A Jack Russell named Pici has officially been crowned Britain's Naughtiest Dog after coming out on top — or should that be bottom? — of Country Life's competition, run in association with Lily's Kitchen.
Pici’s name is Italian and actually pronounced ‘peachy’ — sadly, her behaviour is anything but. Now, though, putting up with the scamp in their midst has paid off for owners Elizabeth and Neil Johnson, who (as you can see in these lovely pictures) are clearly delighted that their pet has won such a prestigious title.
As well as the usual behaviours you might expect — stealing biscuits, chewing up passports the day before a big trip and so on — Pici once managed to summon armed police to her house.
That’s not a typo: armed police.
Yet in the spirit of dogs who are naughty in all the right ways, she’s as docile as can be with people, particularly children.
‘A child in a shop the other day grabbed her tail and just pulled and pulled and pulled,’ says Elizabeth.
‘We had to prise its fingers off as she would never snap or growl, she just rammed her tail firmly between her legs for the next half an hour.’
Pici – winner of Britain’s Naughtiest Dog 2019. Credit: Daniel Gould / Country Life
So what of the armed police visit?
‘Our eldest, Katharine, was in the shower when she heard banging on the front door,’ Elizabeth explains.
‘Fortunately, she got there before they kicked it in, but was told to stand aside so they could search the house.
‘The police quickly found Pici on our bed with the phone, which was covered in tooth marks. She must have chewed repeatedly on the nine—the first three times were enough!
‘My husband, Neil, has heard a tape of the call, with a woman asking: “Are you alright?” It sounded as if someone was being strangled, but it was just Pici, crunching happily on the phone.’
Luckily, the police had brought their senses of humour, as well as their guns…
You can read more about Pici’s adventures in this week’s Country Life, and hear the best tales from the runners’-up. Among them is a rottweiler named Jack who managed to flood his owners’ kitchen by turning on the tap, then sitting squarely on the plughole to make sure the sink was safely blocked up…
