Benji is a senior chihuahua who is going through a very tough time. First, his two fur sisters, Minnie and Tootie, were both diagnosed with silent heart disease and suddenly passed away within weeks of each other – Devastating Benji and his human, Michelle Chesterfield.
On top of the anxiety caused by the loss, Benji also suffers from heart disease and has been taking medication for the last eight months. And this requires four different medications there times a day. Benji’s mom, Michelle, is a taxi driver and on top of her grieving, she also had to make multiple trips home during her shifts to care for her last serving pup.
I really didn’t want to leave him by himself without his sisters. I could see that he was so sad without them. They were together all the time. He’s always had a bit of separation anxiety. He’s like my little shadow anywhere I walk, he’s there. I was coming home three or four times a day to check on him.
I didn’t know if I had to get permission from the council or not I thought there would be somebody out there that would complain about him being in the car, so I wanted to get permission to make sure. I mentioned to a few regular customers that I was thinking about doing it, and everybody said I should.
Michelle Chesterfield, Mirror, July 2024
But her local council and her employer, Inverness Taxis, have made a very special exception for Benji – They hired him as their very first canine driver! But jokes aside, they kindly allowed Benji to ride along with his mom (with a doggy seatbelt) to save them both a ton of stress. They also quickly approved it, ensuring that Michelle didn’t have to consider quitting her job to care for Benji during the end of his life. Now he’s a local celebrity pet, with Michelle adding, “He loves the attention from passengers as well, everyone’s so nice! A few people have said to me they will phone and ask for me again because they want to see Benji.” Also when Benji is tired of driving, a human coworker named Dougie at her office volunteers his lap!
And for another story specifically about doggos and taxis, this blind senior was left stranded by a taxi… But his service dog took him home!