A couple devastated by their dog’s death decided to have him stuffed so they could still kiss and stroke him.

Daniel and Sharon Smyth’s 13-year-old Maltipoo Sparky died unexpectedly in November last year.

The couple, who live in Florence, Oregon in the US, couldn’t face saying goodbye forever so asked a taxidermist to preserve him.

They paid $2,500 (£2,000) for the service, and a year later ‘Sparky’ was sitting in his favourite spot looking out onto the street.

The pair said it felt strange at first, but they now get great comfort from seeing their four-legged friend every day.

They can even be found stroking, kissing and talking to their ‘cuddly little boy’.

Sharon, 53, added: ‘Sparky was like my little child. He looks the same as when he was alive – it’s like he’s been reborn! It makes us very happy.’

Daniel, 75, said he understands preserving your pets is unconventional.

He added: ‘It’s not for everybody but I just feel at my age I should get to do something that I want to do.

‘I thought I didn’t have to put him in the ground, I could have him prepared to stay with us while I’m alive.

‘Some things are important to you. I wanted him to still be there even though he was gone.’

Daniel said they’d had Sparky since he was a puppy and described him as ‘quite a personality and very bright’.

‘He was very much a part of the family – he was a full family member,’ he added.

Speaking about their pet’s death, he explained: ‘It happened very suddenly. We think it was his heart. He was ill over the weekend and two or three days into the week, he was gone.

‘It was devastating. He was my best friend on a daily basis. It was a big loss.’

Daniel said it was wonderful to have him back in the house, adding: ‘He now sits on the desk in front of the main big window that faces out through the patio to the street.

‘That was his favourite spot where he would sit or lay watching out the window.’

A woman in the UK got her beloved chihuahua Fifi stuffed by a taxidermist after the pet died.

Kimmy Walker-Harris, from Alford, Lincolnshire, said she’d always joked about getting the ‘best dog she’s ever had’ preserved, and despite ‘scepticism’ from her family, went ahead with it.

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