Want to talk about your pet subject?*If you would like to feature (with your pet) in a forthcoming edition of this regular column, please contact Colleen Morgan at Colleen@MoodieDavittReport.com |
The Moodie Davitt Report is delighted to bring you the latest edition in our Pet-sonality Profile column, in association with Tito’s Handmade Vodka.
In this regular fun feature, we discover more about travel retail pet-sonalities, their back stories, traits and habits, as well as offering some insights into their owners. Each pet-sonality is also painted digitally by pets and equine artist Sami Moodie.
In this edition The Moodie Davitt Report Brand Director Hannah Tan-Gillies introduces Charlie, a loveable Mini Labradoodle who is anything but mini in personality.
Name + nickname: Charlie, TeamCocopup, Charlie ‘big bum’ Gillies, Charlie Runkle, Boyyo, Lunatic and Park Pervert.
Breed: Mini Labradoodle although Charlie is anything but mini.
How old is Charlie? He’s six years old.
How did you meet? My husband Liam and I met Charlie in Manchester. He’s a Mancunian, the son of a brown Labrador and brown Miniature Poodle, and the runt of a litter of five. Nobody wanted to adopt poor Charlie as he was a black dog. And you’d be surprised how little love black dogs get due to old-fashioned superstitions and the crazy notion that black dogs don’t photograph well.
Six years after that fateful first meeting, Charlie has 10,000+ followers on social media and his own byline in a national travel magazine, House of Coco. So, it’s clear that black dogs do, in fact, photograph very, very well.
Love at first sight? When we met Charlie was really shy and wasn’t at all sure about us. But he fell asleep in my arms on the car ride home and imprinted on me right away. Neither of us are happy unless we’re physically in contact 24 hours a day seven days a week.
He is my little shadow and my true soul mate. We go everywhere together: from luxury London staycations, weekend getaways in the Cotswolds to idyllic beach getaways from Norfolk to Devon, and even castle breaks in Scotland. Charlie is probably one of the most well-travelled and well-fed dogs and he is certainly loving life.
Quirky habits? Charlie is probably also the friendliest, happiest dog there is. There isn’t an anxious or aggressive bone in his body. He just loves everyone, even the vet.
He loves riding on trains and whenever he is in one, he has to sit in his own seat and likes to watch the world go by. Liam and I always make bets on how many friends he can make in short train journeys as he will wait for someone to give him eye contact before cuddling up to them for attention.
At 26kg, Charlie isn’t exactly lap dog size. But no matter how small the space, he always finds a way to cuddle up between me and Liam on the couch, and in bed. So much so that he will literally be hanging off the side of the sofa and wouldn’t care as long as it means that he is beside you.
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He also has a bizarre fear of feathers, loves going swimming in any body of water (people think he needs rescuing but that’s just him refusing to get out of the water), and enjoys taking home entire tree branches and unwittingly ramming them into shins, especially mine.
He also likes to show his face whenever he knows that his mum is on an important Zoom call.
Funniest and/or nicest moment? Charlie loves picnics and has a bit of a mischievous side. We go on 5km runs almost daily in our local park and Charlie likes to run in and help himself to people’s picnics. Once he disrupted a couple’s romantic wicker basket spread. When I finally caught up to him the man said, “Is he allowed sausage rolls?”.
“Of course,” I replied, “He loves them”, thinking how nice it was of the man to offer Charlie some of his food.
Then, to my horror, he added: “Well that’s good. He just about ate all of ours.” Yikes!
Favourite trick? And treat? Favourite trick? Paw. It’s not really a trick, but it’s what he does whenever he wants your attention. He paws people to get pats; he paws people to get treats, and he paws people to get love. Really, he’s taught us all the tricks not vice versa.
He doesn’t have a favourite treat, but there’s nothing in the world he loves more than a tennis ball. He can play fetch for hours and hours and hours and never gets bored. He’s got tennis balls stashed all over the house and backyard, so he always has a backup whenever I confiscate one.
Social media account? Follow @teamcocopup for all of his wild adventures. Charlie is an official doggy travel ‘rePAWter’ and reviews some of the best pet-friendly restaurants and hotels all over the UK. He’s experienced doggy afternoon teas, Michelin-level doggy dinners and even participated in a (chaotic) doggy fashion show.
If Charlie could talk what would be his/her first words? That’s easy: Ball.
Favourite airport/airline? Charlie is a little too big to travel by air as he would have to go in the hold. However, we did travel to Glenapp Castle in Scotland in one of the first-class cabins on the Caledonian Sleeper, which offers bunk beds, white table cloth dining and also your own loo. Charlie loved it.
Anything else we should know? If you ever see Charlie on the street give him a smile and a scratch; he will certainly love you for it. 
Click here for our introductory story on the Duty Free Unleashed partnership with Tito’s Handmade Vodka. The independent vodka brand from Austin, Texas, has had a close connection with the welfare of dogs since its founding by Bert ‘Tito’ Beveridge in 1997.
The company has always been committed to rescuing and protecting the animals that have come into the lives of its people, and has even created a programme, Vodka for Dog People, to help that come to life.
Note: Through this new column, Tito’s Handmade Vodka and The Moodie Davitt Report are partnering to promote the work of brokenbiscuits.org, a disabled animal charity. As the world’s first disabled animal centre, its work includes:
- Providing equipment to families
- Offering homes to paraplegic, deaf, blind and disabled animals
- An education programme of visiting schools and universities
- Working alongside rescue centres, rehabbers and veterinary professionals
- Caring for stray and surrendered disabled animals
To support the work of Broken Biscuits, you can donate via this link or find out more via the youtube channel.
Previously on Pet-sonality Profile
Meet Duke and Lindsay Hitzeroth
Meet Barry Geoghegan, Milly and Jess
Meet Julio Cesar Magaña Ortiz and Hope
Meet Pauline Prescott’s Daisy and Digger
Meet Jeff Bond and his four-legged friends
Meet Bronwyn Clementson and Harvey
Meet Sinéad El Sibai and Guinness
Meet Alex Thompson and Chester
Meet Jilly Brocklebank and Sadie
Maitreyi Karanth’s Shaggy (and Demi) dog story
Meet Tankred Stachelhaus and Pepina
Meet Denz van der List and Jazz
Meet Aaron Lay and Emmett and Lenny
Meet Daniel Levin and Garfield
