A 10-YEAR-OLD boy from Blandford has raised another £540 for a dog shelter in Blandford Forum by hosting a socially distance sponsored walk.

Max Painter first held a sponsored walk for Stour Valley Dog Rescue in March this year, raising £438 from donations made by followers of his Instagram account he shares with his miniature dachshund Stanley.

Following the success of his first walk at Badbury Rings in East Dorset, Max, who now has over 10,000 followers on his account, chose to host another event on Sunday to bring his total fundraising amount to over £1,000 from his two walks.

Max did another charity walk today. He raised another £500 in total for Stour Valley dog rescue all just from Instagram friends.

The same people supported him again this time, including a lady and her son who drove five hours from Sheffield to join him like last time. Around 12 people took part, as well as five dogs and it was a lovely day."

After his first walk, Max had raised enough money to bring two dogs over from Romanian dog shelters to the UK.

Max has since met the dogs and named the dogs he has sponsored and continues to be closely involved with the charity.

Sharon Maistre-Welsh, one of the founders of Stour Valley Dog rescue, said: “To put that in context, that is nearly three dogs that we can now make a difference to by bringing them over here.

“It has been amazing; Max’s fundraiser has meant that we can carry on operating and caring for these dogs. He has really been part of the whole process.”

Max has seen some of the dogs he has helped bring over find forever homes, and is looking to host more events in the future to help more dogs find safe permanent accommodation.

Sharon added: “What is quite remarkable is that when selecting the dogs, Max doesn’t just choose the cute puppies.

“He has chosen an 11-year-old ‘because he has had a hard life for longer than the others’, a 13-year-old female dog who was abandoned when pregnant, and another dog who was left in a kill shelter

“Max very much engages with the dogs’ stories; he is a truly compassionate young man.”