Pet dog Zeus gets invite to 'paw' his vote

Dog owners convinced that politics 'really' has gone to the dogs after their pet receives an invitation to vote at European Parliament polls

London: An eight-year-old Rottweiler cross got his paws on a polling card in the run-up to the European Parliament elections on May 22.

Enjoying the retired life: Russell Hoyle and Zeus once worked together as a security team, but the canine has now hung his boots and spends his days relaxing at Hoyle residence. Representation Pic/thinkstock

The card, addressed to ‘Zeus Hoyle’, dropped through the letter box of his owner Russell Hoyle’s residence on Cheshire Road, Norton, Stockton-on-Tees.

Zeus’ owner Russell, a 45-year-old security guard, said, “I just think it’s very funny. I can remember when the man came round to do the census, I was gardening and he asked me who lived at the address.

I told him that there was myself, my wife and my son, who is not old enough to vote. Then I told him that we had Zeus living here as well and he is 63 in dog years, I didn’t think anything of it, I assumed he would get that I was joking.”   

Russell, who lives with wife Allison and son Peter, is seeing the funny side of it and is planning to take his four-legged friend for a walk to the polling station on the election day. 

He said, “I just think it is totally hilarious and I know they’ll expect me to get in touch and flag up that there’s an issue, but I’m not going to. I’m going to take him down to cast his vote. My wife and me are going to vote and Zeus is coming with us.”

Russell and Zeus once worked together as a security team, but the canine is now retired and spends his days relaxing at home. 

Russell said, “He is the perfect dog, when he was out working he had my back and now he is resting.”

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