In 2022, the unofficial title of “The Tiniest Dog in Britain”, which was previously awarded to a dog named Daisy, now belongs to a very tiny Chihuahua. Bardo was only under 8in. tall and 2in. wide, and weighs 1.35g. He was 20 months old then and was only as big as an average-sized banana.
John Mallon, 61, and his younger sister, Ann, from North London, co-own Bardo, and absolutely adore their tiny pet. When they are out on walks, they often get stopped by strangers and mistake Bardo for a rat or a pet hamster. Still, they cherish their beloved “unusual” pet.
“He is so small that he gets attention wherever he goes,” John said in an interview with The Mirror. “Lots of people often think he’s a pet hamster or rat, not a dog.”
In December 2020, when Bardo was only nine weeks old, John welcomed the tiny white Chihuahua into his home. He lives with John’s cats, Ava and Moon, and is “the boss around the house” despite being only a quarter of their size.
“He’s always been so tiny, and he’s barely grown,” John said. “I’ve had strangers come up to me and say, ‘I’ve never seen a dog in my life as small as him.’”
In May 2022, after reading an article online about the smallest dog in Britain named Daisy, who was then 4 years old, John realized that Bardo was half an inch shorter than the titleholder. John said, “We measured him to check and confirmed he was just under 8in. tall.”
John’s sister Ann describes Bardo as a calm dog. He is sweet and rarely barks, unlike other Chihuahuas. She recalls that the banana-sized pup likes tuna and sardines mixed into his canine biscuits. Bardo is a fussy eater, though.
“If he doesn’t want to eat his food, he gets mad and makes a weird sound,” John said.
“He has an unusual appearance and looks like something out of Star Wars or Alien, but we think he’s so gorgeous,” Ann added. “He’s got these big eyes and loves to kiss everybody. Bardo is lovely with children and adults. They all say they’ve never seen anything so tiny and cute.”
Bardo’s tiny frame made it difficult for Ann to find a collar to fit his neck, so she resorted to buying an XS cat harness, which still had a lot of space. Due to his size restricting him, Ann said, “We’ve got to be careful around other dogs as they could do a lot of harm. We took him to a dog show at Primrose Hill recently, and because he’s so small, the judges didn’t even notice him.”
“He gets into small gaps that other dogs can’t, like down the side of the sofa, and sometimes we think he’s gone missing,” Ann added. “He’ll disappear for a while, and I’ll wonder where he is. Then I’ll find him tucked away.”
Images credits: © Ann Mallon and Mirror UK
