IT'S the camera craze which has gripped celebrities, sports stars and politicians - now staff and volunteers at a York animal charity are putting pets in the frame as well.

The RSPCA York and District Branch, which marks its 150th anniversary this year, has launched a photographic fundraiser asking pet-owners to take snaps of their dogs, cats, rabbits, hamsters or any other animal in a "selfie" pose, post it on facebook and make a donation to the charity.

The total has reached almost £550, virtually treble the original £200 target, with all funds going towards the RSPCA's work at its Landing Lane animal home. However, if donations hit the £1,000 mark, an anonymous donor will put in another £1,000.

York's animal centre costs about £1,500 a day to run and receives no external funding, so the money must be raised through other ways. The "pet selfies" idea came from York RSPCA volunteer Frances Plant and was put in place by staff member Niki Boyes.

Frances, who kicked off the fundraiser with a pic of her German Shepherd, Django, pulling a face, said: "I noticed selfies were creating a lot of publicity and people were taking pictures of themselves with their pets, and that gave me the idea of using this to the RSPCA's advantage.

"Niki and everybody at the RSPCA have been really proactive and we reached our original target within a week, but now we want to keep it going and reach the extended total as the donor who will add £1,000 if we get there was really excited about the idea.

"The pictures don't have to be of dogs, or rescue animals - they can be birds, mice, anything at all, and some people have been posting pictures which make it look as if their dog was holding the camera!"

To donate, post your pet selfie on your facebook page and donate your chosen amount - £1, £2, £3, £4, £5 or £10 - at justgiving.com/dogselfie or by texting DSYR50 and the amount you are donating to 70070.