Meet the cheeky dog hoarder - who amassed a collection of more than 100 tennis balls before its owner gave them back.<br /><br />Light-pawed Jack Russell Buddy has picked up loads of balls hidden in bushes over the past three years.<br /><br />And his haul got so large owner Shauneen Fowler, 42, decided she had to give the balls back recently - to Buddy's disappointment.<br /><br />Shauneen, from Rochester, Kent, said: “He's been obsessed with tennis balls ever since he had his own balls taken off him.<br /><br />"He wasn't really interested until then!<br /><br />“They're known to be cheeky dogs, but apparently when they're long-haired they're even cheekier.<br /><br />“He definitely knows what he wants and he will talk to you until he gets it. He's very intelligent, if I may say so myself.<br /><br />“He is very playful and friendly and thinks everybody should love him.”<br /><br />Shauneen would walk down to a local field every day with Buddy, who would venture deep into the bushes near the tennis courts - and rarely came back empty handed.<br /><br />She believes the pooch has collected around 100 balls that had been previously lost or discarded.<br /><br />She said: “At first I was quite surprised because I didn't think he would go as deep into the bushes as he did.<br /><br />“He doesn't normally let me out of his sight. After a week or two when I realised what was happening, I started to expect it.<br /><br />“If he didn't go look for them I would be shocked.<br /><br />“Occasionally I thought he was stuck in there because he took forever to come out.<br /><br />“As long as I could hear him, I was happy.”<br /><br />Shauneen says she would try and throw the balls back into the court, but Buddy would just go and retrieve it or find another one.<br /><br />In the end, she decided to give in and take them home.<br /><br />She added: “I started putting them in my cupboard. But then it got full and there was no space for my shoes. So they landed up in the fireplace.<br /><br />“Quite often he bought three or four back each day. He is always very chuffed with himself.<br /><br />“He comes out with a big grin on his face – tail wagging away – with a tennis ball in his mouth."<br /><br />After recently moving house, Shauneen decided to gather up all of the balls Buddy collected and return them to the courts.<br /><br />She posted a message on a local Facebook group, explaining her dog's quirky obsession and telling players to help themselves.<br /><br />One person commented: “Oh look at him, he's so proud of his collection.”<br /><br />“My first giggle of the day – good doggie,” another added.<br /><br />Shauneen said: “Everybody I think either found it funny or cute. I wasn't expecting as many reactions as it got.<br /><br />“He's got an amazing nose. If he could still smell more balls hidden in the bushes, he would bring as many as he could find.<br /><br />“I've always wanted to try and get him into search and rescue – I think he might be a little bit old for that now!”
