What Actually Is a "Secure Dog Field," and What Does It Cost?

A woman rang us last month and asked, quite reasonably, "so is it just a field?" It's a fair question. If you've never used one before, "secure dog field" is an odd bit of jargon that dog owners throw around without ever explaining it.

Here's the plain version. A secure dog field is private, fully fenced land you hire by the hour, entirely for you and your own dogs. No other dogs turn up during your slot. No dog walkers cut through with six on leads. No livestock, no cyclists, no risk of your dog bolting onto a road. You book a time, you get sent an access code, you let yourself in, and for that hour the field belongs to you.

At Poundon Pastures specifically, that's two acres, fenced to six feet, with a drive-in release pen so you never have to open a car door until your dog is already inside a locked space — no scrabbling to clip a lead on before anyone gets loose. There's a field shelter if the weather turns, a wash-down point for muddy paws, and drinking water on site.

Why people use one. In practice, it's three kinds of dog: dogs still learning recall who aren't ready to be trusted off-lead in public yet; dogs who are reactive to other dogs, people, cyclists or livestock and need a session with none of those triggers; and dogs who are simply full of energy and want to properly run, off-lead, without anyone else's dog crashing the party. A fair number of our regulars don't fit any of those categories — they've just had a stressful week and want forty-five minutes where nothing can go wrong.

On cost. Compared to a dog walker (typically £12–£18 for a group walk with your dog getting maybe ten minutes of actual off-lead time) or a private one-to-one walker (often £20+ an hour), a secure field session works out cheaper per minute of genuine off-lead freedom, and you're there yourself rather than trusting someone else with your dog. It's not a subscription and there's no minimum commitment — book once, see if it suits your dog, go from there. Our pricing is quite simply £10 for between 1 and 3 dogs and £14 for between 4 and 6.

If you're still not sure whether it's for you, the FAQ page covers bookings, access codes and what happens in bad weather — or just come and see for yourself. Book here.