Death In Paradise star Ralf Little raises £25,000 for stray dogs in Caribbean

Death In Paradise star Ralf Little has raised almost £25,000 to help stray dogs in the Caribbean where the BBC show is filmed.

The actor, 41, said it was hard to “turn a blind eye” to the stray dogs on the islands’ streets since joining the BBC series in 2019.

Last month, he posted a video on Instagram sharing the news that the dog he had rescued from the island and brought home to the US had died in a car crash.

He and his partner Lindsey Ferrentino had decided to adopt the dog, Suzy, after finding her on the island struggling to walk due to the “severe neglect she had faced”, he said on the fundraising page.

The self-professed animal lovers also rescued a street dog they named Dora, after she wandered on to the set of Death In Paradise and into their “hearts”.

Following the death of Suzy, the Two Pints Of Lager And A Packet Of Crisps star set up a GoFundMe page to raise money for the charity that helped him rescue the two dogs and fly them to America.

The actor, who replaced Ardal O’Hanlon in the lead role on the tropical detective series, playing DI Neville Parker, exceeded the £20,000 target for animal rescue group SXM Paws.

In a statement on the fundraising page, he said: “Since joining the series in 2019, I’ve spent enough time in the Caribbean for it to feel like a second home.

As animal lovers, it has been hard for us to turn a blind eye to the countless stray dogs on the islands' streets

“However, as animal lovers, it has been hard for us to turn a blind eye to the countless stray dogs on the islands’ streets.

“Of course, as we were about to take Dora and Suzy back to the US with us, we found out that there were hoops to jump through.

“With no clear guidelines available, it was through connecting with SXM Paws, an animal rescue group in St Maarten that we ultimately were able to figure how to bring Dora and then Suzy home.

“Not only did the members of SXM Paws explain the steps we needed to take, but they actually executed many of the steps alongside us, readily helping with everything from driving Dora to her flight to the US and advising on how to get Suzy on a plane.

“When our little Suzy tragically passed away this year, we wanted to give back to this organisation.”