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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Lifestyle
Sophia Money-Coutts

The pet I’ll never forget: Dennis the terrier – who once farted on Jilly Cooper’s sofa

A fluffy terrier puppy looks up while standing next to an unfurled toilet roll
Puppy love … Dennis the lovable menace. Photograph: PR

In the spring of 2024, my boyfriend and I lay in bed scrolling through photos of puppies. What about this one? Or that one? We had only been dating for six months or so, but had become besotted quickly, making long-term plans and talking about our future.

Then I found the one: a scruffy, small terrier with black and brown markings on his back that looked like the world map and eyes like Galaxy Minstrels. We named him Dennis to connect him to my mum’s terrier, Beano, because she was ill at the time and I’d failed to provide her with a grandchild. A puppy was the consolation present.

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