JS Wetherspoon pubs do not allow dogs anywhere on their premises, not even in the gardens. I discovered this when a friend and I, with her dog, wanted to have a coffee and light meal at their pub on the sea front in Herne Bay, Kent. They have a small open-fronted area [...]]]> From a Dogfriendly Member:

JS Wetherspoon pubs do not allow dogs anywhere on their premises, not even in the gardens. I discovered this when a friend and I, with her dog, wanted to have a coffee and light meal at their pub on the sea front in Herne Bay, Kent. They have a small open-fronted area containing 2 tables and 8 chairs outside their front entrance, where we intended to sit but were not so politely told that dogs were not welcome.

I was so astonished that I telephoned their head office to confirm this and, indeed, this is the case. Apparently, at some time in the past, in one of their pub gardens, a child trod on a dog’s tail and was bitten. I did ask whether they had considered banning children, or whether dogs without tails would be admitted – the lady thought this was quite funny.

However, the circumstances would indicate that the child was moving around without proper supervision whilst the dog must have been sitting or lying down as otherwise its tail would not have been against the ground.

I have enjoyed some good meals in Wetherspoons in Canterbury in the past, but I will not support any of their pubs in future

We would like to recommend the following places which all welcome dogs:

The Wayford Bridge Hotel. They welcome dogs in the bar which serves the same mmeals as the restaurant. They also welcome dogs in the lounge and hotel. (Stalham, Norwich, Norfolk NR12 9LL. Tel: 01692 582 414)

 Alfresco [...]]]> With thanks to Carol and Gordon – Dogfriendly members

We would like to recommend the following places which all welcome dogs:

The Wayford Bridge Hotel. They welcome dogs in the bar which serves the same mmeals as the restaurant. They also welcome dogs in the lounge and hotel. (Stalham, Norwich, Norfolk NR12 9LL. Tel: 01692 582 414)

 Alfresco Tea Rooms in Ludham welcome dogs in their tearooms. Alfresco Tea Rooms. Norwich Road. Ludham. Norfolk. NR29 5QA. Tel: 01692 678384

Cliff Top Cafe Overstrand welcome dogs in the cafe which serves snacks and meals. 22 Cliff Rd, Overstrand, Cromer, Norfolk NR27 0PP

Tel: 01263 579 319

Cafe at Sea Palling. This welcomes dogs in their cafe.

Sandy Hills cafe and amusements, Beach Road, Sea Palling

The Kingfisher Cafe & Snack Bar, Coast Road, Walcott, Norwich, Norfolk

NR12 0AP. Tel: 01692 651431. They welcome dogs inside at the tables.

Kingfisher Fish Bar. Coast Rd, Walcott, Norwich, Norfolk NR12 0AP Tel. 01692 652999. They welcome dogs inside at the tables.

Emcy Garden & Leisure, Kelling, Holt Weybourne Road, Kelling, Holt, Norfolk NR25 7ER. Tel: 01263 711574. They have a cafe inside which also welcomes dogs.

Blyth & Wright Ltd 36-40 Station Rd, Sheringham, Norfolk NR26 8RQ This is a very comprehensive hardware store. Tel: 01263 823 258

Jacquelines Shoe Shop. 18, Station Rd, Sheringham, Norfolk NR26 8RE.

Tel: 01263 821212

The Discount Book & Jigsaw Co. 1 Tucker St, Cromer, Norfolk NR27 9HA

Tel: 01263 512 054

Middletons – Fashion Shop. 15-17 Church Street, Sheringham, Norfolk,

NR26 8QR. Tel: 01263 822080

Just to make you aware, Wokingham Council are planning to license ALL home boarders which I think in principal is good.

However, there are a few things that, if go ahead as proposed, will have a MASSIVE effect on how things are currently run. Ie limiting me to having only dogs [...]]]> Forwarded to me by a Dogfriendly member:

Just to make you aware, Wokingham Council are planning to license ALL home boarders which I think in principal is good.

However, there are a few things that, if go ahead as proposed, will have a MASSIVE effect on how things are currently run. Ie limiting me to having only dogs from the same houshold (brings a whole new meaning to booking early!!). Puppies under 6 months of age will also be banned. In reality, I will be limited to having one dog per family per downstairs room of my house.

 I know that alot of you enjoy the fact that your dogs socialise with others and that you actively encourage this behaviour.

 http://www.wokingham.gov.uk/council/consultations/current-consultations/animalboarding/

Basically with the summer holidays in full swing, and everyone planning for their annual summer holiday, [...]]]> I’m just emailing on behalf of Tourism Ireland as I noticed you’ve written some great stories covered Dog friendly holidays in UK, but haven’t got any for Ireland, so wondered if you would be interested in a new feature idea?

Basically with the summer holidays in full swing, and everyone planning for their annual summer holiday, Tourism Ireland have pulled together a “Ruff guide to Ireland” with great tips, ideas and advice on taking your canine companion away with you this summer.

Unlike other holidays with your dog, you won’t need a passport or a stressful session in quarantine for your four legged friend. You can
just pop your pet into the car, and get onto the next ferry to Ireland.
With less than a two hour ferry journey and no luggage restrictions, your holiday can start almost straight away!

Most of the ferries don’t even charge an extra fee to bring your dog! So with miles of sandy beaches for those long scenic dog walks, friendly locals and some pet friendly accommodation why not take a look at Tourism Ireland’s guide to a Dog friendly holiday?

www.discoverireland.com/gb/about-ireland/experience-ireland/dog-friendly-holiday/

But Alaska is most definitely ‘open for dogs’, with the difference that here it’s the dogs who take the owners rather than the other way around.

