And you thought you were potty about your pooch!
Oil paintings. Sculptures. Jewellery. Cushion covers... meet the women so devoted to their dogs that they’ve turned their homes into shrines to their faithful friends
AS a nation, it’s well known we adore our pets, especially dogs, with over a quarter of the population now owning one.
But a new survey of 60,000 pet owners by insurers, PetPlan, shows we’re becoming more obsessed than ever.
It found 41 per cent called their dogs their best friends, more than a quarter had dumped a partner because they didn’t get along with their pet and 50 per cent said they’d forgo luxuries such as holidays rather than leave their pet at home.
Some go even further — emblazoning their dogs’ faces onto household items such as mugs, coasters, towels, lunchboxes, necklaces, calendars and even works of art. LAUREN LIBBERT meets the women who have turned their homes into shrines to their four-legged friends . . .
I BOUGHT A HOUSE SO I COULD RESCUE NELLIE laura roSeNthal, 50, from Borehamwood in hertfordshire, works in training and development. her dog Nellie, eight, is a lurcher. laura says:
I have so many items in the image of Nellie because I’m completely besotted with her. I once even ordered a box of marshmallows with her face on them, but they’re too cute to eat!
I first saw Nellie in 2015, after I’d been made redundant from my corporate job. I wanted a change in lifestyle and to work with animals so I started volunteering at a local animal shelter. as soon as I saw her, there was something about Nellie.
She lived in a corner kennel and, unlike the other dogs at the shelter who would almost bite your hand off when you fed them, she would look at you with her big soulful eyes and would take the food gently from my hand.
She captured my heart right there and then.
She’d been discovered as a young stray and had been in shelters most of her life but, because she’s not pretty to the average eye, she was completely overlooked and no one wanted her.
I mentioned to the shelter workers that I’d love to take her home and they kept telling me to take her. ‘ But I have a flat with no garden,’ I said. ‘Then sell it!’ came the answer.
One day, while having dinner with a friend, I decided to take action. ‘I’m going to sell my flat and adopt Nellie!’ I said. and that’s exactly what I did. It took a while but finally, in September 2017, I had a house with a garden and was able to bring Nellie home.
She’s quite aloof. If she could speak, I’m sure she’d say: ‘Stop kissing me!’ She likes to have me in her eye line but doesn’t necessarily want to sit next to me.
her favourite spot is under the bed in the spare room, although she does sleep on the floor next to my bed.
I am always taking pictures and videos of her, although I try not to post too many on Facebook as I’m aware not everyone is dog-mad like me.
My friends and family think I’m a bit bonkers and my sister says it’s a good job I don’t have children because I’d always be saying they were the best! I am single now but any new partner would have to like dogs and really like Nellie. Otherwise it would be a definite no-no.
I’m a sucker for any dog-related products. If anything interesting comes up on my Facebook feed, I need to have it. I’ve probably spent about £550 on dog-related things, including a calendar, cushions and several works of art.
The pop-art canvas was fun to design as I could use funky colours and get it to fit in with my decor. It cost about £80.
My brother- in- law did an oil painting of her and spent hours taking pictures until he got the one photo he felt captured her character.
I treasure the two giant canvases which depict her sleeping because I never saw her sleep at the shelter as she was always too stressed during the day. So seeing her sleep now brings me huge pleasure. Whenever I see anything with Nellie’s image on, it makes me smile. No birthday or Christmas is complete without a dog present.
The most I spent on an item for Nellie was buying her my current house!
MY HUSBAND SAYS I LOVE THE DOG MOST Victoria alter, 50, is a headteacher from North-West london. She is married to Paul and they have two children,
Emily, 22, and Rebecca, 19. Her dog Flossy is an eight-year-old Westie Bichon. Victoria says:
I had a Westie called Ziggy when I was a little girl and apparently I used to dress her up. I can’t really remember any of that but my childhood is definitely where my love of Westies comes from.
I was the ‘crazy dog person’ at the school gates when my children were at primary school, talking constantly to the owner of a cute Westie Bichon so I could sneak in a few strokes. Every day I’d come home and beg my husband to get a dog, but he wasn’t keen as he never had dogs and the kids were young and he felt we had enough on our plate.
