Hi there,
We're husband and wife team, Nigel and Tamsin - the Directors of Dapper Dog.
We're both passionate about dogs and about providing outstanding dog care - delivered in the form of enriching activities in calm and safe surroundings, stunning adventures on our awesome local trails plus plenty of creature comforts, love and individual attention tailored to the needs of the dog(s) in our care.
We're driven to deliver the highest levels of service to you, our clients, to ensure your wedding day runs smoothly with your canine family involved as you want them to be- so you don't have anything to worry about.
For your reassurance, we are of course qualified in canine care, canine first aid trained, licensed by Westmorland and Furness Council with a five star rating to care for dogs in our home, fully insured and DBS checked.
With over 5 year's experience in running our award winning sister company, Ambleside Dog Walker, we know we're the right ones to care for your dog.
Want to know how we got here? Find out below!
Our Story
We've been married for over 10 years and love living and working together in the beautiful Lake District.
Our lovely working cocker spaniel Jasper is now 12, but when we got married he was an energetic, full of life pup. He already meant the world to us - he was the inspiration behind our recent move to the Lakes and he was an important member of our family - so of course we really wanted him to be a part of our special day in some way, but how? We didn't yet know anyone in our new area to care for him, and we were actually getting married away from the area, back where we used to live.
We looked at various options and just couldn't find a solution we wanted - someone to care for him but also bring him along to the wedding for a short time so we could see him on the day and get a photo or two with him. We also wanted our family and friends to enjoy their day without the pressure of supervising Jasper, and just knew that too long in such exciting surroundings would be over-stimulating for him. We wanted the best for him and in the end, he was cared for away from the wedding by someone who used to pop in on him when he was a puppy -so we knew he'd be well cared for, but we really missed seeing him on the day.
Fast forward 5 years when we set up our dog adventure business together and it seemed natural to us, given our own wedding story, to provide a wedding dog care and chaperone service to support couples getting married in the area who have the same predicament as we did all those years ago.
This area of our business proved really popular and, post-Covid, with a lot of weddings to catch up on, was turning into a seven day a week venture....AND, it turns out, we love weddings as much as we love dogs! What a privilege it is to be a part of such a special occasion and to be trusted with the care and supervision of the most important guest! It's not a role we take lightly, but it's a role that brings us so much reward and pleasure.
So, in early 2024, after 5 years as providers of wedding dog care and chaperoning across many wonderful venues in Cumbria, we launched Dapper Dog - an exclusive company dedicated to providing outstanding care and enriching experiences for dogs whose guardians are getting married - and to making that couple's special day complete by bringing their canine family along for part of it.
Our Mission...
To make your wedding dreams come true by bringing your dogs along to your wedding as your most important guests and provide a luxury home from home for them while you get married - so you can enjoy your day worry free and have your canine family present.