THE owner of a luxury dog hotel and daycare centre in Cuerdley hit hard by the Covid pandemic has launched a Crowdfunding campaign to try to save her business.

Rebeckah Vaughan opened No More Kennels on Riverside Trading Estate after relocating from Wirral 12 years ago and has helped to care for thousands of four-legged friends while their owners are at work or on holiday.

With fewer customers needing care for their dogs while they work from home and are unable to travel, the business has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic and Rebeckah is reaching out to ask for help, having used all of her life savings trying to keep her 18 members of staff in employment over the past 12 months.

She said: “People have been told to stay at home, dogs no longer need daycare and holidays have been cancelled. Even grooming has been strictly limited.

“Coronavirus hit us hard and one year on we are fighting to stay open.

“Before paying any bills or rent, the wages total more than £15,000 and it’s becoming harder to make sure there’s enough money to pay my staff.

“I’ve always had business insurance and thankfully never needed to claim, but I’ve been told that the business interruption section doesn’t cover a global pandemic.

“It’s hard to know what to do next.”

Warrington Guardian:

One of the rooms at the luxury dog hotel

Having always been worried about leaving her own dogs at home while she worked as a Blue Coat and then in the television and entertainment industry, 12 years ago Rebeckah decided to offer a daycare service to professionals as well as holiday makers, ensuring their beloved pets were well looked after while they were away from home.

The hotel rooms include a human-sized bed, pillows and bedding as well as comfy throws and deep pile rugs, ensuring that guests always enjoy their stay.

The 37-year-old said: “I didn’t want to do any more television work and it always bothered me that I had to leave my dogs at home while I was at work so I decided to open No More Kennels.

“Since moving to Cuerdley, I’ve joined two buildings together and rented an additional field to make sure that myself and my staff have enough space for all the dogs we care for.”

No More Kennels, which can now look after 75 dogs, is able to offer emergency overnight care for animals whose owners are help up at work and won’t be able to collect them before they close each evening, which Rebeckah has been able to provide during lockdown for frontline and key workers.

However the overnight running costs for one or two dogs has meant that the business has been struggling during the pandemic and Rebeckah is now turning to customers and other dog lovers to ask for help.

Rebeckah said: “I truly believe that we are providing a vital service for dog owners and my team are working so hard every day but it’s becoming more and more difficult.

“I hope the fundraising campaign will be a success and we can remain open.”

Warrington Guardian:

Dogs who stay at the hotel have access to this indoor exercise area 

Writing on the Crowdfunder appeal page, she says: "As a 5-star rated dog hotel and daycare centre licensed for 75 dogs with amazing loyal customers, we couldn’t have asked for a better business model.

"But as people were told to stay at home, dogs no longer needed daycare, holidays were cancelled and grooming was strictly limited. Coronavirus hit us hard and one year later we are still fighting to stay open.

"Over the past year we have fought with our insurance company over our business interruption cover, they have refused to pay out and Stratton Richards have advised that although we pay for Business Interruption, we aren’t covered.

"We have used all our savings to pay staff and sold as many assets as possible to pay the bills. All of this is a blessing to be honest as many businesses have sadly closed, therefore we are grateful that it could have been much worse. However, it is now at a point where we must ask for help.

"We contacted the gambling commission as we never wanted to ask for donations, they said a raffle that earns revenue is illegal. We tried incentives for blue light workers that have really helped and we’ve tried to keep our prices low to attract more customers.

"We’ve had customers send their dogs to us even though they’ve not needed to, and we will never forget this. We’ve been told time after time to put our prices up but everyone is struggling and it just doesn’t feel right. 

"After exhausting all resources we have had to ask you for help in the hope that we can repay you by providing the highest level of care for your dogs for as long as possible.  

"Even if you can’t donate, thank you for listening and for choosing us to care for your most precious being."

If you would like to help you can make a donation to No More Kennels here