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Melissa Millet, from Sparta, Ontario, Canada has two very special dogs.
A professional dog trainer for trick shows and film/TV, Melissa owns a whole host of animals, but Lollipop and Jellybean are slightly different from the rest of her animals - they're both deaf.
Melissa adopted Boston Terrier Lollipop as a 12-week-old puppy. While the rest of her litter were bought quickly, Lollipop was overlooked and not wanted because of her deafness, resulting in her being given to a shelter.
"Originally, I wasn't going to keep her. The moment I laid eyes on her I was in love, and I knew I had to keep this beautiful little dog," Melissa said.
Melissa trained Lollipop alongside her other dogs, using visual cues instead verbal ones.
Lollipop holds the record for the fastest 5m on a scooter by a dog and cat (4.37 seconds) with one of Melissa's cats, Sashimi.
As an accomplished performer, he has toured the country and shown the world that there is no reason to discard animals with differences.
"Jellybean is always learning new tricks and enjoys showing them off. He loves the attention (and cuddles) that he gets from performing."
Staying home during the height of the pandemic gave the pair time to work on different skills rather than performing for an audience, but Melissa shares that "he sure was grinning ear to ear during the record attempt when he could feel like a star again."
When Melissa and Jellybean first attempted to push a basketball, Melissa assumed it would take time, but was pleasantly surprised when he caught on almost instantly.
Jellybean went on to break two record titles:
"He's truly that underdog to wonderdog story. He's become the Brad Pitt of dogs!"
As an ambassador for Deaf Dog Rescue of America, Jellybean encourages others not to overlook deaf or disabled dogs.
"There is an assumption that deaf dogs can’t be trained, or do not make good pets. To have a Guinness World Records title to show off his incredible talents is such a valuable accolade to showcase the incredible potential that these dogs have!"
Melissa recommends checking your local shelter or rescue for new animal family members.
"You never know, perhaps one of them will take you on a journey that leads to Guinness World Records!"