Rona Dougall: One Christmas, Santa gave me the best present ever, my wee pal Jemima

Even now, decades on, I can still remember the excitement I felt as a child when Christmas approached.

There’s never been a feeling to match it. And one Christmas Day stands out in particular; the one when I got the best present ever.

My brother and sisters had all received their gifts from under the tree and all that was left was a solitary white envelope with my name on it. Their chocolate-smeared faces were agog with curiosity and open hostility – what was the gig here, what was going down, and what was she getting that they weren’t?

The envelope held a key to the back porch and, with a racing heart, I opened it. And there, looking up from her basket, was a kitten.

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Jemima went on to become a huge part of all of our lives and set an impossible standard for other pets to live up to. Milky the hamster and the rats with no names never quite cut it.

She was my wee pal when I was little and went on to become such a comfort to me through turbulent teenage years.

During the pandemic so many of us have sought comfort and companionship from pets. The number of dogs bought in Scotland has rocketed. As have the prices of course.

The presence of a furry friend is balm to the soul. You’re never alone with one at your side. When my friend’s daughter took to her bed with a bad case of Covid recently, their faithful labradoodle never left her room. There was also a lovely story last week about a stray dog adopted by a soldier in Afghanistan who had won a inspirational animal award.

Peg had been looked after by Conrad Lewis during his time with the Parachute Regiment until he was killed by a sniper in Helmand province. He’d told his parents how she had given him comfort and hope, and that he wanted to bring her back to the UK when he left Afghanistan.

His mum said it was so important to them to bring the dog home after their son’s death: “We can’t look after Conrad any more, but we can look after his dog.”

An animal charity helped bring her home and Conrad’s bereaved parents say Peg has helped them enormously.

Everywhere you look, they’re there. The unsung heroes bringing smiles to people’s faces and joy to us all. Look at social media on any given day and there is story after heartwarming story of animals doing their bit.

I’ve just seen on Facebook that Charlie and Pringle are spreading a lot of love at a care home in Woodstock. The two Humboldt penguins from a local zoo are strutting their stuff and totally transforming the lives of the lucky pensioners there.

And look, there’s a video of Alvin the tiny Shetland pony frolicking in the snow and making my day just that little bit better.

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As an adult I did eventually get another cat, another stray funnily enough, and Flossie was every bit as wonderful as Jemima was. My daughters mauled her and pulled her tail when they were little and she didn’t twitch a whisker. She lived for 21 wonderful years.

I still feel something is missing when I walk into a room in our house and there is no Floss curled up on the sofa or a bed. The place doesn’t seem quite right without her.

My husband in particular adored her and used to joke that she was the best of us.

And I really think she was.