Victoria gave Ozzy a new home last year, and he’s making each and every day count

Ozzy was surrendered to the vet practice I worked in at 10 months old and needed to be given a second chance. I was hoping to get my first dog since moving out of my family home in summer 2023, but I agreed to take Ozzy on in August 2022 (a year earlier!) and have never looked back.

He is the most intelligent (although he does very often fall off the bed in the middle of the night!), friendly and loving dog I have ever met. He loves coming with me to look after my horse every morning and evening, goes on long walks to lots of different places, and he even went stand up paddle boarding with me the first weekend I had him.

His favourite place to go is the beach, he LOVES going for a swim, a long walk and then finishing with a doggy ice cream. His equal favourite place is in the bed, and at 3am every morning he creeps up from the end of the bed and cuddles up in between me and his dad underneath the duvet. I am new to the county I currently live in, so it has been great fun exploring the countryside with Oz by my side. Our little rescue pup has given us endless fun and I can’t wait for the years ahead with him.

He even went stand up paddle boarding with me the first weekend I had him

Jennifer’s daughter was really struggling after she had to leave school due to her autism – but that all changed when Willow came along

My daughter, now 15, has been home-schooled since she was 11. For a little context, she has autism, so secondary school really took a toll on her mental health. The constant overstimulation would leave her tired for days on end. Eventually she couldn't continue at the school, so we had to take her out.

About a year ago, things were getting quite bad. She was barely showering or cleaning herself, she wasn’t leaving the house due to rising anxiety, and she really wasn’t the happy little girl I know and love. She’s always had a connection with animals, and her love for them has been a coping mechanism, so we got her Willow.

We’re currently planning to get her trained to be an assistance dog for my daughter

To say this bettered her life is a massive understatement. Willow is a playful pooch. She’ll bring you a toy anytime to try to get you to play. She loves to play tug with anything. She likes it when we sit on the floor and throw dog biscuits for her to chase and eat. She also enjoys bringing us bones to hold while she chews them – it's often stinky, but it's how she bonds, and we love her for it! She also loves her cuddles, so she’ll curl up on our laps and sleep whenever possible.

Having the extra responsibility of this fluffball in my daughter’s life has helped tremendously. She now leaves the house to walk her, she comes out of her room more to spend time with Willow, and she’s even more confident talking to people with Willow nearby! We’re currently planning to get her trained to be an assistance dog for my daughter. She’s the little superhero we needed.

From her clumsy nature to her friendship with the family kitten, Wulfwynn has brought endless joy, love and laughter to Em’s life

Wulfwynn enhances the lives of myself, my husband and our young son with her affection and antics. As an Irish Wolfhound, she is completely unaware of her size, and clumsiness is definitely the order of the day. She trips over her own legs, bumps into things, and insists on trying to sit on our laps, despite being far taller than I am on her hind legs, let alone our son!

She can be a bit of a mess too, always emerging from the woods covered in leaves and twigs! However, all this awkwardness disappears when she reaches the ferns on the edge of the woods during our daily walks. Then, she flies like a bird, leaping and bounding through the undergrowth – a thing of beauty and elegance.

She insists on trying to sit on our laps, despite being far taller than I am on her hind legs

She is particularly funny with our Bengal kitten. They are definitely partners in crime. Montmorency the kitten knocks things off the piano so that Wulfwynn can chew them! They chase each other round the garden, play-fight (Montmorency giving as good as he gets), and then curl up together.

One morning, when Montmorency was still a tiny kitten, and Wulfwynn was already coming into her full size, we came down to find that we had accidentally shut both animals in the kitchen together overnight. Wulfwynn was lying on the hard floor, looking aggrieved, while the kitten was sprawled luxuriously on the huge dog bed, looking smug with satisfaction! Such joy, such love, and so many laughs!

Joel loves how adventurous his dog Paddington is – she’s always out and about exploring and helping with the farm work.

Paddington love climbing trees, roofs, ladders – basically anything! She was named after Paddington Bear and she definitely lives up to the legacy.

She has her own routine!

She loves spending time on our farm helping with digging or driving the tractors.  She has her own routine of following different people around, depending who needs her help.

We call her a ‘free-range’ dog because she has her own life and we are just here to provide her with treats and food!

When she first moved in, Mary Jane ripped the house to pieces, but Natalie refused to give up on her

I fostered Mary Jane in January 2016. It was just supposed to be temporary until her owner could have her back, but it turned out he never wanted her back. So, I decided to keep her because I just knew she was special.

In the first few months, she absolutely destroyed my house. She chewed holes in my walls, chewed up and ate a few of my little boy’s toys. She ripped up my flooring and she was forever taking herself for walks by jumping over my six-foot gate.

My house wouldn’t be a home without her

Everybody told me to get rid of her because she’d never learn and she was ‘naughty’, but I believed in her and I’m so glad I did. We’re now in 2022 and she’s the most loyal and loving dog. She loves to curl up on her bed and tuck herself under her blankets with just her nose poking out.

She can be left alone without chewing a single thing. Sometimes she will still clear my six-foot gate but let’s just put that down to checking her legs and muscles are still working properly.

She’s pure white so one of her other favourite things to do is run as fast as she can and slide along the mud on her walks – the dirtier the better! My children absolutely adore her, and she adores them. My house wouldn’t be a home without her.

Dennis is the dog of Gillian’s dreams – and he’s even won round her husband, too!

After many years of persuasion, my husband finally agreed to get a dog, which was great news for my son and daughter who had always wanted one.

Not long after, I found Dennis, an adorable Border Terrier. It felt like it wasmeant to be. He has been the best thing to happen to our family since thechildren were born. Dennis has helped us get through lockdown, and to deal with our grief, as my mother-in-law sadly passed away not long before we brought him home.

Dennis has helped us get through lockdown

He’s also been my daughter’s home-school buddy and has boosted her confidence when she’s had down days. Our adorable pup has even brought a smile to my fathers-in-law’s face, for which we’ll be forever grateful.

All that being said, it’s surprisingly my husband who is Dennis’s biggest fan!