Yet Santa Paws has become one of the city’s most popular festive events since it was originally launched by publican Sean Hughes at The Boot several years ago. It is now hosted by The Lower Red Lion in Fishpool Street and this year raised £695 for homelessness charity Open Door. One evening in the run-up to Christmas saw 58 dogs and 45 humans come into the child-free pub, snuggle up to Santa for their Christmas ‘pawtrait’ and receive a festive goodie bag. Landlord David Worcester said: “We’ve got loads and loads of dogs in St. Albans, everyone loves a dog, and it’s just wacky and super fun. You’ve just got to embrace the madness and the chaos.”All pictures by Desneri Photography.

Source: The Times December 25, 2025 12:21 UTC