Christmas is almost upon us and even our four-legged friends are being invited to get into the spirit.
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For the fourth year running, the Dubbo Rotary Club will be hosting their Santa Paws photo booth at Ollie Robbins oval. For just $20, pets will have a chance to get a snap with Santa - for a good cause.
Organiser Carla Pittman said the event is open to all pets, not just dogs.
"We've had one lovely lady bring her ferrets down ... she actually brought her dog down first and she said I've got ferrets but I wasn't sure if I should bring them, I said 'oh, no, that's fine, go grab them'," she said.
"We've also had a rabbit that's come down for a photo with Santa and we've had a cat come down. I'm hoping I might get a lamb or a goat or something there this year.
"We're more than happy to photograph whatever."
Ms Pittman had the idea for the Santa Paws photo booth as lockdown lifted post-COVID. She said many people bought pets during the pandemic and the photo booth would be a way to celebrate the joy they brought through a difficult time.
"There were a few of our members when I said 'we're going to do Santa Paws' who said 'we're going to do what? Would people even do that?'," she said.
"I said, 'yes, because there's crazy people like me that will happily pay like 50 bucks for a photo'.
There will be props and costumes on the day to help get your pet into the festive spirit.
"Because we're at Ollie Robbins it's a really great spot because it's quite open," Ms Pittman said.
"If dogs by chance do get a little bit anxious about others, they can just go for a lap around the park and we can at least keep people separated and in their own space."
Ms Pittman said the money raised from the photo sessions will go towards local charities helping animals.
"Our club tries to keep our funds local so the funds previously have gone towards the Australian Working Dog Rescue and the local RSPCA branch," she said.
"They actually rescue quite a few dogs from this area which is unfortunate but it's fortunate that we're able to assist a little bit with that as well.
"The focus is for it to be a pet motivated charity because the concept is about love and care for creatures of all sizes."
Rotary's Santa Paws photo sessions will be held on Saturday, November 25 and Saturday, December 2 from 8:00am to 1:00pm.