It took me three years to persuade him and, by then, I’d lost contact with the owner of that Westie. But I managed to track her down and asked if I could come and visit her, just to check this was the kind of dog I still wanted. and when I saw her, I knew I had to have that breed, so I found a breeder in Wales and got Flossy when she was a puppy. I loved her from day one. I’d wanted her for so long and she was always excited to see me. I work full-time so the highlight of my weekend is getting out there into the wild and walking her with friends. Paul also works away a lot so she’s great company; I’d hate to come home to an empty house. Paul jokes I love her more than him but he secretly adores her too, as do our daughters. Friends always buy me presents that are Flossyrelated and I even have pictures, calendars and a mug at work. I am totally obsessed and I’m always looking for more things I can have Flossy’s image put on! Family and friends laugh at the amount of Westie stuff I have but they all accept me for who I am. I’ve had a special birthday recently — I turned 50 — and that’s when I received my treasured photo collage of Flossy from my husband and a friend bought me the customised Flossy apron. I’ve probably spent hundreds of pounds in doggy items over the years. On holidays, I’ll pick up a few knick- knacks like soaps with Westies on them and I always like to find bits and pieces. I always get Westie cards for my birthday. although I’ve probably had the whole range in the world — it’s always a challenge for friends to find me a new one!
WOOKIE GOT HIS OWN VALENTINE Nikki LaNE, 48, is a post office clerk from Hitchin in Hertfordshire. She is married to Jon and their dog, Wookie, five, is a Polish lowland sheepdog. Nikki says:
My dOgs are like my children. My husband Jon and I never wanted to have a family — we’re more animal lovers — so I suppose our dogs, Wookie and solo, took the place of kids.
We plan holidays around them, take pictures of them and I even got a part-time job in the local post office so I could spend more time with them. and yes, I love to buy and make stuff with their cute little faces on! Whenever I see something unusual pop up on my Facebook feed I can’t resist. That’s how I got the necklaces, coasters and hoodies — I just like anything with their faces on.
I love doing crafts and I go on day courses working with ceramics or glass and the teacher always asks what kind of design we want to do. For me, it’s a no-brainer. It’s always dogs!
I had a dog in a previous marriage that didn’t work out and we ended up having to rehome him, which was awful, so when I met and married Jon, I knew I wanted another dog — this time for keeps.
Jon is allergic to some breeds and when I discovered these gorgeous shaggy dogs were hypoallergenic, I immediately sought out a breeder and put my name down for Wookie, who arrived at eight weeks old.
We always wanted two dogs so they could be friends — but two young puppies together was asking for trouble, so we waited a couple of years before getting solo and the pair got on brilliantly.
devastatingly, we lost solo five weeks ago. he had an aggressive form of cancer and went downhill so quickly we didn’t even have time for treatment.
I am obsessed with Wookie. he sleeps on the floor next to my side of the bed and I’ve just converted our spare room into a craft room and bought him his very own Chesterfield armchair so he can sit and snooze while I work on a project.
Jon is less enthused with all the Wookie- related things I buy. I know I’ve got a bit of a problem — or, should I say, weakness — but although I’ve spent upwards of £500 on doggy memorabilia, I’ve definitely not reached my limit! I love looking at pictures of Wookie everywhere.
I’ve got a pair of customised handmade pottery sculptures of the dogs from a lady in Poland. They cost around £100 for the pair. I also have lots more things from her — jewellery, vases and a really unusual and beautiful ceramic lamp with two Polish Lowland sheepdogs on it.
I have some lovely items too, including a bright red cushion with Wookie’s name on it. I bought it for him for Valentine’s day as he likes a pillow to rest his chin on, but it’s actually too nice for that, so it’s on a chair in the sitting room now. I may have to buy him another one so he actually gets to use one!
I have handmade glass likenesses, too. They hang on the patio door handles and are probably the most unusual things I have had made by someone other than myself. I also have a silver pendant that is etched from a photograph. I wear it all the time.