28.5.24

Residents staying at Cardiff Dogs Home have a new garden to enjoy as they wait to find their forever home.

The garden, which provides the dogs with additional space to exercise and play with the Dogs Home team, has been made possible with support from the Home's affiliated charity the Rescue Hotel, Dogs Home volunteers, Keep Wales Tidy and partnership housing developer, Lovell.

One of the residents enjoying the new garden with the Dogs Home team.

Cabinet Member with responsibility for Cardiff Dogs Home, Cllr Dan De'Ath, said: "Many of the dogs who find themselves at Cardiff Dogs Home have come from difficult situations and they deserve a little luxury during their stay.

"Having this new garden on site will help ensure the dogs can spend more time outside of their kennels, and give them a space where the team can work with them to ensure they're ready to be rehomed - a big thank you to all our fantastic volunteers, the Rescue Hotel, Keep Wales Tidy, and the team at Lovell who generously supported the project."

Keep Wales Tidy provided planters, habitat boxes, plants, trees, turf, a storage shed and tools, as well as carrying out work to the previously overgrown area close to the River Taff.

Owen Derbyshire, Chief Executive for Keep Wales Tidy, said:"Thanks to the ongoing support of the Welsh Government, we've been able to provide free garden packages to communities and organisations across Wales through the Local Places for Nature scheme.

"We know that gardening and being out in nature has a positive impact on mental wellbeing, and it's a great way to bring communities together and enjoy the outdoors.

"It's excellent to see that our Wildlife Garden and Community Orchard packages will make such a positive difference to the staff, volunteers, visitors and dogs at the Cardiff Dogs Home for now and years to come." 

Lovell supplied and installed fencing for the garden and volunteers also got stuck in to help with the transformation of the area.

Gemma Clissett, regional partnerships director at Lovell, said: "Giving back to the communities we build in is a core value for us at Lovell, so we were delighted to offer our support for this project. Cardiff Dogs Home does excellent work in the community, both for the dogs they care for and for the families, couples and individuals who can enrich their lives by adopting a cherished pet, thanks to the hard work done to socialise and rehabilitate those dogs that needed extra care.

"We hope that residents enjoy the garden, and we look forward to lending a helping hand with similar projects in the future".