Alaska is America’s northern wilderness.  Vast areas are covered in snow [...]]]> If you are British, taking dogs on holidays to Alaska is obviously, for purely practical considerations, out of the question.

But Alaska is most definitely ‘open for dogs’, with the difference that here it’s the dogs who take the owners rather than the other way around.

Alaska is America’s northern wilderness.  Vast areas are covered in snow and before the advent of snowmobiles, dog-pulled sleds were used for hunting, moving camp, and transporting medicines, food and mail. Nowadays, dog mushing as it’s called is mainly a sport – in fact, it is the official state sport. The main event is the annual Iditerod Sled Dog Race, which starts in Anchorage and follows a course of over 1000 miles.

When we travelled to Alaska with Celebrity Cruises, we were able to assuage our dog-homesickness by visiting a musher’s camp near Juneau. Nestled in the wooded mountain slopes behind the town, our first site of the camp was a whole area – known as a ‘’, with wind-proof kennels each with a dog lying beside it.

Our guide was a professional musher who explained about the sport, the race, and how sled-dogs are not a breed as such but are bred for strength and endurance.

We were also taken for a ride, in a golf cart (obviously not a traditional sled as lack of snow) pulled by 14 dogs attached by a series of chains.  Each dog has its own role in the team and responds to commands from the musher, who has a very close relationship with all her dogs.
We only had a short trip, but it’s a great way of seeing scenery and finding out about these wonderful dogs.

We travelled with Celebrity Cruises but if you want a more extended adventure, try Alaska Dog Sledding, http://www.alaskadogsledding.com/, does more extended wilderness adventure holidays.

I thought I’d mention that I went to West Bay in Dorset with my dog at the weekend and found whilst visiting Lyme Regis, that they have now changed the rules.  Dogs must be kept on a lead at all times in the gardens and on the beach.  I went there [...]]]> With thanks to Jodie Price

I thought I’d mention that I went to West Bay in Dorset with my dog at the weekend and found whilst visiting Lyme Regis, that they have now changed the rules.  Dogs must be kept on a lead at all times in the gardens and on the beach.  I went there last year and there weren’t any rules then so I didn’t give it a thought.  I didn’t notice the signs either and was told off by a PCSO (the fine is £75 but luckily I didn’t get a ticket!).

I thank you for your letter of 25th March 2009 with which you sent a list of some Dogfriendly hotels on the Isle of Wight.  I decided on the Hayes Barton Hotel, 7 Highfield Road, Shanklin, IOW and spent five days there last month.  It is a family run guest house, [...]]]> With thanks to Jo Hathaway

I thank you for your letter of 25th March 2009 with which you sent a list of some Dogfriendly hotels on the Isle of Wight.  I decided on the Hayes Barton Hotel, 7 Highfield Road, Shanklin, IOW and spent five days there last month.  It is a family run guest house, the owners being Joan and Chris Williams.  I cannot speak too highly of this establishment. Nothing was too much trouble; the food all home cooked; the menu changed each day and there was plenty of variety.  My room was very comfortable with all the amenities. There is a very nice garden where one can sit and relax, as I did, during my stay, as the weather was fine and sunny – and my little Pug Macie enjoyed herself too.  The hotel is situated within a two or three minutes walk away from a park area – so all in all it was good for Macie and me.  Didn’t want to return home.  All being well I hope to go back there next year and have in fact made a provisional booking for the same few days.  I thank you very much for your help and rest assured Hayes Barton will not disappoint anyone who stays there.  Joan and Chris are a charming couple – they work very hard and make every effort to ensure that their guests enjoy their stay with them.

Having just received and read my first copy of your magazine, I thought I should write and let you have details of a recent experience of less than dogfriendly logic applied by the management of the Travel Lodge chain.

We had used the chain to stay at their Central Milton Keynes site on [...]]]> Thanks to Keith Mason 

Having just received and read my first copy of your magazine, I thought I should write and let you have details of a recent experience of less than dogfriendly logic applied by the management of the Travel Lodge chain.

We had used the chain to stay at their Central Milton Keynes site on a couple of occassions before this year, and been charged £10 on arrival (no need to pay up front for our dog Kizzy, and this amount covered up to two dogs). This, we felt, was a reasonable charge.  When we decided to visit our daughter again in August this year we were dismayed to find the charge had doubled to £20 and was PER DOG. We paid this out of necessity as Kizzy is part of the family and accompanies us everywhere.

Following our visit we contacted Travel Lodge to find out what was the reason for this massive increase and were told that it was to cover the cost of a ‘specialist’ clean (extra cleaning was necessary when a dog had been staying overnight in a room).  Our point, raised in the correspondence was that they were essentially charging for two specialist cleans if two dogs stayed for one night, which seemed exorbitant and unnecessary, and was not answered other than the totally bland smokescreen reply of … ‘that the rate increase was only introduced after considerable discussions carried out at board level’ …

We also made the point that the cost for two dogs (£40) would have been more than double the special rates, some as low as £19 per night for a family of two adults and two children …

My wife and I had successfully applied to enter Discover Dogs at Earls Court in November with our two rescue dogs Kizzy (a cavalier/whippet cross) and Nutmeg, our new recruit (ruby cavalier puppy).  We booked a room in advance at the Heston Service Station, to obtain a lower rate but had to pay 2 x £20 for the dogs at the time of booking. Unfortunately Nutmeg became ill in the week leading up to the show and on vets advice about her condition, we did not travel, ultimately losing the full cost of our booking, despite there being no need for a ‘special’ clean, as their insurers would not refund any of the monies paid.

Needless to say we shall avoid using the Travel Lodge chain again.