Crossbreed, Maisy top dog at Dogs Trust honours 2009

Maisy with her owner Yvonne Lofthouse and Dr Christian Jessen who presented her with the Dogged Devotion award.

CELEBRITY dog lovers came out in force on 20th May 2009, to pay tribute to the courageous canine winners of The Dogs Trust Honours 2009, in association with MedicAnimal.com.

The stars of the night were the dogs themselves: hearing dog Thelma who saved her owner’s life, Maisy who supports her owner with breast cancer, Tinker who helped two generations of one family cope with bereavement and human, Pen Farthing, who rescued stray dogs whilst serving in Afghanistan. Border Collie Skye added a touch of football fever to the evening as she wowed guests with her amazing Beckham skills. However, it was Maisy who was the over-all winner on the night, being awarded the Top Dog Award 2009.

A giant topiary dog, a golden pawprint carpet, a man size dog kennel as well as the rescue dogs themselves greeted guests at London’s Hurlingham Club as celebrities including Ben Fogle, Jenni Falconer, Camilla Dallerup, Dr Christian Jessen and Lorraine Kelly arrived to present awards.

Dog lover and presenter of The Golden Oldie Award, Ben Fogle, commented: “I was delighted to present The Golden Oldie Award for The Dogs Trust Honours 2009 - what an amazing night. It isn’t every day that you are surrounded by a room full of superhero dogs. If only every awards ceremony could be like this - ego free and somewhere where hairy legs can be celebrated!”

Tinker with her owner Yvonne Lofthouse, host Mark Durden-Smith and award presenter Ben Fogle.

Now in its second year, this year’s Dogs Trust Honours were co-hosted by TV presenter Mark Durden-Smith and Penny the Pug. Dedicated to celebrating the wonderful relationship between man and dog. Over 250 nominations were received from across the country and celebrity judges including Paul O’Grady, Kirsty Gallacher and TV presenter Kate Humble were tasked with selecting the winners in five categories.

Dogs Trust Chief Executive, Clarissa Baldwin, commented: “There wasn’t a dry eye in the house as we heard their amazing stories, proving that dogs really are man’s best friend. Heroes certainly come in all shapes and sizes and tonight they came in the form of two crossbreeds, a Border Collie, a Terrier and a former Royal Marine Sergeant.”

Other guests on the night included Katya and Ruslan Fomichev, Lisa B, Tamara Ecclestone and Robert Montague, Hannah Sandling, Raef Bjayou, Simon Sieff, Claire Sweeney, Linda Barker, Trinny Woodall and Susannah Constantine.

The winners were:
The Sun Hero Dog Award (Presented by Lorraine Kelly). This is the award for working dogs who contribute to community life by caring for, protecting and serving their human companions and colleagues. Won by Thelma, an 8 year old Crossbreed from Plymouth. She saved the life of one of her owners who had a very severe seizure in the bathroom.

The Dogs Trust Rex Factor Award (Presented by Camilla Dallerup with dog Sven) for unique talent in performing stunts. Awarded to Skye, an 8 year old Border Collie from Newbury, Berkshire. Skye's owner, Susan Bobrucki, says: “Skye even watches Manchester United matches on TV. She’s learnt shimmies, back-heels and goal scoring!”

The Dogs Trust Dog's Best Friend Award (presented by Jenni Falconer) is the award for a special human who has gone the extra mile for dogs, either through fundraising, rescuing or rehoming abandoned dogs. Pen Farthing, of Plymouth, Devon has been nominated because of his work rescuing abandoned dogs in Nowzad, Afghanistan. As a Royal Marine, Sergeant Pen Farthing found many stray dogs in Afghanistan struggling to survive in the harsh conditions. He led a small group of Marines in feeding and caring for the few dogs that had found their way into camp. Pen returned to the UK in 2007 and eventually adopted two of the dogs he had cared for in Afghanistan.

The Dogs Trust Dogged Devotion Award (Presented by Dr Christian Jessen) was won by Maisy, a 1 year old crossbreed from Harrogate. Maisy’s owner, Yvonne Lofthouse, nominated Maisy because she is helping her through extremely difficult times, including battling breast cancer, which has now spread to her liver and lungs. Yvonne says Maisy is the reason she gets up in the morning and carries on fighting.

The Medichem Golden Oldie Award (presented by Ben Fogle) is for former Dogs Trust residents (over seven years old), who have achieved an extraordinary amount in their lifetime. Won by Tinker, a 12 year old terrier from Darlington. Tinker’s owner, Gill Crawford, nominated him for the excellent emotional support he gave her during a very difficult period in her life. Gill’s father originally adopted Tinker from Dogs Trust Darlington, and he helped him through his bereavement when he became a widower. Tinker then went on to provide comfort for Gill when her father died, and finally, he was her hairy rock once more when Gill went through a painful divorce.

The Dogs Trust Top Dog Award (Presented by Dogs Trust president, The Marchioness of Northampton, and Andrew Bucher of MedicAnimal.com). Guests on the night voted for their favourite winner to be the Top Dog. They chose Maisy, the one year old crossbreed and winner of The Dogs Trust Dogged Devotion Award.