Travelling with a reactive dog
We were invited to stay in a six-person tipi at Whitehouse Glamping in Herefordshire. Loki is reactive to other dogs, so we have to plan accordingly for spaces shared with off-leash dogs (for fear of unruly dogs running around the place) — but we felt assured that Loki would be safe during our stay because of the friendly staff's willingness to accommodate his reactivity issues.
It is compulsory to keep dogs on leads at all times. When booking, we selected Sunday—Tuesday, meaning we arrived after the weekend's guests had left. Because it was off-season and most families were still in school, there were only a few guests staying in one of the tipis. Fortunately for us, they didn't have dogs!
The owner and manager were diligent in keeping their dogs on leads and away from roaming the fields during our stay. When we bumped into the manager walking her dog, she gave us enough space so that Loki was comfortable, even giving us a bit of training in the process.
Note: Although we didn't encounter any problems with Loki and the cattle in the area, if your dogs are reactive to livestock, this location may not be appropriate for you.
On Arrival
We stayed in the most secluded tipi, farthest from the entrance and the farmhouse. We were not disturbed by anything in our tipi—not even a sound. All but one tipi have backwards-facing entrances. This provides you with a little more privacy and you don't have to worry about your dog rushing straight out to the front. All of the tipis are beautifully decorated for a cosy feeling while still having an airy space. There is a no-shoes rule throughout the entire property - and guests are gifted with special dog paw blankets so that their paws stay clean during their stay.
Upon arrival, Loki was given a Doggy Welcome Pack, which included treats, a toy, a blanket, poop bags, and food and water bowls. It didn't take him long to discover the treats!
An open-air cinema is available in the tipis, so we enjoyed watching movies in the evenings. We spent our early evenings grilling burgers and toasting marshmallows by the fire with a gin or two! The top of the site has a communal area where there are plates and firepit utensils. You can purchase wood from an honesty box and even enjoy some free hot chocolate. On cooler evenings, you can rent a pizza oven and bring your own ingredients!
In the evenings we cooked hotdogs and burgers on the fire ( no pizza oven for us, we are not that creative!) We loved the outdoor cinema; it made for some cosy movie nights. If you wish to watch a certain movie, it's recommended that you bring a USB or laptop with an HDMI cable. We thought their film selection was great!
Note: Plan for a digital detox - the reception is minimal, so you'll appreciate the place much more without outside distractions. The whole idea is about disconnecting from the world, to reconnect with yourself.
Surrounding Walks
The field behind our tipi leads onto its own secluded beach with access to the river. Further down the road, there are some public access walks with stunning open fields alongside the river (be aware that the path is quite narrow as we bumped into a dog, which we were able to avoid by heading down to a fishing spot and waiting for it to pass overhead). I imagine it is a very popular walk on the weekends.
Local Amenities
Review
★★★★★
We Absolutely loved our stay, it was quiet and perfect for a breakaway, we truly appreciated how looked after we were and the extra mile the staff went for Loki and his needs as a reactive dog we will definitely be visiting again! and is highly recommend, we were provided with everything we needed all we had to bring was our own food to cook and ourselves and we had a brilliant time - Till next time,
Best Woofs , Lorren & Loki
