HUNDREDS of canine paws set out with a cause on a mass dog walk today (Sunday October 12).

Owners of pooches of all sizes proudly led their pets on walks of one-and-a-half and three miles round sunny Riverside Park, in Chester-le-Street.

It was the fifth such event staged by St Cuthbert’s Hospice to raise essential funds to maintain and run the care facility, for patients with life-limiting conditions, on the outskirts of Durham.

Hospice chief executive Paul Marriott addressed the walkers before the start, thanking them for their support and giving them the all important reminder to clean up after their pets round the route.

There was also some pre-walk fun in the form of waggiest tail, best-dressed and cutest dog contests, to amuse competitors.

St Cuthbert’s events co-ordinator, Hannah Bunce, said everyone connected with the hospice was grateful for the support of the dog walkers who turn out in force each year for Paws for a Cause.

“Everyone seems to have fun and the dogs seem to enjoy themselves.

“The idea is to have some canine capers, in a good cause.”

She added that the event has helped to raise tens of thousands of pounds in its relatively short history, for the hospice, which requires £1.3m funding in donations alone to ensure it keeps going into the future.