Creating our dream pet with Pet Plan!

When it comes to pets I think we're fairly well covered, we have a cat and two rabbits and family who all have dogs. Theo loves our pets, but definitely needs reminding that he needs to be a bit gentler at times, as he does like to cuddle perhaps a little too tightly! I can't imagine not having our little pets around, as they're a proper part of our family. We got Alma when Theo was about 6 months old, and she's only a few months younger than him so I like that they are growing up together, and our rabbits were our latest addition last year! When we moved house a few years ago during those important first few weeks Alma somehow got out of the house and then must have become slightly confused and started visiting another family (lured in by tinned tuna nonetheless!) for a week or two until we finally managed to get her back. It was so strange not to have her in the house, and her presence was definitely missed. It's funny how much of an impact these furry little creatures have in our lives and we want to do everything we can to protect them!

So when Petplan’s Pet Insurance got in contact and asked if Theo would like to have a go at creating his dream pet, to have transformed into a cuddly toy all for him, we thought it was a great idea! Theo hasn't always been into drawing so when given the opportunity to try and encourage that I always jump at the chance. He's recently been obsessed with Harry Potter, and he wanted to design his very own owl so he could have owl post sent to him. We tried to encourage him to be as imaginative as possible and suggested it could have special features, but I think he wanted it to be as real to life as it could. I was so impressed with his little drawing, it looks like such a friendly (if not slightly startled) owl!

When the toy arrived Theo was just so excited, I think it was a lot bigger and better than he imagined, and he names him Errol (no guesses where he got the inspiration for that name from....!) So now he has his very own Owl to fly around, and a pet with whom he can squeeze and cuddle to his heart's content!

I think it's such a great idea for them to draw and design their own pet, and have it brought to life in toy form. Hopefully it might help to teach Theo the importance of caring and looking after our pets and things we love too.

In association with Pet Plan, all words and images are my own!