A couple have left a box of tennis balls on a beach in memory of their dachshund – where they used to love playing.
Katie Marshall, 30 and Rich Lallo, 34, say they want other hounds to play with the toys after they lost their six-year-old miniature ‘Sybil’.
The couple, who live in Rothley, Leicestershire, used to frequently visit Constantine Bay in Cornwall with Sybil who was ”tennis ball obsessed”.
Katie said: “It was her favorite place ever, and it was where we were all at our happiest.”
Miss Marshall and Mr Lallo, who both work in advertising, got Sybil when she was just eight weeks old.
Katie said: “We set up an instagram for Sybil – @sybilthesausagedog – just as a fun thing to do when we got her and people loved it.
“Sybil was just amazing and had the personality of a human – when we walked around in our village people would know her, not us!
“She was like a local celebrity.”
In September last year, when Sybil the couple took her to the vets as she was having problems with her vision.
After an MRI scan, the vets confirmed a brain tumor had been pushing on Sybil’s optical nerves.
Katie said: “The vets told us we would have Sybil for another six months but after her diagnosis she died twelve days later.
“It just came completely out of the blue, we were absolutely devastated.”
Last week, the couple decided to go back to Cornwall, where they shared such special memories with their beloved pup.
Katie said: “Sybil was tennis ball obsessed – so we came up with the idea of the box to honor her and bring a bit of joy to the trauma and sadness.
“We took the box out on Constantine Bay last Friday (11th Feb), and the next day we went back to the beach and saw nearly every dog was playing with a ball!
“It was exactly what we wanted.
“We are so busy as people that we race around all the time – but it’s really important to stop, take a moment and appreciate what we have.
“Our dogs aren’t here for long, and the little moments we share with them are so special – we would have given anything to have that again with Sybil.”
