Freedom field/woodland

[Moobli]

I’m doing some research on whether so-called freedom fields or securely fenced woodland for dog owners to use on an hourly basis is a good business idea or not.

Do you or friends use one?
Would you use one if in your local area?
Would you be more inclined to use it if it were woodlands or a field with, say, some agility equipment or similar on?

 

[SusieT]

I would use it and would use it most if
private sessions .
agility equipment present
woodland would be great
the bigger the area the better.

 

[Blazingsaddles]

I’m doing some research on whether so-called freedom fields or securely fenced woodland for dog owners to use on an hourly basis is a good business idea or not.

Do you or friends use one?
Would you use one if in your local area?
Would you be more inclined to use it if it were woodlands or a field with, say, some agility equipment or similar on?

We have lovely neighbours who have a six acre wooded area fully deer fenced whom allow us to use it. I only use it so the dogs can have a really good hooley together. If I didn’t have that, then yes I would pay a fiver an hour for its use but not more unless you included perhaps agility obstacles inc pond and area clear of woodland for obedience training. I only say a fiver because we live in a rural area where footpaths and land available to run your dogs is abundant. More urban areas could demand a higher fee, I imagine?

 

[blackcob]

I don't use them because I can take the big dogs on long lines in the horse paddocks safely enough and small dog is safe off-lead, but some things I'd take into consideration if I didn't have this facility and had to pay for a field:

The fencing is not often what I would consider husky-proof - hedges, wooden post and rail or sheep height stock fencing and standard five bar gates are no good. Deer fencing is more like it! Ideally there'd also be a double gate system for safe entries and exits

A good system of managing booking times and changeovers so there's not strange dogs hanging about the gate and fence line waiting their turn

Agility equipment would have to be of competition standard and in good safe condition, otherwise not worth paying extra for

A decent size - most of the ones round here are only about an acre

 

[Nicnac]

Not personally as have access to plentiful areas to let them run but I know my friend in the US uses one a lot. It's not that big either - probably half a football pitch size. They are used a lot there for socialising and a safe space to train.

 

[Cinnamontoast]

Very useful, a dog trainer mate just took on an acre stockfenced for training.

 

[BBP]

I pay £10 an hour for one so that errant collie dog with hot and miss recall can have a good run, and so we can practice recall training somewhere safe. When finances are good I use it once a week. I have three to choose from, one is 3 acres and has a small woodland, and some logs to jump but lots of thistles, one is 1.5 acres but has full high standard agility kit, a scent garden (different plants to pee on!) and lots of interesting things to climb on/jump and the third is 2 acres, a handful of small jumps and some big straw bales but excellent fencing. Generally I pick whichever is closest. Once I get my own field stockfenced I may stop but it seems pretty popular.

 

[Annette4]

I use them as kn0bdog and new rescue can't go off lead.

No trees/woodland wanted for us, they're a sighthound deathtrap and I'd not relax for fear of them breaking their necks.

Deer fencing is preferable but as long as there are no small furries and we have tennis balls/frisbees my pair don't look to escape.

Agility equipment would be nice but a safe space for them to run is all I really want.

 

[meleeka]

I don't use them because I can take the big dogs on long lines in the horse paddocks safely enough and small dog is safe off-lead, but some things I'd take into consideration if I didn't have this facility and had to pay for a field:

The fencing is not often what I would consider husky-proof - hedges, wooden post and rail or sheep height stock fencing and standard five bar gates are no good. Deer fencing is more like it! Ideally there'd also be a double gate system for safe entries and exits

A good system of managing booking times and changeovers so there's not strange dogs hanging about the gate and fence line waiting their turn

Agility equipment would have to be of competition standard and in good safe condition, otherwise not worth paying extra for

A decent size - most of the ones round here are only about an acre

Same here. There’s a dog field to rent near me and it’s full of brambles round the edge so I’ve no way of knowing if it’s JRT proof. It’s a free for all during the week and weekends are booked and charged. During the week it’s mainly full of badly behaved dogs and owners stood around chatting and not supervising at all. A pack of husky’s attacking a King Charles spaniel was one thing I witnessed that would stop me ever using it.
There’s another a bit further away that seems much more organised, and bigger. That’s rented out individually at £10 per hour. It’s massive though and I’d worry I’d never catch my dog in there!

 

[{97702}]

Yep I use one - it’s 10 acres, one of the biggest (or the biggest?) in the country and it is fantastic!

