Misha’s playful dog, Koda, makes the world a brighter place with his funny antics

I got my dog from a shelter in Macedonia. He was funny and quirky from the first day I met him, which is what drew me towards him. Koda is like a human – he sighs and gives the perfect side-eye stare when he’s annoyed.He also constantly wants to play and is obsessed with belly rubs. He’ll try and get one from every person he sees, even if they’re a total stranger.

He’s a large dog but a complete baby

Koda adores cats but sadly for him, the affection isn’t usually reciprocated. He’s a large dog but a complete baby, with a phobia of tiny pups! He’s so loving, funny and inquisitive, and I can’t imagine my life without him.

Life isn’t easy for Otto or owner Sarah, but together they take on the world every single day

We got Otto when I was waiting for an operation on my eye. He gave me a reason to get up every morning. He was 10 weeks old and needed an urgent new home due to flooding and so we went and got him.

He is the best friend I could ask for

He is the best friend I could ask for. He hasn’t had the best start in life – bad breeding meant he was underweight, and we found out a few months ago that he has severe hip dysplasia and needed both his hips replacing. He had his first operation in August at 11 months old and next week will be going for his other hip replacement surgery.

Despite all of that he has been as good as gold and kept me going. I’m at high risk of Covid so have had to stay home since March and again he made it all bearable. He’s just lovely and after saving for his operations I would love to give him a treat.

Shadow has come a long way since Ashley and her partner rescued him as a puppy, and now he’s their favourite travel companion

My partner and I started our search for our first ever dog five and a half years ago. We knew we wanted to rehome to a rescue, so we got in contact with lots of charities. That’s when we saw a scruffy black dog who had just made his way to the UK after being rescued from the streets in Romania.

After meeting at his foster home (and noticing he’d grown A LOT in the few weeks since his rescue), we brought that scruffy puppy home. It just so happened that his name was already Shadow, which I loved as Homeward Bound was my favourite childhood movie! In the first few months, as he got used to living in a home for the first time, we started to think ‘What have we gotten ourselves into?!’ But with weekly training sessions and agility, he soon got the hang of his home life.

He makes our little family of three complete

Fast forward a couple of years, and we decided to buy a motor home and travel Europe for six months. Now Shadow is a big dog, so we were a little apprehensive about him in our small home on wheels, but he took to life on the road like a duck to water. Every time we pulled up in a new place, he’d be at the windscreen begging to get out and explore!

In the past five years, we’ve taken Shadow to 12 countries, up countless mountains, on boats, on trains and just about anywhere else we could! He’s our best friend and he makes our little family of three complete.

Rex brought joy back into Gemma’s life after her mental health suffered while she was in the Army

I got Rex at a very low point in my life. I was in the Army, based down south. I felt very alone and was struggling with my mental health and had a silly attempt at taking some pills.

I truly believe he saved my life

I realised the only thing that gave me any joy was the time I spent around dogs. So, I came across someone looking to rehome Rex and I considered whether I could be the person he needed. I believed I was, and it turns out he was exactly what I needed too.

I truly believe Rex saved my life. Four years on, I’m out of the Army and I have a fiancée who has two kids, so me and Rex are now part of their family.

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.

With Brodie around, Lara’s days are always filled with laughter

Brodie is known as the ‘sun worshipper’, because he likes to carry his bed around the house and place it wherever he can soak up the best rays! Another of his hilarious antics involves finding and carrying sticks that are at least three times as large as him. If you get in his way, he won’t walk around you but instead keeps bashing into your leg until you move.

Keeps bashing your leg until you move

He likes to help me in the garden – although help is a loose term, as mostly he just puts his tennis ball where I’m about to plant something. Brodie didn’t have the best start in life, as he was put into a recuse centre, but now he’s truly flourished and is our very own little prince.