Reader's Digest Australia Dec/Jan 2025

True Tales of Pampered Pets People will do just about anything for their animals, as your stories show BY Reader’s Digest Readers YOUR TRUE STORIES TMB STUDIO Hound Couture My shelter dog, Eddie, was a muscular mix of Labrador retriever and pit bull, with very little body fat and lots of stamina. He loved to swim in the frigid Puget Sound. We’d have to drag him out even if it was snowing. His little body would shiver for hours, so when we were back at home, I’d warmhimup with blankets right out of the dryer. Eventually, I got him a custom wetsuit made from sleek turquoise and black neoprene. He’d get excited as soon as I brought it out. After that, it was even harder to get him out of the water. —linda renner Eviction Notice There’s only one chair to watch TV in my small loft. Miss Kitty usually sits on my lap for a few minutes, then gets on the arm of the chair and pats my shoul- der. This is my signal to sit on the floor so she can have the chair to herself. Once, I decided to stand my ground, and she left the room and was standoff- ish the next day. The message was clear: Concede or face the consequences. —judy crane That Dog’ll Hunt I was away one Easter and left my hus- band and our toy poodle, Duke, home alone. My husband celebrated by filling plastic Easter eggs with dog treats and hiding them around the house. Duke was delighted. When he found one, he would crush the egg with his paw to get the treat inside. A tradition was born, and we now hold an outside doggy Eas- ter egg hunt each year in our yard for all our pups and grandpups. —jeanette sukhu The Juice Is Worth the Squeeze My bird, Benny, loves a few sips of my orange juice in the morning. I prefer no pulp, but one time when I bought full pulp, Benny happily picked every piece from inside the glass every day until the carton was empty. Now we both have orange juice with pulp. —Sharon Kalinoski Guesthouse Turned Doghouse Thunder, a dog at the shelter where I volunteer, was going to be euthanized, so my husband and I brought her home and fostered her. She was scared of visitors and our other dogs, so we decided I’d move into the guesthouse in our backyard with her until she was adopted. Of course, we ended up adopting her permanently ourselves, andThunder and I continued to stay in the guesthouse. The next five years we had her were a series of texts between my husband and me: “Yard?” “Clear.” “Not yet.” “Coming out.” We never regretted upending our life for this wonderful dog. She was affectionate, playful and joyful every day. —Julie Siebert The Prince’sThrone We bought a miniature recliner for our shih tzu, Earp, so he could sit between photography by Emiko Franzen readersdigest.com.au     109 reader ’ s digest