Dozens of four legged friends descended on the picturesque countryside of Drumlanrig Castle and Country Estate recently for an Insta-pup and owner meet-up.
Organised by Drumlanrig Castle and online community Scottish Instagram Dogs, it was a mammoth meet-up of model canines with their own Instagram profiles who were posing across the Estate and posting with #DogsofDrumlanrig.
This social network page was originally established to connect dogs with other pets and owners across the country to share advice and arrange regular group walks.
Caitlynn Neil, Founder of Scottish Instagram Dogs, said: “I created the group last year as a community for like-minded people and a way to help dogs socialise. We now have thousands of members and more than five thousand followers on Instagram.
“It was great to receive the invitation from Drumlanrig as we’re always looking for new locations for meet-ups and the Estate is such a beautiful spot to explore – it’s a photography heaven. We had a brilliant response from members with 28 dogs attending on the day, with some members attending their first ever meet-up.”
The Dumfriesshire Estate is openly dog-friendly with several marked walks to explore varying in length and difficulty. This includes woodland strolls along Beech and Coldstream Loch or the bank of the Marr Burn as well as stunning Castle view routes up Mount Malloch overlooking the Queensberry Estate and River Nith.
Owners are simply asked to keep their companions under close control or on leads on Estate grounds so as not to cause disturbance to the surrounding wildlife and farm animals.
Richard Clarke, Countryside Ranger at Drumlanrig Caste and Country Estate, said: “We regularly welcome visitors with their dogs to the Estate throughout the year but I think we’ve now set a record for the most dogs on the Estate at one time.”
Drumlanrig Estate and the Buccleuch family have a historical connection to dogs with many champion dogs bred and trained by Buccleuch’s very own David Lisett, and several paintings and artworks within the world-renowned Buccleuch collection feature these cherished working dogs.
In the 1830s, the 5th Duke of Buccleuch, Walter Francis Montagu Douglas Scott, was one of the first to import dogs from Newfoundland to his Estates for use as gundogs because of their excellent retrieving capabilities. To this day, all Buccleuch Labradors can be traced back to those first imported dogs.
The Buccleuch Kennel which is based at Chapel Farm is home to many champion gundogs. This includes Buccleuch Labradors, English Springer Spaniels and Cocker Spaniels who have won many prestigious accolades all achieved under the expert handling of David Lisett.
Visitor season at Drumlanrig is from 10am – 5pm daily until Monday 30 September.
To keep up to date with the latest news at Drumlanrig Castle and Country Estate visit www.drumlanrigcastle.co.uk or follow @DrumlanrigCastle on Facebook.
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