PARTY FOR A PRINCESS

PRINCESS Jasmine’s story is a rags to riches tale. From being a rescue dog just a year ago, today, the Golden Doodle (a poodle and golden retriever cross) is something of a local pawlebrity, with an Instagram following of more than 2 000 and growing.

The fur baby celebrated her first birthday recently, complete with pink balloons, flowers, iced biscuits and a two-tier birthday cake.

“The party had about 40 guests, mostly close family and three other dogs. Apart from all the treats for Jasmine, we had a doggy party pack with toys and treats for all the fur babies who could not attend. It was given as takeaways to the owners who did attend.

“Party packs were individually created with attention to detail,” said Evashnie Govender, Princess Jasmine’s “aunt”.

Pictures of the birthday bash were posted on Jasmine’s Instagram, @princessjasmin_the_doodle. Some of her 2 645 followers wished her a happy “bark” day.

But the little pup’s life was not always rainbows and pupcakes. She was rescued from a challenging existence.

“Jasmine was found on a property in Chatsworth. She was kept in an open area with other pups. We had heard from someone that the pups were in a bad condition and very sick. Jasmine’s parents were used for underhand breeding, with her mum in a despicable condition.

“Hearing about the condition that Jasmine and her siblings were in and that they had no homes, we decided to try and rescue her.

“When we found her, she was in a terrible condition. My friend took a pup, and my mum’s friend took another two which unfortunately died a month later, one after the other,” said Govender.

She said Jasmine, who lives with Govender’s brother and mother in Yellowwood Park, was instantly loved and became increasingly popular after her pictures were posted on Facebook and Instagram.

“Slowly, we entered her into small competitions where she won a photo shoot for a high-end pet furniture company – the shoot is this Saturday. It’s called Jelico Pets.

“She was approached to do advertisements for stores and products due to her look and nature.

“She’s done a photo shoot for local business Lindie-Loe Interior Decor and Gifts at the Irene Mall in Pretoria and for Build-A-Bear, an international kids’ teddy bear store, the Centurion Store.

“Jasmine was recently signed up to be an ambassador for Acana Pet food, an international brand with world-class kitchens in Edmonton, Alberta and Auburn, Kentucky.”

Jasmine has more modelling gigs scheduled for later this year.