AN animal-loving teenager from Uplowman is organising her own fun dog show to raise funds for the homeless cats and dogs cared for by Blue Cross pet charity.

The dog show will take place on Saturday 12th April, from 2:00pm to 4:00pm at the Uplowman Village Hall.

Fourteen-year-old Lilian Hartley is passionate about pets, and has been raising funds for Blue Cross on a smaller scale for a few years now.

This year she has decided to raise the bar a notch or two by organising her own dog show, to increase the amount of money she could raise.

Lilian said: “I have done a bit of fundraising for Blue Cross in the past, including holding a ‘Paws for Tea’ party last year, but nothing as big as this. I used to enter my dogs in local dog shows and thought it would be fun to try and organise my own.

“I’ve always really loved animals and it’s great to be able to help out a charity like Blue Cross, who help so many needy pets every year. I really hope we get a great turnout out on the day to help make the show a success and raise as much money as possible.”

Lilian’s dog show will feature seven different classes, including best child handler (for under 12s) and best working breed, with Best in Show as the grand finale.

Entry into each class costs £2.00. There will also be refreshments available and a Blue Cross stall, where visitors can find out more about the charity’s work and some of the pets currently looking for new homes.

Kate Wickens, rehoming centre manager for Blue Cross in Tiverton, said: “We’re so impressed that Lilian is organising a dog show all by herself and we’re really looking forward to going along. We don’t receive any government funding, so fundraisers like Lilian are really important to us, helping us to carry on caring for all the cats and dogs here at the centre. Please do come along and join in the fun.”

To find out more about Lilian’s Blue Cross dog show, contact the Blue Cross rehoming centre in Tiverton on 0300 777 1560.