Parkgate Pets

02/08/2025

Who wants to tell him he's going the wrong way? We're driving north to Oxfordshire....

12/07/2025

Dear potential clients,

We are happy to help you out of last-minute situations when our schedule permits. But only if we can do it safely. We don't live in France (yet). We don't live right at the French/English border. We live in leafy Wiltshire, which gets us to Heathrow in about 90 minutes (for when we do tours) but takes us 3 hours plus to get to the Channel.

Thus, we always come the night before, staying in cheap-and-cheerful accommodation before picking you up either at the airport or in Paris/Amsterdam. In this manner, we are fresh and ready to go. This also mitigates any issue with delays on either LeShuttle/the Eurotunnel (90 minute delays and beyond the last two days, based on our personal experience) or the ferry.

We prioritize safety - for the well-being of your pets, you, and us. If we've been corresponding about a last-minute quote (under three days notice) and confirm availability, please don't wait until the late afternoon/evening before requested pick-up to confirm you'd like to use our services.

If we're near the border, in Folkestone, for example, we could potentially be able to turn around and come right back to Paris, still ensuring the appropriate rest time. But if we're already back at our home, it's unfortunately not going to work out.

For safety's sake, we would no longer be in a position to confirm your booking. We do apologise and are very sorry we can't help, but this is one area where we won't compromise.

02/07/2025

One of the joys of coming through France - farm-fresh potatoes! Available 24/7 from a vending machine near the farms. Three varieties to choose from today in 5 or 10 kilo bags. Amazing value.

12/04/2025

Effective April 12th, there's now a temporary ban on meat and dairy products coming into the UK. This includes any French baguette sandwiches we may purchase en route from France, so be sure to eat up! The bread is allowed, just not the meat or cheese inside of it. 😊

The Government is introducing new measures to protect farmers from the spread of foot and mouth disease.

From Saturday 12th April, travellers will no longer be able to bring cattle, sheep, goat, and pig meat, as well as dairy products, from EU and EEA countries into Great Britain for personal use.

There are currently no cases of foot and mouth in the UK and these measures will continue to protect the health of British livestock, the security of farmers, and the UK’s food security.

Read the full guidance: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-extends-ban-on-personal-meat-imports-to-protect-farmers-from-foot-and-mouth

11/03/2025

We got burned today by on our way to France to meet a client in the morning. We left 20 minutes later than planned from ours so that I could get into the GP surgery.

We arrived about 20 minutes late for our crossing, but previously, if there's plenty of availability, you just get popped onto the next available.

Well not anymore! In nothing more than a grab for £££, Eurotunnel has changed its rules, as of March 5th. If you are late for your crossing, too bad -- you forfeit the price of the entire ticket. Full stop. We had to buy a brand new ticket, then and there and didn't even get consideration for our client's two pets (£23 each) that we'll be bringing back with us. It doesn't matter that our shuttle was maybe 10% full; it's all about the money.

As a result of this change, we will need to look at higher-priced tickets for clients in the future, including those with quotes in hand. We only pass on the actual costs of the Channel crossing and have always looked for the least-expensive options on behalf of our clients. Now, we will need to consider what to do in case of plane delays, traffic delays, etc. I'm afraid that this will mean we will need to be quoting for higher priced tickets if you wish to cross on LeShuttle. Or better than that, use the Calais/Dover ferry! It's always less expensive anyway and they'll put you on within 4 hours (either way) of your booked crossing if you miss yours.

Did they change their T&C's? Yes, it's buried in the 9 pages that I'm sure everyone reads each time they book a ticket. Did they send an announcement to their mailing list or frequent customers? Nope, not at all.

We have no choice but to eat the cost of this, meaning that with our narrow margins, we're not making any tangible profit on this trip. Maybe for a couple of sandwiches.

More to come on this subject. Photo of Mad Max showing his not-so-pleased face.

03/01/2025

Winter driving can present its challenges. Conditions near CDG at 9:39 am local time.

12/12/2024

A slightly different view this morning. Watching the Arrivals doors with my café crème.

03/10/2024

Stopover for dinner. Heading back to Paris to pick up a lovely couple and their felines tomorrow. I'm not driving, so I'll have the 5L bottle, s'il vous plaît !

01/10/2024

Fancy a nice, inexpensive meal when travelling through France? Don't rule out the local Relais Routier, the French equivalent of a truck stop. They're typically open later for dinner (some up to midnight).

The menu is on the blackboard, a choice of 6-7 mains and accompaniments (potatoes, vegetables, frites), as well as numerous desserts. To start, there's a help-yourself salad bar with fresh veggies and salads. A beverage is also included, such as a 1/2 litre of wine.

For our only meal of the day yesterday, we paid 17 Euros per person, all inclusive.

Come join the locals and the truck drivers for an enjoyable and affordable meal!

21/09/2024

A stunning afternoon in Luzarches. It may only be 25 degrees, but given how cold it's been in the UK this month, it feels like 35°.

A coffee under the roof of the old marketplace, a fresh pain au chocolat from the boulangerie, and we're off. Sometimes there are advantages of meeting an afternoon flight.

03/09/2024

Anybody want to guess where we are this morning? ;)

25/08/2024

I posted some information yesterday on a couple of FB pages geared towards transportation for people/pets from Europe to the UK. Since then, I've taken it down from one of the groups because of the amount of nasty comments and trolling that I received.

Here's the information, for what it's worth:

Based on our experience this past week and that reported by a well-established and highly regarded pet/people transporter, it is evident that staff at the Eurotunnel/LeShuttle in the Pet Reception Centre, as well as those at check-in for the Calais/Dover ferries have been instructed to ask if the driver is operating a pet taxi. If so, then a copy of the Type 2 license AND the individual vehicle approval certificate is requested. Staff also have access to a database of licenses to ensure that paperwork is not fraudulent. Number plates (license plates for my fellow North Americans) are being listed in THEIR systems as pet taxis.

Just on Thursday alone, by late afternoon there had been at least 5-6 vehicles that had been prevented from crossing into the UK, leaving passengers with their pets and luggage stranded.

If you're going to use a pet/people transporter to cross between the UK and the EU, we just recommend you ask if they have the appropriate licensing.