Hundreds join Max the miracle dog's Keswick birthday walk

Hundreds of dog lovers and their pets have joined a famous springer spaniel for a 14th birthday walk.

The walk in Keswick was organised by Kerry Irving, owner of therapy dog Max who has gained a huge following online.

About 500 people and 400 dogs joined the walk with more than £30,000 being raised for the PDSA.

A statue of Max has been installed in Keswick and the dog was the first pet to be awarded the PDSA Order of Merit, hailed as an "animal OBE".

Mr Irving said: "Max has changed so many lives so it seemed fitting to enjoy his 14th birthday walk with as many people and their dogs as possible.

"We asked everyone to wear orange, which is Max's colour, and I was blown away by the response."

Ruth Lister from the PDSA said: "It was truly joyful to spend the day celebrating Max's birthday with hundreds of people whose lives he has had such an enormous impact on."

Mr Irving has previously said meeting Max saved his life after the locksmith spent two years in chronic pain and with severe depression following a car crash.

He adopted Max in 2008 and during the coronavirus lockdowns shared daily videos of Max and his "brothers" Paddy and Harry on their walks on Facebook garnering hundreds of thousands of views.

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