Hi Claire and Sonny
We were delighted to see Sonny at Crufts earlier this month and that he was wearing our original Hoobynoo pet tags!
Thank you for answering some questions for our Hoobynoo Blog.
How did Sonny get into acting?
By chance, really. As we sat in the waiting room of the vets, a lady approached me and started asking me a few general questions about Sonny, such as his age. As we got called into the examination room, she handed me her business card and said that she works in the TV and movie industry and she is looking for a pug to work on some upcoming projects and would I be interested in her training Sonny.
I really wasn’t sure what to think. Sonny barely answered to his name so I could not imagine he’d be any good (sorry for doubting your abilities Sonny! How wrong I was!). Also, it could be some kind of dog stealing scam for all I knew. I went home and googled her name and found out she runs a very successful business training dogs and animals for TV and movies. Her name is Gill Raddings and the company is Stuntdogs and Animals. I got in touch with her the following week and the rest you could say was history.
We feel he stole the show in the Kingsman, how did it feel to see your pug on the big screen?
Thank you!
I won’t tell Sonny that though as he can let the fame get to his head and I have to keep him grounded! It was amazing to see Sonny on the big screen. I caught the first showing on the first day it was released at the cinema and it was so difficult not to stand up in the cinema and shout ‘THAT’S MY DOG’ when he appeared on screen.
I’m so proud of him.
Do you get to accompany Sonny on set?
Yes, I have. I was lucky that Gill Raddings and I have become friends so she has kindly allowed me to accompany her on set with Sonny, and on sets that Sonny isn’t working on. It’s an amazing experience to see so many actors and actresses in person and be on a film set. It is also amazing to see Sonny act so well.
I don’t know if I have any funny stories to tell but I will say that it feels very surreal.
When he’s not acting what does Sonny like to do in his spare time?
Sonny loves nothing more than curling up on a lap and snoozing and snoring.
He’s a bit of a lazy boy when he’s not working.
What advice would you give to someone who was interested in putting their pet forward for film and TV?
Your pet really has to love it.
I can see how much Sonny genuinely loves to work. Not all pets enjoy it or are as keen as Sonny is to act. He really wants to do a good job. I think he enjoys the mental stimulation of it. Also, just like any kind of acting, there are periods of time where there will be no work for your pet and other times when they are working away quite regularly, so you have to be prepared to be without your pet, but for us it’s never more than a few days at a time.
If anyone wants to follow him on Instagram, he is sonny_the_pug_boy.
And Thank you!
