Even though Toby sometimes creates a bit of mess, he makes it up to Andrew and his family in so many ways

Toby’s a rescue dog and he makes us laugh every day. We got him a year before lockdown, and he helped us get through it.

He leads a walking group at our local community kitchen where my wife works. He meets and greets everyone, and they all love him.

He makes us laugh every day

He loves to ‘remake’ our bed and waits for us to laugh when we see it in a mess. And he loves doing zoomies at his granny's, where he destroys the lawn – but she loves him so much, it doesn't matter. He also has amazing, gorgeous ears that we call his angel wings.

Through helping her dog Tara to come out of her shell, Sharon has learned how important it is to look after herself

Three years ago, I decided to adopt a rescue dog. Fate led me to a forlorn little puppy who had been saved from a life of cruelty – her name was Tara.

It was a bumpy start. She was totally terrified and barely moved, having been mute the whole 12-hour car journey home. But with time, a lot of patience and unconditional love from me and my two gentle cats, she started to come out of her shell. She took two weeks to bark and it was months before she could sleep on her own, but slowly, her confidence grew and her beautiful fun, cuddly character emerged. She still prefers other animals to humans, but if you give her the time to get to know you, gaining her love and affection is a feeling like no other.

Together, we’ll walk through life

Adopting Tara has changed my life. I have Type 1 diabetes, which brings with it a realm of challenges. By focusing on protecting this vulnerable little pup and working to make her happy, I was distracted from my own dark thoughts. Through her I met fantastic new people in my area and got out and about, spending my days walking in nature instead of hiding at home.

Now we are a team and together, we’ll walk through life, looking out for each other and helping each other to grow. We are both the perfect example of how much good comes from accepting imperfection, and celebrating differences.

Kylo always knows exactly what his owner Suzanne needs, whether it be love, a helping hand or just a reason to smile

I have Muscular Dystrophy and am in a wheelchair, so I wasn’t sure how a puppy would fit into our lives initially, but I knew I wanted the love and companionship only a furry friend could provide.

Kylo is now one year old and has already exceeded all of my expectations. He is such a loving dog and is never happier than when he’s sitting with us and getting lots of attention. He is very sensitive to my disability and will sit by my legs as though protecting me from the world (something he doesn’t do to anyone else). He also sits and waits patiently whenever I go past in my wheelchair, and even seems to sense when my feet and legs are painful.

He has brought such love, joy and affection

He has recently learnt to bring me my socks when I ask him to, after many months of grabbing them and taking off! We all utterly adore him, and he has brought such joy, love and affection into our family life.

Whenever you enter room, he will always greet you with a very enthusiastic tail wag – we call it the helicopter. He’s so smart and learnt all his commands and tricks in no time. Although, despite his intelligence, he is still absolutely terrified of the microwave!

It’s no exaggeration to say that Thelma has changed Debbie’s life, allowing her to regain her confidence.

My dog gave me my life back. I suffer from Anxiety and Depression and a few years ago, I couldn't speak and didn’t leave the house. My dad found an opportunity to train dogs for a charity, so I plucked up the courage and applied. A few months later a little eight-week-old Golden Retriever called Thelma came into our lives. She was a cute, golden ball of fluff who quickly melted our hearts. She is the best thing to ever happen to me.

Made our lives so much better!

Her smiley face and silly ways have brought us all so much joy. She alerts me when I'm having an anxiety attack by nudging me and giving me a cuddle, which really calms me down. This has helped me to leave the house on my own and find my voice again, because when I’m with her people don’t want to talk to me – it’s Thelma they’re interested in!

Thelma is the most happy, caring and loving dog you will ever meet, and she’ll always give you lots of kisses! She loves eating (who doesn't?) and helping people. She can pick things up for me, put things in the washer and out again and even does the dusting.

Everyone that meets her agrees she’s an amazing dog. Without her, I wouldn’t have a job or be where I am in life today. She’s changed my whole world and I couldn’t be without her.

Since adopting him, Natalie has watched Duke grow from a timid puppy into a cheeky, happy dog.

I met Duke when I was on holiday in Zante, visiting the dog shelter we often volunteer at. The day we arrived, a little dog was running around inside, clearly terrified. We had to use our ham sandwiches to try and coax him towards us! Luckily it worked, and we got him back into his pen. We kept an eye on him for the next week or so, but sadly, on the last day of our trip, he became ill and had to go to the vets. We sat with him right up until we had to get on our plane home – it was heartbreaking.

The vet kept us up-to-date and a week later, Duke had recovered and was allowed back to the shelter. By this point, we had decided to adopt him and bring him home to live with us when he was ready.

Duke is now a solid part of the family

He arrived three months later, extremely nervous and unsure of everything. We took him to meet my parents’ three other dogs, who are also from Greece. He was nervous at first but he did well, soon becoming best friends with one of the dogs Ella. Ten months on and Duke is now a solid part of the family. Since I work from home, he’s had to learn how to deal with my constant company. He likes to come and poke his head into the camera while I’m on a call to say hello to my colleagues!

He still has his moments and he's a very skittish boy, but once he's approved you (he does this by sticking his nose in your face and licking your ears), he’ll happily sit on top of you and wait for a tummy rub!

Like all the other rescues we work with, Duke has his 'quirks', some of which will stay with him forever and some that will disappear the more confident he gets. It’s lovely to watch his character grow as he gets more comfortable around us. He’s come such a long way already, both physically and mentally, and I can’t wait to watch him blossom even more.

When their belongings unexpectedly disappear, Lucy and her family have come to realise that Scrabble is usually the culprit

We got Scrabble at the start of June this year, and since then, she has become this whirlwind of affection, fun and mischief in our lives. She loves stealing the laundry as you hang it on the line. We only know something has gone because suddenly she streaks past you and disappears – we call it being Scrabbled!

One time, we tried to put up guttering in our new shed, and at the key moment we found the connectors had been Scrabbled. Other times, we might go to put on walking boots, and one of them has been Scrabbled. Where do they go? Quite often in the wild part of our garden at the back, or if we are lucky, just in the dog bed!

She has become this whirlwind of affection, fun and mischief in our lives

Scrabble won’t let you not love her. She literally bounds into your arms and licks your nose if you are not cuddling her or playing. And then, just as suddenly, she is curled up asleep.

Tonight, I walked her and my other dog, Corry, down the lane from my house at dusk. Her delight and curiosity towards the deer, owls and squirrels was so heart-warming. She always loves sniffing and sometimes eating flowers, and she’ll come up for a quick stroke if she’s unsure where we’re going. I could never be alone or lonely with that little girl!