Dog play afternoon: dachshunds overrun Hyde Park for Christmas walk

The pitter-patter of tiny paws has brought joy – and more than a little chaos – to Hyde Park in London as hundreds of dachshunds and their owners gathered for the annual sausage dog Christmas walk.Now in its eighth year, the event was started by Ana Rodriguez as a way to help her dachshund, Winston, socialise as a puppy. Meeting at noon by the Physical Energy statue in the centre of the park, the dogs – well, the owners really – competed in a best-dressed competition before enjoying an hour of play and socialising before the parade. Rodriguez said previous years’ events had ended up attracting as many as a thousand people and dogs.The dachshund gathering at Hyde Park. Photograph: Martin Belam/The GuardianDachshunds may only have little legs, but the Royal Kennel Club still recommends they enjoy up to an hour’s exercise a day. Koda was making his debut at the event with his owner, Alice. “We’ve been to dachshund cafes before,” she said. “It’s so cute. I’ve got spare costumes for him in case he gets wet, and a sling to carry him home on the tube. He’ll probably fall asleep.”Koda at the Hyde Park sausage dog walk. Photograph: Martin Belam/The GuardianIan had travelled from St Albans with Daisie. “It brings everyone together,” he said. “It’s just lovely, isn’t it? Dachshunds migrate towards each other, don’t they?”Daisy at the Hyde Park sausage dog walk. Photograph: Martin Belam/The GuardianCostumes included a dog wearing a box to resemble a present, and another dachshund dressed as a reindeer pulling a miniature sleigh. The breed is not known to be cooperative with clothes, although three-year-old Otto tolerated his owner, Berfin, putting a Christmas scarf on him as they waited for a bus at Green Park to head to the event. “He’s used to posing for photographs though,” she added, as her boyfriend is a photographer.Otto waiting to attend the Hyde Park sausage dog walk. Photograph: Martin Belam/The GuardianMo and Jen, who were there with Pedro, sporting a fetching tinsel necklace, said they had always had dachshunds and that Pedro was their third.“The previous two both lived to 17,” Jen said, leading Mo to joke that Pedro might outlive him. “They are so human,” Mo said. “They just want to spend time with their owners.”Pedro at the Hyde Park sausage dog walk. Photograph: Martin Belam/The GuardianThe dachshund breed originated in Germany, where it was developed as a hunting dog, adept at tracking wounded prey or entering tunnels to seek out badgers and rabbits. It has undergone a huge rise in popularity in the UK in the last decade, with registration on the breed soaring. But the only thing the sausage dogs in Hyde Park were hunting for on Sunday, however, were treats. “They are really special,” Rodriguez said. “Loving, protective, and the most loyal dogs ever.”A dachshund looking for treats in Hyde Park. Photograph: Chris J Ratcliffe/AFP/Getty Images