Editor’s Note

Ihave to keep Tango on a tight leash when we go to Emmarentia Dam for Sunday afternoon walks. He’s not about to bite another dog, nor, heaven forbid, a person. Nor is he going to run away — he’s long since realised, after being rescued from a life on the street, that his best bet is with us. No, he’s kept on the leash because there’s a steep rise on the bank of the dam and, if he gets ahead of me, I miss the unadulterated pleasure of watching him leap, legs splayed in an attitude of wild abandon, into the water ... with an enormous splash.

After paddling in circles, chasing the geese (knowing he’ll never catch them doesn’t temper his enthusiasm) while choking on the water (which he seems to enjoy), he leaps back out of the dam to shake off and repeat.

It’s joy for both of us. Most people have similar stories about why they adore their pets. In his book A Big Little Life: A Memoir of a Joyful Dog, Dean Koontz wrote: “No matter how close we are to another person, few human relationships are as free from strife, disagreement, and frustration as is the relationship you have with a good dog.”

For this reason we teamed up with the SPCA to do a photoshoot to raise awareness and funds for their animals, and we dressed them in accessories created by top local designers just to add to the (bow) wow factor.

So curl up with your best mate — or visit the SPCA and get yourself a new one because this edition of Lifestyle has gone to the dogs.