25/03/2026
Me again with my long winded posts! The official 5 yr anniversary is getting closer so this is another post to tell you about the ups and downs of running the dog fields.
Well, it costs a lot more than people may think to set up - we have to get planning permission sorted, sort of the highways (road/entrance) permissions and build, build the fences, get the solar system working, get the website working and create, from scratch, the gate code system. We even lost two of our fields that were in preston a couple of years ago due to planning issues which cost us loads of money but also cost us a lot in our stress levels. Luckily, we’d already started the planning process for the two back fields in Manchester which means we were able to reuse all the fencing from Preston in Manchester immediately. And the community in Irlam was already one we loved and felt very much a part of, so alls well that ends well. And as always you learn alot from failure which we absolutely did - so that’s a positive!
The community around us is a huge positive - all the customers who spend time with us on the fields are wonderful - we tend to think that the type of people that pay to use a private field, for whatever reason, are the type of people we like. We instantly have our love of dogs in common don’t we!
I also feel like the staff at the garage and Greggs on the roundabout are now my friends as I’m in there that much, and Greggs know my order off by heart. I’m unsure if that’s a good thing to admit but I love them for it 🤣.
Another positive is when we see people pick up their dogs poo, either when we see you on camera or we are sat in our cars watching 👀 (not in a creepy way) please know that you are receiving love and appreciation even when you don’t know it. I no longer shout ‘Thank youuuuuu’ across the field because one person thought I was just shouting at them and it all got a bit awkward when they came stomping across and I sheepishly said ‘I was just saying thank you for picking up the poo. 💩’ So love from a distance it is. We hope you feel it! 😉
A negative is on the days when we find lots of poo has been left, damage has been done or rubbish has been left strewn about. Or even worse when things get pinched - we think we have a poo bag stealer at the moment and the biggest thing that got nicked has been one of the water butts! 😳🤣 At those times it does feel like someone just didn’t care and that never feels good. But then we remember that most of the people that use the field respect and love them for their countryside vibe and therefore look after them.
A huge positive, right now especially, is when we meet your dogs. Julia and I are both in our premenopausal era and Tony is in his ‘living with a wife in her menopausal era’. So our emotions could be different depending on the hour/minute/second. One thing that ALWAYS makes us smile is your dogs. Whether we get to stroke them or not - just watching them bound around free, or sniff to their hearts content and the happiness that that brings their owners is a constant joy to see. Julia once phoned me to excitedly tell me that a rescue dog that didn’t like many people let her stroke her and that the owner was surprised as she didn’t usually like new people. We all agreed that’s one of the best compliments you can get in life.
We do have names for some dogs that we don’t know - ‘the Muttley digger’, ‘the carrot poo culprit’ or ‘the jumping dog’ are ones we can talk about with each other and know exactly what we are talking about. 🤣
We do get complaints sometimes - usually about people not following the rules (they are set out when you book!) but I’ll end with our favourite ever complaint.
A person had emailed to say that whilst in a field she got bitten - by a horsefly. She thought maybe we should have warning signs and bug spray available. I apologised and assured her that I’d just been in the same field and did not get bitten by that naughty horsefly so hopefully it’s moved on. I don’t think she ever returned.
Thanks as always to everyone! We know you’re there because you love your dogs and we always respect you for that - but obviously be careful of all insects when outside, anywhere!
