OK, listen carefully. The person who agrees to organise the Secret Santa puts up a thread SECRET SANTA in this section, and in the OP says [the "I" and "me" refers to them, not to me!]

"I agree to organise the Secret Santa. Anyone who wants to join in, send me a Direct Thread Dog Forum titled "FAO my name" and tick at the bottom where it says "Only show to a specific user" and put my name"

So each person contacts the Organiser individually, and they can converse via the thread. Only the Organiser and each individual will see the individual discussions.

It will work just like PMs - with only the Organiser, each individual, Azz and the Mods able to see each post.

Gottit?

Aaaahhh! Now I see!
Thank you, Malka

I gottit!

Please let me know anything else that I need to include/say in the thread. Did we agree a date last year that everyone had to post their presents out by?

I really do not know Tess as I have never participated due to not being able to get anywhere to buy anything, plus postage etc.

Perhaps if someone who did participate last year or in previous years might be able to help?

As long as my suggestion for the Direct Thread thing is clear enough for everyone, it should be easy enough once someone kindly steps forward and offers to organise it.

If I knew what was involved in doing it I suppose I could but never having participated I honestly do not think I would know what to do.

I think the rules are usually something like:

• £5 per present
• Date to post by (must get proof of posting from post office)
• Number of dogs you want to include (£5 per dog - so matched with someone else with same number of dogs)
• Anything your dog cannot have or does not like
• Whether you can post abroad or not

I think that's it anyway

LOL Azz, I'll have 12 dogs with me over Christmas, I doubt ANYONE will be able to match that, or want to

1 - Does the Organiser have to decide to whom each participant sends their present?

2 - Is it a two-way gifting, ie A sends to B and B sends to A, or is it a sort of lucky dip in that the Organiser picks anyone that has the same number of dogs, so A might send to B but B sends to C?

I am sure there will be more questions.

Yes the organiser set a deadline for people who wanted to participate & then sorted out all the people. Everyone then got a PM telling them the name & address of their person to send to & a deadline date for sending. This way each dog at Christmas got a present & even their owners didn't know who it had come from. When it arrived we posted on a normal thread saying it had arrived so the person who sent it knew it had come, then after Christmas there was a thankyou thread many with pictures,

I am totally up for this challenge!! I guess it means that I can't take part though?

Shall I start a thread and get the ball rolling?

I don't see why you could join in - only thing is it wouldnt be secret for you