It’s £15 an hour and worth every penny for a field that size - there are a couple of copses of trees in the field, and all round is 6’ totally secure deer fencing, terrier proof and lurcher proof

Have a look at Merlins Meadow Tewkesbury and Redmarley - it’s on Facebook and they have a website - also have water, dog toys, poo bins all around the field, seating, covered seating, ability fences and tunnels etc

I wouldn’t pay that much for a smaller field, but the size is what makes it worth using for me - I go to Redmarley, Tewkesbury is 16 acres! I probably wouldn’t bother if it was only an acre or so, there are lots of those around me but they aren’t big enough for Ace ?

Oh yes, sorry I forgot - they also have double gate entry system, with a fully secure/fenced inner car park to the same spec as the field.

Car park was getting muddy over winter so Sorrel immediately had it all professionally dug out and relaid, the grass is cut properly and regularly too

 

[AmyMay]

That sounds amazing Lev.

I’d definitely be happy to pay for something like that.

 

[{97702}]

That sounds amazing Lev.

I’d definitely be happy to pay for something like that.

It really is, as you can tell from my gushing post lol! I count my lucky stars so many times a day that I have the facility within a 10-15 minute drive ?

 

[MurphysMinder]

I go here occasionally https://unleashedwrenbury.co.uk/

I don't need an off lead exercise area as such but pool is great for the dogs . It's £20 an hour so not cheap but a friend and I share .

 

[TPO]

Someone in my village set up a dog field. Its fully enclosed, has a picnic table and shade and double gated entrance for safety/security.

One of my friends uses it and when I was driving home from work it was always in use.

The whole safe space to run dogs off leads does seem to be really popular

 

[YorksG]

We use one local to us £10 pet hour, sole use. Car can go on the field and the gate locks. Deer height fencing, some equipment and a small wooded area. We take our three as the Rotter has a high prey drive and there are Deer in our local woods. She recalls perfectly at the field? the labs would be fine anywhere tbh, but it is worth it for us.

 

[GSD Woman]

There are some dog parks here. They aren't very large and stink of pee. One day I took mine into one since there was no one there. All my dogs wanted to do was sniff and my boy kept marking everything. I would love something else closer to home. I use a nature trail at a couple of community colleges to let the dogs run. These 2 come back when called, unless a certain someone is running a deer, so I can safely put them on lead if needed.

 

[Clodagh]

I know this is the whole point of this thread but how on earth do they turn a profit? If it is £15 an hour and let from say 9am to 5pm even 7 days a week that is £840 a week, and that is an unlikely maximum. The fencing would cost thousands of pounds, the equipment another thousand, topping, maintenance, muck and litter disposal, properly laid car park.
Ouch!

 

[chaps89]

I know this is the whole point of this thread but how on earth do they turn a profit? If it is £15 an hour and let from say 9am to 5pm even 7 days a week that is £840 a week, and that is an unlikely maximum. The fencing would cost thousands of pounds, the equipment another thousand, topping, maintenance, muck and litter disposal, properly laid car park.
Ouch!

I was thinking that.
Then by comparison I realised I pay £15 per week for pony grazing and so therefore it has to be a much more financially viable option than horses!
But if you have a mortgage or rent on the land I just don't see how it's financially viable either.
If it's already part of land you own, then I suppose the initial investment into fencing and parking is the biggest cost (and again, low compared to the cost of setting a yard up for example) the ongoing maintenance and insurance should in theory be fairly low (especially if you already own and use trimmers/mowers etc as part of the remainder of the land upkeep) and therefore as a sideline or addition to an existing business, it would be a reasonable additional income stream I'd have thought?

 

[MurphysMinder]

The place I mentioned was already owned by them. They are farmers and put sheep on overnight /quiet periods so no mowing involved, and fencing etc is a lot cheaper for them to do than for the likes of me who would have to employ a contractor. Car park is hardcore which again is not too expensive. Probably a far better returning than farming from a small patch of land.

 

[{97702}]

The field I use is open 7am to 8pm during the summer and is always busy as well - obviously less hours in winter months because of daylight

 

[Moobli]

Yep I use one - it’s 10 acres, one of the biggest (or the biggest?) in the country and it is fantastic!

