How Paul O'Grady broke his TV contract to adopt another rescue dog

21 April 2023, 16:43

Paul O’Grady falls in love with dachshund called ‘Sausage’

By Alice Dear

Paul O'Grady fell in love with wire-haired dachshund 'Sausage' during filming of For The Love Of Dogs.

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Since Paul O'Grady passed away last month, there has been an outpouring of love and grief for the TV star who was known as one of the world's biggest dog-lovers.

For years, Paul hosted For The Love Of Dogs, with the latest series – which was filmed before his death – currently airing on ITV.

As people re-live some of Paul's best moments, many have been remembering the time he broke his TV contract in order to adopt another dog from Battersea Cats & Dogs Home.

Back in 2022, Paul adopted a wire-haired dachshund called Sausage after bonding with the canine during filming.

Paul O'Grady fell head-over-heels for wire-hired dachshund Sausage. Picture: Paul O'Grady/Instagram

The star previously revealed that he had put a clause in his contract which stopped him from taking more furry friends home while filming the hit show. However, that didn't stand for much when Paul fell in love with another gorgeous pooch in 2022.

During an episode of For The Love Of Dogs last year, Paul could be seen meeting Sausage, a stray who was believed to have come all the way from Poland.

It was love at first sight for the pair, with Paul even commenting on the show that he was "in a danger zone" during their first meeting.

Paul, who already owned four dogs at the time, joked while they were cuddling: "How are you with other dogs? That's the fatal question."

Paul O'Grady met Sausage at Battersea Cats & Dogs Home where he films For The Love Of Dogs. Picture: ITV

After seeing for himself that Sausage was great with other dogs, Paul decided to take her home for a week as a foster.

However, at the end of the episode, he revealed that Sausage never left and had become part of his canine family alongside Nancy, Arfur, Conchita and Eddie.

Paul O'Grady took Sausage home for a week as a foster, but she never ended up leaving. Picture: ITV

Confirming the happy news at the time, Paul shared a picture of Sausage on Instagram, writing in the caption: "In tonight’s episode I take this hairy little monster home. She’s called Sausage which isn’t very original but it doesn’t matter as she can’t understand a word of English except for ‘biscuit’.

"She gets on with all the others except for Conchita who simply ignores her but Nancy loves her and together they’re a right pair of hooligans. So far Sausage has eaten her way through a couple of dog beds, an armchair, endless pairs of socks and shoes and the stair carpet but she’s the friendliest dog on the planet so what’s a pair of shoes between friends?"

Paul O'Grady previously revealed how he was contractually not allowed to adopt dogs while filming For The Love Of Dogs. Picture: ITV

Prior to this, the dog-lover revealed that he put in his TV contract that he was not allowed to take home any dogs during filming, as he knew how tempted he would be.

As reported by the Evening Standard back in 2012, he said: "It went in my contract - under no circumstances was I allowed to go home with anything: two-legged, four-legged, three-legged, anything.”