Huge turnout for sausage dog charity walk

Dachshund delight as owners gather for annual walk at Southwold beach

A gathering of dachshunds and their owners has taken place on the sands of a seaside town for an annual charity parade.

Organiser Laura Baggott said this year's Southwold Sausage Walk was "amazing, with one of its biggest turnouts".

"We lost count after 1,500. It's so difficult when you've got five or six coming to you at a time. But I think there was easily over 2,000," said Ms Baggott who has four daschunds.

The walk is also a fundraiser, with monies going towards charity Dedicated to Dachshunds with Intervertebral Disc Disease, (IVDD), which is a back disease the breed is prone to.

Dachshunds are often referred to as sausage dogs - and the term was celebrated by these owners

Dachshunds are genetically predisposed to IVDD, because of their long backs and short legs, and about one in four dogs are affected.

"It can leave them paralysed. This charity organises things like wheels so they can walk again," said Ms Baggott.

"There are strollers [as well] just to get them out and about while they are recovering and [the charity offers] free advice."

Since 2017, the walk has raised money for the NHS and dog rehoming charities, with a total of £25,000 being collected, said Ms Baggott.

Organisers estimated that about 2,000 dogs turned out for the event on the sandy stretch of beach just north of Southwold harbour

In 2022, the event in Suffolk set an unofficial world record for the world's biggest ever gathering of dogs of any single breed, when 2,238 dachshunds attended.

The annual event began in 2017 with about 150 dachshunds and has now become one of the UK's largest meet-ups for dogs.

Many dogs were "dressed-up" for the event - some even parading as hot dogs.

Ms Baggott said next year they planned for the event to be fancy dress for both dogs and owners.

Three long-haired dachshund wait patiently before their walk