A CANINE carer is celebrating a decade of devotion to homeless hounds at Dogs Trust Shoreham.

During her time with the charity, Jemma Murray has seen thousands of dogs head off to forever homes with their special someone, and has even adopted several golden oldies along the way.

Jemma, 34, actually studied furniture design at college but her passion for pooches led her to apply for the role after seeing the vacancy in a local newspaper.

When she isn’t helping hounds she enjoys design and being creative in her spare time, although she hasn’t had much time to “paws”ever since joining Dogs Trust!

Jemma, who lives in Horsham, said: “Since I was a young child, I’ve always had a passion for animals, having had a variety of pets throughout my life.

“Personally, working with dogs is my dream job. I feel honoured and proud that this is actually my career.

“I love telling people where I work and what I do.

“There’s nothing better than seeing the transformation of a shy and nervous dog that has had a tough start in life, develop into a happier and more confident dog.

“I’m currently working closely with Flame, a fantastic dog who is overcoming a few issues, and it’s very rewarding to be part of his journey.”

In her time at the rehoming centre, Jemma has worked with dogs of all shapes and sizes and has helped them find new homes.

Her favourite aspect of the job is seeing a dog she has worked so closely with leave to begin a new life with their family.

She said: “The best part is receiving updates on how they are doing from their new ‘paw-rents’.”

She’s currently working alongside a standout character, collie cross Flame.

She said: “I’ve learned over the last ten years you can’t always let your heart rule your head, so the next best thing to adopting is to help them find their forever home with a new family.

“I’m so fond of the elderly dogs that come in to the rehoming centre – I’ve adopted several and fostered many over the years!”

Jemma owns two dogs – Charlie, an 11-year-old springer spaniel and Nana, a 13-year-old wire fox terrier.