Dressed for the dogwalk

MAARTEN HOLL/The Dominion Post

LOVE ME, LOVE MY DOG: Twins Emma, left, and Sophie Dawson, 8, dressed up as their dogs Ruby and Chester for the SPCA fundraiser.

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Beachgoers might have thought they were seeing double when Emma and Sophie Dawson walked by – and not just because they are twins.

The eight-year-olds had donned face paint and fur to dress up like their family dogs Ruby and Chester, a cavalier king charles spaniel and a border collie.

They then walked the dogs around Lyall Bay as part of the first annual Strut Your Mutt Family Fun Walk yesterday.

They were among 165 people, and more than 200 dogs, who turned out for the four-kilometre walk, which raised $750 for the SPCA.

The pair took out first prize in the lookalike competition.

Emma said dressing up was fun. "We got to have our faces painted."

She wanted to dress like Ruby because they were both small, she said.

The twins' mother, Liz Dawson, said the day was well organised, and it was a good cause.

The walk was held by pet-care company Pet Angels.

Director Laura Humphreys said it was a big success, and especially pleasing that all the dogs got along. "You see 200 dogs walking together on a footpath and not even one dogfight – it was amazing."

She hoped more people would dress up next year. "Hopefully it will be like the sevens."