A REALITY TV show will see pampered youngsters put through their paces by staff at an Oxfordshire animal adoption centre.

Staff at the Blue Cross will appear in BBC Three’s Young, Dumb and Living Off Mum, which features workshy young adults used to being waited on by doting parents.

Each week the youngsters are given a tough working challenge as they compete for a round-the-world trip.

Sunday’s episode will see the young people discover what it is like to ‘work like a dog’ at the charity’s animal adoption centre in Lewknor, near Thame, under the guidance of charity workers Emily Paget and Jess Hollis, both 21.

The pair assigned each of the teenagers a dog to train, walk, and bathe, and kennels to clean.

Animal welfare assistant Miss Hollis, from Stokenchurch, near Thame, has been working at the Blue Cross for 18 months after doing a degree in animal welfare.

She said: “Filming the show was a great experience.

“It was a real eye-opener to work with people with such a different attitude to work.

“I was quite shocked at how immature they were.

“But it was lovely to see how inspired they became by working with the animals.

“It really made me realise how much I love my job.”

Miss Paget, from High Wycombe, added: “I was quite apprehensive at the start of the day, as the contestants seemed to have a bit of an attitude and were more concerned about what they were wearing than the animals.

“It was very frustrating at times, but rewarding in the end to see them start to care for the dogs. One contestant even donated her weekly allowance to the Blue Cross.”

Viewers will see the teenagers show off their new animal-caring skills.

Centre manager Julie Stone said: “For many people, it’s a dream to work with animals, so it was a huge contrast to meet these young people who never seem to have lifted a finger in their lives.

“They needed quite a lot of encouragement but they did eventually start to get the hang of animal welfare work.

“Hopefully their experience at the Blue Cross will have opened their eyes to how rewarding hard work can be, especially when it’s for a good cause like helping animals in need.”

Young Dumb and Living Off Mum is at 9pm on Sunday on BBC Three.