A continued passion to help ‘dogs live extraordinary lives’ has been behind K9 Anytime’s latest £150,000 investment drive.
The dog daycare and hotel specialist, which was formed in 2015 by university friends Tom Haynes and Luke Bird, has taken on an additional five acres to enhance the outdoor experience at its original Higford site, with its first swimming facilities also now installed at its Weston Park location.
At its simplest, the founders believe swimming is a life skill for dogs and, in the same way society believes every child should learn how to swim, they think every dog should be given the opportunity to become confident and capable in water.
It can also help dogs build confidence whilst providing a form of controlled and lower-impact exercise.
The facilities are available both to dogs attending K9 Anytime and to members of the wider public. An induction is always completed to understand confidence and swimming ability, with owners able to book dedicated sessions or time in the pool offered as part of the wider care package.
“The latest investment is really part of a much bigger evolution of K9 Anytime,” explained Tom Haynes.
“We started with daycare in 2015. As the business developed, we increasingly realised that looking after a dog properly means looking after far more than its day. This led us to introducing training, grooming, nutrition, retail and, thanks to the pool at Weston Park, swimming.”
He continued: “These services don’t exist in isolation. We encourage our team to look at the dog in front of them and identify the support, the diet, the leisure time and the stimulation they need, working with the owner throughout the journey.
“For example, a dog struggling with its weight might benefit from a conversation about nutrition, alongside swimming and exercise. A dog pulling on the lead might need support from our training team. An older dog may need a completely different approach to movement and exercise than it did five years earlier. Something as simple as long nails can affect how a dog moves. It is about noticing those things and joining the dots.”
K9 Anytime now welcomes hundreds of dogs each month across its two locations in Shropshire and Staffordshire.
Higford has enjoyed its own expansion with an additional five acres of land taken on to substantially increase the outdoor space available to the dogs and the continued development of the nearby environment.
It is expected that swimming facilities will also be added here by the end of the year, with the next major focus being on veterinary care that is highly personal, preventative wherever possible and connected to the dog’s wider life.
Plans are at an advanced stage to make this happen as part of K9 Anytime’s belief that healthcare shouldn’t sit separately from everything else that influences a dog’s wellbeing.
Luke Bird picked up the story: “Investment hasn’t just been in bricks and mortar and products – there has been considerable funding directed towards growing our team.
“We’re now up to twenty people across both locations and are still looking for the right individuals to join us, especially if they get our approach, our culture and our commitment to our growing family of dogs.”
Named as the Newport Show’s Best Small Business, K9 Anytime’s impact extends way beyond its daycare facilities.
Both founders have a desire to support the wider dog family, donating time and resources to support Scruffy Dog Rescue since 2024.
This has included behavioural assessments, board-and-train support, grooming and practical help with dogs that may need additional work, all designed to give them more opportunities to find the right home.
Education is another key priority with Isobel Allen continuing to visit schools and nurseries to talk to children about understanding and interacting safely with dogs.
She added: “Responsible dog ownership, in our view, begins long before somebody actually owns a dog.
“We think there is an enormous amount that can be achieved simply by helping children understand dogs from an early age…when to approach them, when to leave them alone, how dogs communicate and how to behave safely and respectfully around them.
“One of our ambitions for 2027 is to begin developing a series of children’s books around dogs, safety and responsible interaction.”
A third K9 Anytime location remains part of the longer-term plan, with Newport and Shrewsbury both on the company’s radar.
However, the immediate priority is establishing its veterinary offering and completing the wider K9 Anytime model before taking this philosophy to an additional site.
Tom concluded: “The ambition isn’t simply to become bigger. It is to keep asking what an extraordinary life for a dog looks like and then build the people, places and services that help provide it. Only then will we take that philosophy somewhere new.”
