Byron the golden labrador helps ‘best friend’ Kate Cross peg out her washing, make her bed, and shop at the supermarket after a degenerative bone condition left her struggling to cope.
Super pooch Byron can even help Kate make a cup of tea – and always remembers to put a piping hot water bottle under her duvet before she goes to bed.
He might sound too good to be true but clever Byron is a lifeline for Kate, from Hinckley, Leics, after being expertly trained to help her by a canine charity.
Retired teacher Kate, 49, suffers from Ehlers Danlos syndrome – a rare condition that has made her joints so weak even opening a door is enough to dislocate her shoulder.
Lean on me … Byron helps Kate onto the sofa at homeCaters News Agency
But her best friend Byron is never far from her side and has learned to do all the things Kate struggles to.
Kate said: “I can’t imagine my life without Byron he really is my best friend.
“He’s given me my life back – I can live independently and not have to rely on my husband or other people doing everything for me because Byron is always there.
“He never gets fed up with helping me, it’s all a big game to him, but I’d be lost without him.”
Aisle always be there for you … Byron lifts cans off the shelf in the supermarketCaters News Agency
Byron was trained by Sussex-based charity Canine Partners who have matched hundreds of assistance dogs to people who really need their help.
After months of intensive training with the charity’s volunteer Puppy Parents, the young dogs are carefully matched with new companions, before training continues in their new homes.
Byron helps Kate from the moment she gets up in the morning, with no task too big or small for the seven-year-old.
The faithful hound helps Kate into her wheelchair every morning, acting as a support for her as she steps out of bed into the chair.
Pushing all the right buttons … Byron helps out at a pedestrian crossingCaters News Agency
As she makes a morning coffee, Byron will open the fridge door himself, before fetching Kate a carton of milk.
And the clever canine even retrieves his own breakfast bowl from the cupboard, before jumping up and placing his empty dish in the washing up when he’s done.
He accompanies Kate to the supermarket, reaching down to low shelves to pick up any item Kate has on her shopping list.
And to the envy of dog owners everywhere, Byron can even open the door to let himself out to the toilet.
Kate added: “Byron knows more than 100 different commands, and can do just about anything I ask him to.
Must have pin love … Byron shows his devotion by helping at the cashpointCaters News Agency
“In the supermarket, I stop my chair near to the item I want, and he follows my eyeline and takes the item off the shelf.
“It’s such a help to me, as small things like bending down and grasping things are really difficult for me.
“Byron even unloads my shopping onto the conveyor belt at the till and hands my purse over to the checkout assistants.
“He can do such amazing things – he takes my bank card and reaches up to put it into a cash machine, and takes the cash when it comes out, and passes it to me – all I have to do is put in my pin number.
“He can reach out and press pedestrian crossing buttons with his nose, and picks up anything I drop on the ground.
Ready for dinner … Kate’s canine helper gets his own bowl outCaters News Agency
“Before we go to bed on cold nights, he even fetches my hot water bottle, and when I’ve filled it, he trots upstairs with it, and puts it on my side of the bed, under the covers.
“My condition means my circulation is very weak, so a nice warm bed is just what I need.”
Kate has suffered with Ehlers Danlos syndrome – an illness which makes her bones and skin progressively weaker – since she was a child.
Her condition dashed her hopes of becoming a professional musician, and eventually she was dislocating joints several times a day, and took to using a wheelchair.
Forced to take early retirement from her job as a primary school teacher, Kate became virtually housebound.
Best pals … Kate and ByronCaters News Agency
She even grew anxious about going outside after being targeted by yobs for venturing out in her wheelchair.
Kate said: “When I first got Byron, I hadn’t left the house by myself for almost 18 months.
“I felt useless, and I hated going outside – people stared and didn’t know how to speak to me.
“Once, I was in my wheelchair going through the park, when a gang of teenage boys playing football decided to use my chair for target practice.
“I was so upset, I couldn’t imagine going out again. I became afraid of the world.
“I had always loved dogs, and on a rare trip out to Crufts, my husband Stuart and I came across a stand for Canine Partners – a charity that provides assistance dogs to people who need help.
Let’s go for a spin … Byron helps load the washing machineCaters News Agency
“They told me I was exactly the kind of person they could help and within a few months, I had been paired up with Byron.
“We instantly clicked, and went through an intensive training camp together to teach him all the things he’d need to be able to do.
“I just couldn’t imagine my life without him now.
“If I have a fall, Byron is trained to fetch the phone, and a pillow and blanket, so I can get help.
“It’s given my husband peace of mind too, as he knows I’m never alone.
“It’s important to let him have time to just be a dog though too, and he loves nothing more than running around in the park, getting covered in mud.”
As well as helping hundreds of people affected by debilitating conditions, Canine Partners has also started to work with military charity Help for Heroes