Suffolk Dog Day is a Big Success for Hospice
St Elizabeth Hospice’s much-loved Suffolk Dog Day saw hundreds of dogs, and their owners, descend upon Trinity Park to celebrate man’s best friend and raise vital funds for the independent Suffolk charity.
Sponsored by Skinner’s, Suffolk Dog Day featured a range of fun dog classes, dog agility and scurry activities, as well as over 50 stalls full of doggy goodies, Crufts’ style competitions, children’s entertainment and plenty of food and drink stalls for attendees to enjoy.
Held on 13 September, and with donations and funds still coming in, Suffolk Dog Day has already raised over £35,000 for St Elizabeth Hospice.
James Fox-Golding, Events and Challenges Manager at St Elizabeth Hospice, said: “What a pawsitively perfect day!
“Suffolk Dog Day is always a joy to host and this year was no exception as we welcomed the community to join with the hospice over our shared loved of our canine companions.
“Congratulations to all our show winners and everyone who took part. A huge thank you to our headline sponsors Skinner’s, our wonderful volunteers and stallholders for helping to make the day possible.
“Every penny raised will help us continue providing vital support to people and families in our local community when compassionate care matters most.”
Suffolk Dog Day 2026 Highlights
Hundreds of people attended the event, which celebrated man’s best friend. For the first time ever Best in Show was won by a family of Northern Inuit dogs who also won Happiest Family on the day too.
The proud owners consisted of Georgina Heap, Tracey Fowler, Mak Harding, Sarah Crookes and Louise Lincoln, whose show winning pooches included Jimmy, Wulf, Mak, Kazue, Phoenix and Arnie.
Georgina said: “It’s just amazing to win. We’re all very shocked and just so happy to win. We are proud of all the dogs and Suffolk Dog Day was so well run and a brilliant event to be a part of.”
Tracey said: “I’m over the moon. It’s just great all the dogs get to enjoy the experience and the day together. A great event all round.”
Mark added: “Today has been great. A really nice day and it’s been fantastic to support St Elizabeth Hospice at the same time. Winning Best in Show and Happiest Family is fabulous and so nice to have all the dogs together.”
Ticket proceeds and donations from Suffolk Dog Day will go to St Elizabeth Hospice, which every year provides support to over 4,000 patients & families living with life-limiting illnesses in East & Mid-Suffolk, Great Yarmouth and Waveney.
Annually, these services cost around £12 million to deliver, with 70% of these funds being generated by the local community’s support of the hospice’s income streams. For example, retail shops, events – such as Suffolk Dog Day, individual fundraising, as well as gifts in Wills and donations.
