A Dalton-in-Furness resident has raised more than £1,200 through her festive fundraiser for dogs.

The Santa Paws grotto, set up outside Laura Curtis's house on Market Street throughout December, welcomed passers-by and their pets for a festive photo session in exchange for a contribution to the Dogs Trust.

During the week leading up to Christmas and on Christmas Day, visiting canines had the chance to sniff out a special present for themselves.

Ms Curtis said: “I want to say a huge thank you to everyone who came along to the grotto and made a donation. It was a real privilege to go along to Dogs Trust and meet some of the dogs they are looking after. To know that every penny raised will go towards helping make sure that they will have everything they need until they find their forever homes was wonderful.

“I am already thinking about doing a beach themed summer event and I’ll definitely do the grotto again at Christmas as everyone really enjoyed it, including me and my dogs.”

The grotto collected a total sum of £1,254.70, which Ms Curtis has since handed over to the Dogs Trust Cumbria team.

During her visit, Ms Curtis had an opportunity to meet some of the dogs that the fundraiser will assist.

Dogs Trust, a dog welfare charity, has rehomed thousands of dogs, while Dogs Trust Cumbria, which opened in January 2022, has found forever homes for more than 400 dogs from their network of foster carers.

Lisa Spence, manager at Dogs Trust Cumbria, said: "The effort that Laura put in and the support shown by dog lovers is incredible.

"We are thrilled that she has been able to come to the centre and the fact that she is already thinking of doing a summer fundraiser is fantastic.

"We can’t wait to see what she comes up with."