 Despite Shep living with Noakes, the dog was always legally owned by the BBC and in rules that also applied to himself whilst under contract to the BBC, he could not use Shep for advertising or commercial purposes.Noakes was paid a stipend to cover all Shep's costs from the "Blue Peter" budget (as was Peter Purves for 'Petra' and later Simon Groom for 'Goldie') and as part of the agreement to keep Shep after leaving the show, Noakes agreed that the no-advertising condition should remain.However, shortly after leaving the show, Noakes was furious to discover that what he called his "dog money" ceased to be paid by the Corporation and he confronted Biddy Baxter in a phone call.