THE MOST popular Snowdogs have been revealed with an arty pooch showing up as the most visited.

Splash Hound, which stood by the Unitarian Church in New Road, Brighton, was the favourite with Snowdog hunters, according to figures collected by The Martlets hospice.

And Merry-Go-Hound, by the Royal Pavilion North Gate, was the second most popular pooch. It was closely followed by Disco Dog, in Duke Street, Horatio - The Bathing Beauty, in East Street, and Lola which stood outside the Theatre Royal in New Road. The Snowpuppies, designed by pupils at city schools, were also some of the most popular.

The hospice, which is raising funds with the Snowdogs by the Sea public art trail, measured the popularity of each dog using the number of times visitors had scanned each dog's code with their smartphone as they tracked down the giant decorated sculptures.

Splash Hound, sponsored and designed by Lawrence Art Supplies, in Portland Road, Hove, was also the favourite for a stag party in October when they cling-filmed a groom-to-be to the model.

Amy Lawrence, the daughter of Martin Lawrence, who runs the store, decorated the 1.5-metre-tall dog with fellow artist Aimee Brigginshaw live in front of an audience in July before it went out on the street.

She said: "This is amazing news. I'm really pleased to hear Splash Hound was the favourite. It's just fantastic to hear everyone enjoyed it so much. We are all about art supplies and the trail was all about art so this was a brilliant fit. We went for a colourful design which had an art theme with blobs of paint."

Five Brighton and Hove rotary clubs joined together to sponsor runner up Merry-Go-Hound. They were the only community group to do so.

Illustrator Sean Sims challenged himself with the design by creating it first on computer before transferring it in paint to the model.

The 52-year-old based the design on fairground rides and pop art - paying homage to the Mod scene. He said: "It was full of gold and colour, just like fairground horses. "Families, particularly children, seemed to love the trail - I think this is the best event to take place in Brighton for some time. It's been great to take part."

Rotarian Wendy Knight said: "We absolutely loved our Merry-Go-Hound. This was about being part of a fantastic art trail which really engaged the community and promoted our work in the city. People are sad to see the Snowdogs leave the streets, they leave a paw print on your heart."

A spokeswoman for the Martlets Hospice said: “Our small digital team has been working on the app throughout the trail and it’s been hugely popular with more than 112,000 QR scans for the Snowdogs. 

“We’ve loved seeing all the shots trail goers have taken with the Snowdogs. People have had so much fun hunting Snowdogs.

“Most of the dogs had special offers from our sponsors attached to them which have been very popular. 

“To add an element of competition if app users find all the dogs they’ll be entered into a fabulous prize draw for a great Brighton weekend, so I’m sure the festive farewell will be full of people collecting their last few dogs.”

Fans have one last chance to see the Snowdogs and the Snowpuppies at the Brighton Dome Corn Exchange, Church Street, on Sunday and Monday. Call 01273 709709 for tickets.

The models will be sold at auction on Tuesday, December 6. To register an interest in bidding email hello@snowdogsbythesea.co.uk.

HOW THE SNOWDOGS RANKED IN POPULARITY

The most popular Snowdogs, measured by QR code scans from mobile phones:

Splash Hound
Merry-Go-Hound
Disco Dog
Horatio-The Bathing Beauty
Lola
GRRRace
Snowman’s Nightmare
Blot the Dog
Mod Dog 
Process Pup 
Crush Puppy
Southdowns Dog 
Koinu Yakuzu 
Palace Pup
Legal Beagle 
Frank 
Roodle
Bella
Newshound 
Under the Sea
Smart Vibes 
Flower
Bobby
Bone China 
Bow Wow 
Brighton Rock (Rocco)
Pebbles 
The Snowman and Snowdog sand sculpture at Brighton Marina
Snowbrador 
Dudley 
Patch - The Unfinished Quilt 
Dave the Dog 
Gizmo
Max
Seagulls of the South 
Flash (A group of Snowpuppies) 
Marty 
The Original Snowdog 
Boomer
Sparky 
Clifton 
Smiley 
Winter Lily
Brighton Belle
Neon Camo Snowdog of Hope 
Rose