Meet Samantha, Edinburgh’s Afghan hound supermodel and Instagram celebrity

Serving impeccable looks with a healthy dose of side eye, Samantha, the statuesque figure and irresistibly groomed face of the popular Instagram account @afghanhoundinthecity, isn’t your typical supermodel. She isn’t human, either, as her humorously self-evident handle might suggest. But the three-year-old, Edinburgh-based Afghan hound has been turning heads the world over with her masterfully styled portraits on social media, which look like they’ve been pulled straight from the pages of a fashion glossy. Her pout? Always on point. Her taste? Wide-ranging, from European luxury labels like Etro, to hip, up-and-coming brands like Edie Parker and high street staples like John Lewis.

“She definitely doesn’t have any bad angles, even when she’s sleeping,” says Bethany Plevri, Samantha’s human companion, with a laugh. Some models are scouted off the street, some are trained to be one from the day they were born, and then some run wild and free through the park until a camera comes into view. “I knew from when she was a puppy,” Bethany (who like Samantha prefers to go by first name only) says of discovering Samantha’s special talent early on. “I would take her out, and when I would go take a photo of her, she was immediately amazing at just sitting there and posing. And that’s quite unnatural for a dog.”

“She just holds herself much more gracefully than I do,” Bethany admits, laughing once more. “She’s got a nice, long neck. She’s far more elegant. Even as she walks along the street, the way that she glides really, she’s born to be a supermodel, I think. I feel quite frumpy next to her.”

Playing dress-up with Samantha may seem straightforward, but her poise has made her a style sensation on the internet with over 200,000 followers and counting. Then there are her carefully curated outfits, which give her a very believable air of sophistication. Bethany says it all started with an eye for quality, “considered purchases” and the correct proportions.

“In Edinburgh, we’re very lucky that there are lots of vintage shops,” she says, describing how personal shopping trips perusing the aisles turned into outings sourcing items for Samantha. She picks out W. Armstrong & Son for one. “Probably eight years ago or so Ralph Lauren scoped out Armstrong’s for inspiration, so it’s very famous. To be honest, I’ll see something for myself and then I see Samantha in it and I think, ‘My god, the dog looks better.’”

Part of Samantha’s polished, picture-perfect style comes down to how human clothes seem to fit her so well. “She’s had dog jumpers in the past, but she’s very slim with a very long body,” Bethany explains. “Dog clothes don’t fit her very well. So, she ended up leaning into my wardrobe and I guess we share.”

Apparently, it’s not just the outfits and poses that Samantha has nailed down. As Bethany describes it, the voice behind @afghanhoundinthecity is entirely Samantha’s, too. “She’s always been a diva,” Bethany recalls. “In my head she’s a timeless character.” On her socials, she cosplays different characters from time to time, from the preppy, rich mum you met at your son’s private school (“I don’t chase sticks,” the caption reads, “I chase tax brackets”) to the fun-employed nepo baby who holidays in Saint-Tropez. The sass and sense of humour is always there though. “I always thought she needed a person’s name,” says Bethany. “She is definitely a person. She’s got that personality where she stands by herself and could make her own way in the world if she wanted to.”