t bark when you come to the door – rather, she just sits in the hall and waits patiently. She is very afraid of noise and particularly dislikes the TV show, The Chase, and especially Bradley Walsh! I don’t know what it is about him, but every time it comes on she just sits there and shakes.

We’ve bought Bess many toys over the years but she ignores them all, because her favourite thing to play with are flower pots. Bess may have been neglected in the first year of her life, but we make up for it by showering her with endless love and affection every day.

Maggie is always amazed at how empathetic her dog Diesel is, as he always knows when she’s feeling down, and how to cheer her up.

Diesel is the best dog ever. A few years back, I was really suffering with depression. On one particularly bad day I was in the house on my own feeling very low, and he noticed this and would not leave my side. He has always picked up when I don't feel well physically or mentally, and will never leave my side. It’s like he has to keep an eye on me!

He loves everyone he meets, always throwing himself on the floor at people’s feet. Whenever we go out he always has to have two tennis balls, as he won’t give the ball back unless he has another one to hold!

Will never leave my side

He knows his toys by the name, of "MyMine", which was started when he was a puppy and has just stuck. As soon as we say ‘go get your "MyMine"’ he will run off and come back with something, but it won't always be a toy – sometimes he’ll run off and then come back all excited with nothing in his mouth at all, just what looks like a huge grin!

Our neighbours will often give him a biscuit over the fence, and as soon as he hears them outside, he climbs into one of the flowerpots to make himself taller to make sure they see him. He is caring, loving and a bundle of fun, and everyone that meets him loves him.

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.

For owner Joanne and family, the addition of Dotty to their lives has been just what they needed

We got Dotty back in January as a rescue dog. Little did we know what an important little dog she would be.

In the morning you wake up to Dotty on your head!

I started to suffer from anxiety and was signed off work for four weeks and Dotty gave me the strength to go out and walk her. Then during lockdown she has been our rock. Our son is autistic and she helps him a lot.

Dotty is a sausage dog crossed with a Jack Russell so is full of energy, jumps runs and keeps us on our feet. Dotty does not like to sleep on her own so spends the night at the bottom of our bed but in the morning you wake up to Dotty on your head! Her favourite things to do are play with her toys and snuggle up to you.

Mika came into Diane’s life with various behavioural issues due to her difficult past, but now she’s finally living the life she deserves

Mika is a rescue dog. After we lost our last dog, I felt I needed someone else to cuddle. My husband said we were too old for a puppy, so we went to the RSPCA.

The kennels opened and out came a few dogs all barking ‘TAKE ME, TAKE ME’, except for one who was looking and sniffing, without barking. ‘That’s the one’, I said.

We were told she was used to kill badgers as a job. She wasn’t a pet, so she’d had no interaction with people, no affection, and she’d been trained not to bark as that could have alerted the badgers. She has a tattoo in her ear related to the organisation she belonged to. She also has a split tongue and a few teeth missing.

She’s become very loving and sleeps by my side

Mika had various problems that we’ve overcome. For instance, she had no fear of other dogs, however huge they were, and used to take balls from their mouths. She wasn’t affectionate, and she was very difficult to feed. In fact, she would sometimes go a day or more without food, so we had to visit the vet every week to get her weight taken.

Now, she’s become very loving and sleeps by my side. She walks so close to me, I could almost fall over her. We changed her diet, so she’s put on weight, but she still doesn’t get on with other dogs if she’s on a lead. We’ve have had her for seven years now – it’s been a bit scary at times, but well worth it.

Ezra helped Katy through her post-natal depression and now he is a patient and gentle companion for her two-year-old son

Ezra is our whippet, our first dog and my first ever dog. He makes us laugh every day with his scattiness and crazy zooming and he gives the best cuddles. He also steals any bit of food available and he has the perfect pointed snout for sniffling the last of my tea, even when I think he's fast asleep.

Ezra was four years old when our little boy was born, two months before the pandemic started. At first, Ezzy was scared of the crying, but he soon came to be a doting big brother.

He’s always there for me

That crying felt like it didn't stop for 13 months though as our son had severe colic, and I spiralled into severe post-natal depression and anxiety. Ezra was, and still is, always there for me. He’s a constant calm support and he’s so patient and gentle with our now two-year-old little boy.

Ezra has really helped put a smile on my face every day, and he got me out of bed or out the house, even when I really didn't want to. I will love him always.