North Melbourne’s local lap dog

You don’t have to search too hard to spot the Harry and Mao Mao duo wandering around North Melbourne; just look for the three-year-old golden retriever with a pair of booties on.

“He was my friend’s dog, but my friend went back to his country and couldn’t get back to Australia, so I started to take care of him when he was a one-year-old.”

Harry and his girlfriend had been looking after Mao Mao together until she had to leave Australia to visit her home country. When he’s missing her, Harry likes to take Mao Mao on routes they used to all walk together.

“Every time I walk with him, he reminds me of my girlfriend,” Harry said. “He makes me feel less lonely.”

Mao Mao’s friendly nature is the quality Harry loves most about him, as he’s always happy and excited to have friends over at the house.

However, Mao Mao’s enthusiasm can be problematic at times, forgetting how big he really is when launching himself into people’s laps.