You'll know her by many names, Poglet, Goblin Girl, Boggy Poggy, Peggy Sue, Chicken Nugget... amongst many others but the girl I am talking about is the one and only Fox red Peggy. Peggy is the 3 year old fox red lab that is well known for her Goblin ear greetings and her coastal adventures with owners Jess and Isaac.
Peggy has been part of the S&T family now since 2022 after a chance introduction where the stars aligned and our journey together began. So what better way to start our Stories behind Storeys and Tails blog than to chat to our friends Peggy, Jess and Isaac.
Tell us about why you decided to get a dog? and why a Fox red lab...
"Isaac and I had been wanting to get a dog for years, but the time never felt quite right! We have been in and out of university, and never quite settled in one place! Suddenly the opportunity to purchase a house came up.. and we took it! This meant no rules on dog ownership as there is with renting! So we then spoke seriously about getting a dog around August 2020. Isaac wanted a Viszla and I wanted a Labrador Retriever: the reason being, Isaac’s mum is a dog walker and boarder, and I’d fallen in love with a Fox Red Labrador that she frequently looked after! And then a few days after that Christmas we decided to look for puppies.. and stumbled across an advertisement for Peggy’s litter that had only been online for about 15 minutes. For some reason, it felt like fate. We messaged the breeder that night, and by the next day we had FaceTimed and put a deposit down. We picked her up in February 2021.. and the rest is history"
Photo of Peggy with mum and her little mates (doesn't Peggy look just like her mummy)
Did you have dogs growing up?
"Yes! I had lots. My mum, who has sadly passed away now, was an absolute dog lover. Altogether we had one standard poodle (Lady), one miniature poodle (Lucy), one Jack Russell (Molly), one springer spaniel (Rolo), one rescue mixed terrier (Pippin), two cocker spaniels (Bella and Maisie), and one labradoodle (Bailey). Hence, I think my dog obsession takes after her! 😅"
How do you think your life has changed since getting Peggy?
"In so many ways, it’s hard to even put it all into words. I wake up every single day with a smile on my face, when she wakes me up with a goblin wiggle and bringing me a toy. Because of the exercise a Labrador needs, she encourages me to always get outside and stay fit! One of my favourite things about having a dog is that you can go for days out, long hikes, wandering new towns and going for lunch.. all by yourself with your dog, and not feel slightly odd for doing so (I hope I’m not the only one who feels embarrassed doing things by myself)."
What’s your favourite thing to do together?
"Always the beach! We are absolute beach fiends. You will pretty much always find us doing a walking route on the southwest coast path! Anywhere that ends with a beach, swim, coffee and a pasty 😂"
How do you get Peggy to sit so beautifully for photos?
"I think this honestly has been because I taught her “wait” from nearly day 2 of her ever being home. To just wait in a simple sitting position! I have practiced it day in and day out, and over time she now just focuses completely on me and the camera!"
Peggy practicing her amazing waiting skills for our Storeys and Tails shoot, wearing one of our Red all weather slips
What’s Peggy’s weakness? Fears?
"She can be a little bit of a shy girl - if a big dog or a very excitable dog comes running up to her, she can often get a little scared and try to run off. But she’s the softest, most gentle dog I’ve ever known, and I don’t think knows how to tell other dogs off! She’s a little frightened of the hoover.. but apart from that, she’s a pretty resilient and brave girl!"
What makes her super happy?
"Oh wow.. well if you’ve seen her goblin, you’ll know that she absolutely loves plushy toys! Holding toys and showing them off. Not to mention socks too! But generally just being in mine or Isaac’s company, being outdoors, or seeing her best friends."
Who are her best friends?
"We are lucky to have such a lovely group of friends - her best friends are Hector and Yogi, Ollie and Tato, her brothers Ron, Ralph (and non-biological brother Rupert), Cooper, and Pancho. But there’s so many more wonderful friends we have met over the years too!"
Why do you think the Peggy followers on insta love her?
"For the most part.. her goblin ears! The wiggles, squinty eyes, and pure happiness that she radiates. I like to think we spread lots of positivity and good vibes, and that people enjoy that! We have such an incredible and supportive following, who all love Peggy so much. (They also love her big pink boop!)"
Peggys classic goblin , featuring her yellow all weather collar
Do you have any fun plans for 2024?
"Yes! So many! We have a few weekends away in February to see friends and also off to Shropshire. March we are hopefully off to Crufts and later to Cornwall for a long weekend. We have some other plans for the months after.. including some dog shows and more staycations! We would love to go to Europe too.. perhaps later in the year!"
How did you meet Storeys and Tails and why do you love their collars so much?
"We originally met through a photographer called Caitlin Hodges, who initially invited us last minute for a quick shoot for collars. We learnt they were by Storeys and Tails.. and just fell in love! We got in touch with Tash I believe around March/April 2022.. and we have worked together ever since!
I have tried many biothane and leather collars.. and I can honestly say the quality of S&T is just above and beyond the rest. The biothane is strong, durable, and the metals have never tainted or rusted.. despite Peggy always swimming in the sea! With just one wash every now and then, they always look brand new. I nearly have all of the colours of the biothane now.. it’s an addiction!"
The shoot that started it all, photo of Peggy in our Cranberry luxury leather collar by Caitlin Hodges
What’s your perfect day with Peggy?
"A slow wake up, cuddle and coffee in bed (thanks Isaac). Then Peggy always loves unboxing (aka shredding boxes).. so opening any kind of parcel has to be in her perfect day! Then two of my favourite coastal places to go to with Peggy are either Kingsand/Cawsand or Bude. Super dog friendly, lots of cafes, beautiful clear waters, and surrounded by lovely coast path!"
Peggy and Jess on one of their dreamy beach adventures, Peggy wearing her Lilac all weather collar
How did you get to meet all your insta friends? Do you meet lots of other insta dogs?
"So for our bestie Pancho (who you may have seen model for S&T too!).. we actually live on the same street. Funnily enough we had never met each other.. but actually found each others Instagram accounts and put two and two together! And have been besties since 2022 💛
For the rest of our insta friends - we met of course, through insta! All labradors know each other I’m sure. We met our lovely pal Hector initially through By Alice and Hector (Hector’s mums tag business!), and have been close friends since.
We do love to meet people from Instagram! But of course we take it easy, because not all dogs will always get along. So only if we have known them for a while!"
Photo of Peggy and Pancho modelling for S&T outside the studio, featuring All weather lagoon collars and coupler lead
I think you can all agree we are so lucky to have such an amazing ambassador. A huge thank you to Peggy, Jess and Isaac for being with us on our small business journey and for joining our new Stories behind Storeys & Tails blog. If you have any questions then please leave them below and we would love to know what you think of our first ever blog post.
Find Peggy's adventures on instagram here @foxredpeggy
If you want your dog to look as cute as Peg's then fyi she wears a Large in 2.5cm width and you can use code PEGGY10 for 10% off!
1 comment
I love this blog and getting to know more about Peggy and her pawrents. Thank you for sharing. 🧡 is also so good to learn about their relationship with S&T