Cocktail fan and gin lover Janice Cousins, 64, a retired postwoman from Weston-super-Mare, has taught her beloved Labrador, Bear, to bring her ready-mixed G&Ts and cocktails whenever she says “Gin O’clock”! (Could that be a reference to Craft Gin Club’s recipe book, Gin O’Clock: A Year of Ginspiration?)

Bear the Labrador with a pre-mixed G&T for Janice. Image: Mail Online

Bear the Labrador is eight years old and can carry more than just cocktail cans. His skills stretch to wine bottles, sticks and toys too!

“The command for Bear to pick anything up is his name. He won’t normally go and collect anything until he hears that. On this occasion, though, he trotted off on ‘gin o’clock’ and grabbed me a can. It was amazing and very useful. He’s done it before with beer, cider and even bottles of wine. He’s a good lad. He works for biscuits so he’s always willing to help out. I’ve trained Bear with gun dog training methods and once I’ve shown him something - whether it be a log, his toy or even a bottle of wine - I can release him and command him to get that object. ”

— Janice Cousins, Bear's owner

Janice Cousins with Bear (left) and Benson (right). Image: Mail Online

Janice filmed Bear bringing her a gin and tonic while taking a break from doing work in her garden with her husband, Dave. Mail Online picked up the video and it is fast becoming a must-watch for dog lovers and gin fans alike. You can watch Bear at work in the video below:

Bear has been trained by Janice since his adolescence but it wasn’t until Janice needed a double hip replacement that Bear’s skills really came into their own.

“I had a double hip replacement a couple of years ago and I had to use a grabber to pick stuff up beforehand. I couldn’t bend before the operation so I taught him to fetch his own bowl and hand it up to me so I could feed him. It was hugely helpful at the time and I’ve just continued his training. We’ve got our own log burner and he will help fetch the logs for me. He was a very naughty adolescent dog when he was younger which is why I decided to go for gundog training. It turned his attitude right around.”

— Janice Cousins

Bear is now a very good boy and sets a great example for Janice’s other Labrador, Benson. What a heart-warming story. Cheers to you, Bear, Benson, Janice and Dave!