Despite Lulu’s barking, shedding and laziness, Rob and his family couldn’t imagine life without her

This is Lulu. We got her from a rescue centre a few years ago after she'd clearly had quite a rough time with a breeder who'd definitely over-bred her. She just looked so sad when we saw her, and the kids fell in love with her on the first meeting.

She thinks she's a lot smaller than she is

We'd vowed to get a small to medium-sized dog, and she is NOT that! She's lazy as hell, she sheds everywhere, she barks too much for no reason, she has the most evil farts and she’s now a bit incontinent, but we love her to bits.

We even love it when she climbs up on the sofa between us, when there clearly isn't enough room for her. She thinks she's a lot smaller than she is, bless her!

Katie and her family were struggling with Freddy’s behavioural issues until Frank the pug came into their lives

Six months ago, we rehomed Freddy, a five-month-old Husky cross. He was a kind, funny bundle of energy. A month or so after his arrival, we started to notice some strange behaviours. And, after months of back and forth with vets and behaviourists, it was established that Fred suffered from a stress disorder, verging on PTSD.

With lots of work, Fred has been improving day by day, but the one thing that didn’t change was his distress when other dogs walked away from him or didn’t interact.

I work closely with a rescue centre in my job. They asked if we’d try fostering as it would help us with Fred, while also helping an unwell pug who wasn’t happy in rescue. We went over with Fred and took them both for a walk in the forest. Frank, the pug, was pretty tolerant of Fred’s manic leaping and pawing – he just waggled his little bottom and carried on.

Instantly it was like they understood one another

Frank moved in and instantly it was like they understood one another. Frank was due to have BOAS surgery so his breathing was awful, and quite hard to listen to. Fred’s yelping in the car ended almost instantly and instead he would lean against the wall of Frank’s crate, and Frank would lean back onto him.

Fred is still erratic at times, but Frank has totally changed him and our famiy life. He’s 10 days post BOAS surgery now and is the happiest, most loving boy. As both are rescues, we cannot ever imagine how someone chose to abandon either of them.

I think it’s important for people to see that dogs which require more work are also more rewarding. Everything we achieve with Fred or Frank leaves us full of pride. The boys are the very best of friends and we’re so glad we took the leap into changing Frank from our foster dog to Fred’s big (or little) brother.

The two happiest, kindest, oddest pair of dogs in the world, but the best match!

London the dog was the most meaningful gift Verity could have ever received, and she is forever grateful for him

My mum bought London for me in the summer of 2017. I went all the way to Germany to collect him. She was so happy with our new puppy – he was sweet and gentle with all our other dogs. Mum knew that I would enjoy showing him off at dogs shows, talking him for long walks and grooming him.

She also knew that she wouldn’t be with me for much longer. By November, she had passed and I was devastated. But having London gave me the strength to carry on. Just as she’d hoped, I went out for walks and took him to dog shows – he gave me a reason to keep going, day in, day out.

Gave me the strength to carry on

London was patient with my tears, staying by my side throughout everything. Now, slowly and gently, he guides me through life. From the moment I get up in the morning to the moment I arrive home from work, he’s always there for me. Recently, he became a father to a wonderful puppy called Aster, who has been like a shining light of hope for the whole family this year.

My dog London truly is the gift that keeps on giving. He enhances my existence every day, and I couldn’t be without him.

Lola has helped her owner Gemma to appreciate the simple things in life again

I have struggled with poor mental health, but Lola has been my saviour and my reason to get better. She needed me when I didn’t need myself.

Lola is an intelligent, energetic and entertaining pooch. She loves long walks and getting super muddy, but I don’t mind as she’s great company and has helped me forget about the world this last year. When out and about she’s a whirling dervish but always comes back and taps her nose on my hand when called. She loves drinking fresh water, so much so that she always lies down in the puddle or pond in order to lap it all up!

Lola has been my saviour

One of her favourite things to do is to sniff out a tennis ball in the long, wild meadows. She also loves being out in the garden with her best friend,our cat Shadow. They frolic and play together, though the cat definitely has the upper hand with his climbing prowess.

When Lola gets really excited, she runs around the fire pit and randomly digs up the ground. Thankfully, the garden is a wildlife friendly area, so wedon’t mind it getting ripped up a bit in the name of fun. If she’s tired, she loves a good nap and curls herself up into some strange positions, sleeping around our necks and against the back of the sofa.

Lola’s needs aren’t that different from my own. Long walks on wet and rainy days, exploring, observing and snuggling have helped us both to getthrough this last year.

Diane is doing everything she can to help Wish enjoy the happy life she deserves

Wish came into our lives after she retired. We've always had Collies, and had been without one for nearly five years after losing my last. Wish has some funny habits, like how she won’t eat her morning biscuits until we allsit down. She also gives you a disapproving look, like you're being told off,when you've been out and left her at home!

Wish has some funny habits

She loves her ears being tickled and often rests her head against your knees to tell you that’s what she wants. Wish makes our home a happy place, and we can only hope we’re helping her to enjoy her retirement years.

Even though she finds walking difficult, Daisy never lets that stop her from enjoying her life with her owner Gilli

Daisy is so brave. She has a neurological condition that makes her extremely wobbly on her back legs. But she just gets on with life, always happy and wagging her tail. If she falls over, she just gets up and carries on with what she was doing. She goes to hydrotherapy once a week and loves her therapist.

You can’t feel down when Daisy is around

You can’t feel down when Daisy is around as she’s just consistently happy. She makes me smile every day and has really helped me over the years, especially when I was recovering from radiotherapy and major surgery for oral cancer, where half of my tongue had to be removed and rebuilt.

Daisy didn’t care what I looked or sounded like when I was getting my new tongue round speaking clearly. She is simply my joy, along with her 9-year-old Labrador brother Kobi and our five cats. They all keep me on my toes and constantly smiling. Our dancing wobbly dog is simply amazing.