Take a bow-wow!

Take a bow-wow!

Paws for the cameras! This three-legged Ponsonby poodle is going out on a limb for stardom, as Joanna Davies finds out

Tallulah Star Poodle is not your average house pet.

She's walked catwalks for charity, starred in a few advertisements and, now, this three-legged marvel hopes to make it in the movie business.

Tallulah's owner, Daniella Noring, has entered her pet in World Three- Legged Dog Idol.

``I'm a Ponsonby interior designer with a three-legged dog so, basically, you just have to go with it,' laughs Ms Noring. ``I never thought I'd end up having a poodle, but she came as a part payment of a lampshade that a client was buying, and life has been hilarious since.'

The online competition is being held to find the star for New Zealand film-maker Geoff Talbot's new film, Lucky and Rich.

Candidates have posted pictures of their dogs on Mr Talbot's blog and, while people can vote for their favourite, Mr Talbot has decided an online TV show will be the best way to find the winner.

``Logistically, it is impossible to cast a dog via a couple of still photos,' says Mr Talbot. ``We wanted to be able to access the dogs' personalities, see how they move and interact with others and see who has screen presence and big dog star charisma.

``That's when I thought, `Why not have an online American Idol competition for tripods?'

Tallulah was hit by a car when she was 6 months old, after being led onto the road by Molly, Ms Noring's cat.

``Molly didn't like Tallulah at all. They never played together even though Tallulah just wanted to be friends,' says Ms Noring. ``And the only time Molly wanted to play was when she led Tallulah out in front of a car, and Molly got out of the way in time.'

The ``assassination attempt' was unsuccessful. Tallulah's front right leg was removed, and when she came home, Molly the cat moved out.

Mr Talbot says his new movie Lucky and Rich is a love story between Lucky, a Czech street-girl, and Rich, a homeless New Zealand bum. It will be filmed in Prague next year, and the winning dog must be fit to travel.

``Rich's best friend in life is a three- legged dog called Scrap,' says Mr Talbot. ``Lucky and Rich are broken in a very human way and it felt right that the third character in the story would be a dog who is also broken.

``The great and most inspiring thing about most of the three-legged dogs I've met is that, although life didn't turn out quite the way they planned, they don't spend their whole lives moping and looking for the leg that they've lost.'

Ms Noring says Tallulah fits the bill. ``Nothing stops her. She can sprint faster than my Jack Russell, and swim quite well.

``I think Geoff is doing a great thing because he wants to get the SPCA involved and show that these animals can live a good life, even if they only have three legs.'

02 07 2009