In association with Dogs Today, the Heroic Hounds of 2015 have been selected as the nation’s bravest dogs, who together with their owners are celebrating triumph over tragedy at SuperDogs Live, which takes place at the London Pet Show this weekend (9-10 May at London ExCeL).
SuperDogs Live is presenting former Britain’s Got Talent contestant Damon Scott with a Heroic Hound award for saving the life of his Cavalier Sophie and for his ongoing efforts to help improve the way dogs are treated in Britain. Damon is the first ‘human’ to be awarded Heroic Hound status by SuperDogs Live.
Damon saved Sophie’s life after hearing how badly she was being treated by her owner at the time. When he first laid eyes on her, she was so sick, frail and fragile he knew instantly that she was just hours away from death. He took her straight home with him, nursed and bathed her overnight and took her to the vet the next morning, who confirmed she had an untreated heart defect which was putting her life at risk. Sophie was immediately given life saving medication, and Damon continued to do everything he could to nurse her back to health.
Although Sophie was left deaf, with a badly inflamed heart and with no teeth, remarkably against the odds, she survived. Cavaliers rarely make it to their teens, so at 13 Sophie is testament to the level of care and love Damon has provided her. With her kind and gentle nature, not only has she won Damon’s heart, she has stolen the nation’s too. Since making a full recovery Sophie has made an appearance on BBC2’s Strictly Come Dancing; It Takes Two and has her own YouTube video which has had over 86,000 views. (View the video here – www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPQLNqQEF_M)
After experiencing first-hand how mistreated some dogs can be, Damon is campaigning to help improve the long term health of Cavalier King Charles Spaniels together with his partner Craig Revel Horwood of Strictly Come Dancing (and of course Sophie!). With a life-long love for dogs, Damon continues to encourage others to adopt dogs instead of buying puppies.
Additional winners of the Heroic Hound category include Jackadoodle Doodles, a rescue dog who has helped his owner Emma overcome depression; Fleur, a Romanian rescue dog who was so poorly treated that if her owner, Val Phillips from Valgrays Border Collie Rescue hadn’t stepped in, her life would have been over; and Maggie the Shih Tzu, a fully trained PAT (Pets As Therapy) dog who assists Earls High School in Halesowen with their reading scheme.
As well as crowning the nation’s Heroic Hounds, SuperDogs Live will see the UK’s most talented and entertaining dogs participate in a spectacular show hosted by Channel 4’s Supervet Noel Fitzpatrick, for awards in categories including Strictly Doggy Dancing and Most Talented Dog.
Smurf, winner of SuperDogs Live 2014, will face new competition as he returns to defend his title of Most Talented Dog; while Strictly Doggy Dancing finalists include Trip and his owner Lucy Heath, who fans of SuperDogs Live may recognise for her notable performance at last year’s show.