It’s not all lovely - that's the message a Hampshire man wants to get across to people thinking of buying a puppy in his new book.

Rob Sawyer, who writes under the pseudonym Darragh O’Gowner, bought a ‘Sprockerpoo’ - a Cocker Spaniel, Springer Spaniel, Poodle mix - called Banxie in 2019.

He said he was inspired to put pen to paper when the reality of raising Banxie sunk in.

So the ‘brutally honest highs and lows’ of the adventure became the subject of his book entitled: ‘Banxie: A dog from scratch, literally’.

He said: “When it came to lockdown in 2020, I decided that it would be a good idea to write a book, a brutally honest account of what it’s like having a dog when you’ve never had one before. It’s not all lovely, not at all.”

A few months down the line in his writing journey, he received an offer from a publisher and the book became a reality.

He said: “I’ve never done any blogging, although I’ve written three books before. I suppose there was some satisfaction in there. It’s always quite nice to see your name in print on a nice looking book."

Rob, who lives in West End, said he felt it was essential that new owners be aware of what they are getting into by getting a dog, especially with the vast amounts of dogs that needed rehoming after lockdown.

He said: “I publicize it as essential reading for people who are thinking about getting a dog. It really is very honest about what you have to do and what you have to think about.

"It was definitely harder raising the dog than writing a book, that was dead easy compared to looking after him!”

Banxie: A dog from scratch, literally is available on Amazon in paperback, for £7.99, and as an eBook, for £2.29.