YOU’LL BE ‘MUTTS’ ABOUT THESE: ROYAL MAIL LAUNCHES A SET OF PAW-SOME SPECIAL STAMPS

The stamps show: a Dalmatian; Jack Russell-type Terrier; Labrador Retriever; Border Collie; Whippet; Siberian Husky; Chihuahua; Cocker Spaniel; Pembroke Welsh Corgi; and Pug.

Dogs have shared our lives for thousands of years – working, hunting, guarding and providing companionship. Many different breeds evolved and were developed over the centuries, from the very smallest to the largest and shaggiest, from the bravest to the fastest, but regardless of type, dogs have remained loving and loyal. More people around the world own a dog than any other pet, and a third of households in the UK have one.

David Gold, Director of External Affairs and Policy said: “British people are known for their love of animals, and especially dogs. We hope that these beautiful stamps will bring added joy when they drop through people’s letterboxes on cards and letters – and remind our customers to place their cherished dog in another room when opening the door to collect mail from their postie!”

Royal Mail worked with animal expert Tamsin Pickeral on the stamp issue. Tamsin is also author of The Dog: 5,000 Years Of The Dog in Art and The Spirit of the Dog.

Did you know?

• Dogs and Wolves share 99.9% of their genes.*

• The earliest undisputed dog on record is a dog found in a grave with its owners that lived 14,000 years ago in Germany.**

• There are approximately 12 million dogs in the UK (Statista April 24)

• One third of UK households own a dog (Statista April 2024)

• The first medal to recognise bravery of an animal was awarded by Our Dumb Friends League (now Blue Cross) to a dog called La Cloche who, on 24 July 1940, dived into the sea to save his owner. His owner was a French mariner who could not swim and went into the sea after their ship was torpedoed off the UK coast. (Guinness World Records)

• The world’s oldest known breed of domesticated dog is the Saluki, which can be traced back to 329 BC. (Guinness World Records)

• Depending on the breed or type a dog’s sense of smell is around 10,000-100,000 times better than ours. (Purina)

• The Labrador retriever had the most UK Kennel Club registrations in 2023.***

*(https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-wolf-became-dog/)
** (https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-wolf-became-dog/)
***(https://www.horseandhound.co.uk/dogs/most-popular-dog-breeds-uk-853187)
With thanks to the Blue Cross.

Royal Mail’s Dog Awareness Week will take place between 1-7 July 2024.

A dog’s life
The relationship between dogs and humans can be traced back tens of millennia. At one burial site in Germany, for example, dog and human remains from around 14,000 years ago were found together, suggesting that dogs had been domesticated by at least this time. Fossil evidence from Belgium indicates that the evolution of the dog – from an ancestor of the grey wolf and other wild canids – was happening around 31,000 years ago.