It’s almost a Cinderella-esque story.
Stray Chihuahua Cheeka was found on the streets of Harrogate, a town in the UK, in 2019. The Dogs Trust center in nearby Leeds took her in, and just a week later a couple looking for a new dog gave her a forever home. Now, she’s appeared on stage, and “lives like a queen”.
A New Home and a New Name
Couple Andrew Fretwell and Andrew Ashley were looking for a bigger dog when they visited the Dogs Trust center. “We had just lost our two Labradors, and my husband and I were heartbroken, so we decided to rescue a dog,” Fretwell told The Mirror.
“We were open-minded as to what we wanted to adopt but have always had big dogs historically, even both separately as children.
“However, when we arrived, we looked around and fell in love with this tiny little Chihuahua. We knew straight away that she was the dog for us.”
The couple renamed the stray chihuahua Coco Chanel. They co-founded Diva Productions together, and put on theater shows across the region. So, earlier this year, they decided to see how Coco would find it on stage herself.
They gave her the role of Bruiser in Legally Blonde at the Theatre Royal in Wakefield. She did so well that the pooch has since had five more offers to get back into the role.
“She is our little star. We don’t know what life she led before, but we have made sure she lives like a queen now,” Fretwell said.
All For a Good Cause
Dogs Trust is the charity beneficiary of the Legally Blonde production, and the couple were able to raise £800.
Amanda Sands, center manager, said that Coco was a “really sweet and very friendly, sociable girl” at the shelter.
“As she was found as a stray, we did not know anything about her history, but it was estimated she was around five years old at the time. Everyone at the center fell in love with her, so it was wonderful to see her rehomed so quickly.”
