CAMILLE Pentland's first thought on waking after a 14-hour kidney and pancreas transplant operation was "what is the first dog show I can go to?"

Whatever her doctors advised, it is unlikely to have involved returning to the show ring just a month after surgery.

But she did, with star Estrela (Portuguese mountain dog) Menna, who made a gruelling day worthwhile by winning a best of breed rosette.

Determination is behind Mrs Pentland's fightback from lifesaving, life transforming surgery.

The 35-year-old, who lives in Wyllie, is more blunt: "I'm just damn stubborn."

Despite having diabetes for 19 years, and knowing she would require a kidney transplant eventually, she felt so well the outcome of tests 18 months ago was a nasty surprise.

"My potassium level was into heart attack territory. I needed dialysis straight away," she said.

"In hospital I heard a nurse mention pancreas transplants. I thought, I'll have some of that!"

Pancreas transplants help Type One (insulin-dependent) diabetes patients, providing a new source of insulin, and can remove the need for injections.

Dialysis began in January 2007, a home course that March, followed by a transplant call false alarm. The call from Cardiff's University Hospital of Wales came on April 3.

She left hospital on April 21.

"I don't need to inject myself everyday now. I could say thank you to them (the donor's family) but never get across how much I mean it," said Mrs Pentland, payroll administrator for a pensions company.

"Without dialysis I'd have been dead within two, three years, with dialysis in maybe eight or nine."

Meanwhile, two-year-old Menna is already a show star and a major influence on Mrs Pentland's recovery.

"The second weekend after leaving hospital I showed her. It was exhausting, but we've both gone from strength to strength," she said.

Menna has won a host of show awards, making waves across the dog show world despite the Estrela being a rare breed without UK championship status.