It’s £15 an hour and worth every penny for a field that size - there are a couple of copses of trees in the field, and all round is 6’ totally secure deer fencing, terrier proof and lurcher proof

Have a look at Merlins Meadow Tewkesbury and Redmarley - it’s on Facebook and they have a website - also have water, dog toys, poo bins all around the field, seating, covered seating, ability fences and tunnels etc

I wouldn’t pay that much for a smaller field, but the size is what makes it worth using for me - I go to Redmarley, Tewkesbury is 16 acres! I probably wouldn’t bother if it was only an acre or so, there are lots of those around me but they aren’t big enough for Ace ?

Oh yes, sorry I forgot - they also have double gate entry system, with a fully secure/fenced inner car park to the same spec as the field.

Car park was getting muddy over winter so Sorrel immediately had it all professionally dug out and relaid, the grass is cut properly and regularly too

Sounds fantastic! I’ll google it. I’d love somewhere that big but I fount finances will stretch to that.

 

[Moobli]

I know this is the whole point of this thread but how on earth do they turn a profit? If it is £15 an hour and let from say 9am to 5pm even 7 days a week that is £840 a week, and that is an unlikely maximum. The fencing would cost thousands of pounds, the equipment another thousand, topping, maintenance, muck and litter disposal, properly laid car park.
Ouch!

I guess over time it might make a profit if used regularly enough.

 

[Clodagh]

I was thinking that.
Then by comparison I realised I pay £15 per week for pony grazing and so therefore it has to be a much more financially viable option than horses!
But if you have a mortgage or rent on the land I just don't see how it's financially viable either.
If it's already part of land you own, then I suppose the initial investment into fencing and parking is the biggest cost (and again, low compared to the cost of setting a yard up for example) the ongoing maintenance and insurance should in theory be fairly low (especially if you already own and use trimmers/mowers etc as part of the remainder of the land upkeep) and therefore as a sideline or addition to an existing business, it would be a reasonable additional income stream I'd have thought?

If the fence has to be husky proof it would cost a lot more to put up than even the best horse fence. Presumably it would take longer to get wrecked though!

 

[blackcob]

Yup - I had looked into properly husky-proofing a bit but firstly it was somewhat presumptuous as it's my mum's land, not mine ? and it's prohibitively expensive even for a small area. It's also ugly and not particularly horse friendly.

There are some round here that are clearly marketed at small and medium pet dogs rather than catering for huskies and other destructive escape artists, so it can depend who you want to target. Do the greyhound folk need 6'+ too? The group that meets near here rents an indoor arena for their zoomie sessions.

 

[{97702}]

Yep I wouldn’t go if it wasn’t 6’ fencing - mainly because of Ace, he can ping a fence like it’s not there and he is a big dog already. Millie lurcher would be as bad - yep the situation might well not arise, but once they are chasing something I’d never be sure.

Maybe I’m too cautious though!

I’ve seen lots of greyhound groups hiring indoor arenas for zoom sessions, the only ones I’ve been to personally have been fully enclosed arenas rather than open sided ones. I don’t like them personally as I find the surface is usually too deep for the dogs to run properly, and time is restricted - loads of people really enjoy them though!

 

[planete]

I found the sand in arenas gave my dogs eye infections when it got kicked up in their faces by the ones in front.

 

[{97702}]

Pretty rubbish pics but this is the fencing at the field

 

[Moobli]

We own some land already in a different part of the country and were thinking of selling it and buying some up here. After reading some of your comments though I wonder if it would be less hassle to keep the land we already have and let it for grazing.

 

[Annette4]

Yup - I had looked into properly husky-proofing a bit but firstly it was somewhat presumptuous as it's my mum's land, not mine ? and it's prohibitively expensive even for a small area. It's also ugly and not particularly horse friendly.

There are some round here that are clearly marketed at small and medium pet dogs rather than catering for huskies and other destructive escape artists, so it can depend who you want to target. Do the greyhound folk need 6'+ too? The group that meets near here rents an indoor arena for their zoomie sessions.

I have used an indoor arena once but wouldn't again. Too deep for them and Fizz and another dog ended up tweaking something.

Ideally I need 6ft fencing as even as whippets/whippet crosses my pair can get over a 6ft fence if they want but I'm lucky that as toy obsessed idiots they wouldn't bother looking for a way out unless they were hunting which is why I use one in an open space with arable land either side so 5ft does work.

 

[Clodagh]

Pretty rubbish pics but this is the fencing at the field View attachment 49328View attachment 49329

That dence isn't 6 foot is it? Hard to tell. They look to be enjoying it anyway!