This Morning interviews couple brought together by man’s stuffed dog: ‘It definitely made him stand out during lockdown’

‘Wow I have been single for years I just needed a stuffed dog,’ joked one viewer

Mitch Byers, his late dog Phoebe, and partner Jamie, as seen on ‘This Morning' (ITV)

Viewers of the ITV chat show This Morning were perturbed by the story of how a taxidermised dog helped one man find love.

Mitch Byers was interviewed on the show by Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby, having previously appeared on This Morning back in 2018.

Alongside the man, the stuffed body of his late pet dog, Phoebe, could also be seen, as well as his new girlfriend, Jamie.

Phoebe died back in 2013, and was taxidermised shortly after by a specialist. The stuffed dog then achieved some amount of internet fame years after expiring, with her owner setting up a “My dead dog and me” page.

Mr Byers told the show that it had been a picture of his stuffed dog that first planted the seeds of romance between him and his partner, as he used a photo with the dog to advertise himself on an online dating app.

“At first I wasn’t sure if it was a dead dog or an alive dog,” said Mr Byers’ partner. “She was cute either way.

“Once I realised it was stuffed, I thought it was hilarious. It definitely made Mitch stand out. Dating during lockdown, you have to be selective with who you’re going to spend your time with.”

People shared their reactions to the segment on social media, with several voicing their shock at the taxidermised animal.

“Would you stuff a member of your family and stick them on display, No. So why stuff your pet dog?” asked one person.

“Only on #ThisMorning could you have a segment about a stuffed dead dog then a segment about paddling pools,” remarked one person, to which another replied: “Well they got to cheer up the dog viewers somehow after that harrowing segment lol.”

“She thought it was hilarious when she first find out the dog was stuffed. More like freaky,” wrote someone else.

“Wow I have been single for years I just needed a stuffed dog,” joked another Twitter user.

This Morning airs weekdays at 10am on ITV.