The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog! Saying comes true at last as canines frolic in front of the camera

  • Fox Rosie and pal Maddy the dog were pictured playing in Corwen, North Wales

By Ben Ellery

PUBLISHED: 18:41 EST, 7 September 2013 | UPDATED: 09:10 EST, 8 September 2013


It's a sentence often used to test keyboards and it contains all the letters of the alphabet: ‘The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.’

But few of us have expected to be able to use the phrase in real life – that is, until these incredible photographs were taken.

They show a fox leaping over a dog, but it’s not the ambush it might first appear.

Performing to the letter: Fox Rosie and pal Maddy turn the famous phrase into reality with their game

Performing to the letter: Fox Rosie and pal Maddy turn the famous phrase into reality with their game

Rosie the fox jumps on Maddy the dog
Rosie the fox jumps on Maddy the dog

Play fighting: The two animals are actually best pals

The two creatures play-fighting in front of the camera are actually best pals.

Their friendship was struck up when the fox, Rosie, was adopted by Richard Bowler – the owner of dog Maddy, a Lakeland Patterdale crossbreed – after she was left abandoned as an infant cub.

Richard, a professional photographer who captured the heart-warming action at his home near Corwen, north Wales, explained how the pictures came about.

 

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‘Maddy’s most favourite thing in the world is to chase after stones,’ he said.

‘Rosie, although not interested in chasing after stones, loves to steal anything she can from Maddy.

'She waits until Maddy has the stone in her mouth then jumps all over her trying to steal it.

‘There’s nothing nasty about it  – it’s just the game they have developed. Often Maddy will turn around and chase her, which Rosie loves.’

Rosie the fox jumps on Maddy the dog
Rosie the fox jumps on Maddy the dog

Heart-warming: Richard Bowler, a professional photographer who captured the action at his home near Corwen, north Wales

Richard, 44, does not know what happened to Rosie¿s mother but says the fox was the only survivor after her father killed her siblings when she was an infant

Hand-reared: Richard, 44, does not know what happened to Rosie¿s mother but says the fox was the only survivor after her father killed her siblings when she was an infant

Richard, 44, does not know  what happened to Rosie’s mother but says the fox was the only survivor after her father killed her siblings when she was an infant.

He then hand-reared her before she had even opened her eyes.

‘We decided to give Rosie a home and she quickly bonded with Maddy after they were gently introduced,’ he said.

‘Rosie sleeps in the living room at night. We are surrounded by sheep farms and gamekeepers, and foxes are not welcome around here, so we feel it’s best to keep her inside – and what fox wouldn’t want to sleep on a comfy sofa?’

Next she’ll be watching Fox News!

Adorable: Their friendship was struck up when the fox, Rosie, was adopted by Richard Bowler ¿ the owner of dog Maddy, a Lakeland Patterdale crossbreed ¿ after she was left abandoned as an infant cub

Adorable: Their friendship was struck up when the fox, Rosie, was adopted by Richard Bowler ¿ the owner of dog Maddy, a Lakeland Patterdale crossbreed ¿ after she was left abandoned as an infant cub

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Nature really nailed it with foxes.

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Wish that one represented USA and the other Syria. Like this Fox and Dog, why can't we humans defy convention and get along. Shakes head and sighs.

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its not April yet is it?

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I love stories like this..

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i wish i was a fox because today, while picture reading, i learned foxes could fly.

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Oh my gosh this is the cutest story and photos. I bet the neighbors love this unusual pair of best friends. How utterly charming!!!!!!

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Dont some of you get it, we are the ones that hate and kill one another, animals more often than not get along okay

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Dont some of you get it, we are the ones that hate and kill one another, animals more often than not get along okay

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There is depth-of-field in photography where the foreground is in focus and the background is out of focus or vice verse. The pictures seem real to me.

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All one can say is Tally Ho!

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