New dog meadow will have tails wagging with delight

Canines across north Norfolk will be wagging their tails in delight - a new dog meadow is opening.

Manor Farm Dog Meadow at Oxwick, near Fakenham, will open its gates to the public on Monday, June 15, allowing owners to let dogs run free in the fenced-off area.

Jayne Alpe, 67, from Fakenham, is one of the partners of the meadow and had the idea after walking with her three border terriers on the field with her partner, Pip Abram, who owns the land.

Mrs Alpe she thought that it would make a “fabulous meadow for free-running dogs”.

After getting permission to start the work in November last year, the pair got to work on fencing off the area, installing gates and putting in drainage on the site.

The field is cut with wildflowers on it, but they have plans to add a dog-paddling pool, tree trunks, a sandpit and even agility training poles, for all Norfolk’s Crufts hopefuls.

Mrs Alpe who has bred, judged and shown dogs for more than 30 years, said she wanted people and their pets to enjoy the space. She said: “It’s the pleasure of letting your dogs run free.

“If I can do that for someone, to allow them the pleasure of seeing their dogs have fun, what more could I want.”

And the site is not just for dogs. There are plans to build a summer house for visitors to have somewhere to sit and relax as their pets tire off.

Pet owners can book online, and have the meadow to themselves for an hour.

Visitors will then have 10 minutes to get their dogs into their vehicles, away from the next visitor, so there is no social interaction between canines or people.

Mrs Alpe said the reaction to the plans had been positive, and there had already been around 40 bookings since it was announced on June 8.

“It was worrying to start with, due to the big expense in fencing the meadow,” she said.

“‘Will it work?’ I thought. But yesterday when I announced it, the site went mad.

“I started booking at 9am, and the last booking came in at 10.30pm.”