Ted is not impressed. The 11-year-old Jack Russell and Rye Newshound is being encouraged to pose for a photograph standing on top of a cannon in Rye’s Gun Garden. Steph Walsh is after a shot with the castle in the background for her Dogs of Rye social media, and after being bribed with treats Ted eventually looks at the camera.
“Perfect! I knew he would do it eventually,” said Steph who moved to Rye last year and was immediately struck by how many dogs there are in the town.
“The day after we arrived on West Street, the first time we opened the door we saw four or five dogs,” she said. “Immediately I thought, ‘Oh, look, dogs love Rye.’ ”
She also leaves water and biscuits outside her house, plus Rye Dog Adventure cards. The first 1,000 cards disappeared in about five weeks.
“I wanted to do something for dogs rather than the usual Rye walks about architecture or historical gems,” she said. “Dogs are more interested in sniffing spots, which shops give out a biscuit or where to find a water bowl, so I’ve put together Sniffaris to places like Camber Castle or Rye Harbour for visitors to Rye with dogs.”
Along with boyfriend Sam Harrison, who makes Dogs Love Rye sculptures which are on sale at the new OH Studio on Market Road, home in Rye also includes three dogs. Saffron is an 11-year-old rescue from Cyprus and both Biscuit and Scone are Cavalier King Charles Spaniels who belong to a friend who was their neighbour in London and regularly stays in Rye.
Like Ted, Saffron has an unusual phobia. “It’s the town crier’s bell,” said Steph. “Whenever she hears it she goes, ‘Oh God’. She’s far less worried about the bell at the Cornish Bakery that rings at about a quarter to five when there’s a sale on!”
New to Rye, Steph’s background is in IT. Currently she is writing a book, making animated videos, and working part-time at Phillips & Stubbs.
You can follow Dogs Love Rye on Instagram by clicking here.
Image Credits: Steph Walsh/Dogs of Rye .