Small by design
We cap the hotel at twenty guests. Staff know every pet's habits, favourite spot and the noise that makes them nervous.
About the hotel
A farmyard barn with a very good guest book.
The Pelham family have farmed this land for four generations. When the dairy herd was sold, Rosalind Pelham turned the old milking barn into suites for dogs and cats, and her sons now help run the paddocks and the trails.
Three principles from the barn door
They are painted above the entrance, so every visitor and every new member of staff reads them on the way in.
People awake all night
A carer is on site from dusk to dawn, so a cough, a restless dog or a thunderstorm is met by a person instead of a camera.
Fresh air every day
The trails and paddocks are part of the farm. Dogs spend most of the day outside, and the cat wing opens onto a screened garden.
From dairy to dog suites
A short history of the barn and the people who look after it.
- 1950s
The milking barn
Rosalind's grandfather builds the stone barn for a herd of thirty Friesians.
- 2014
The herd is sold
The family keeps the land, grows barley and wonders what to do with an empty building.
- 2017
First guests
Four dog suites open in time for the August holidays, with a waiting list from the first weekend.
- 2022
The cat wing
An upstairs loft is turned into condos and a window seat, with its own entrance and a screened garden.
The people on duty
All carers hold a pet first-aid certificate, and most have a dog or two of their own in the yard.
- Rosalind PelhamOwner and head of care
- Callum PelhamPaddocks and walks
- Fenella AshworthCat wing manager
- Abdi WarsameNight carer
Come and see the barn first.
Meet-and-greets run on weekday afternoons. Bring your pet's records, and we will walk them around the suites together.