Dorset Animal Pathways

14/10/2026

❤️🐴❤️🐴❤️🐴

12/10/2026

11/10/2026

It appears that Donkeys are time wasters!
All we seem to do is stand and watch them doing their thing 😂😂🫏🫏

10/10/2026

One of my favourite pics from By Sophie Photography this really sums up the Donkeys personalities 😍🫏❤️

08/10/2026

Happy herd! 🫏🐴❤️

06/10/2026

🐾 REINTRODUCING BRAMBLE! 🐾

It’s time to reintroduce this little pocket rocket! ❤️

Bramble is 2½ years old and a mix of Cocker Spaniel, Poodle and a little bit of Terrier… and somehow she managed to get ALL the personality! 😂
She is incredibly fun, ridiculously cute, super clever and absolutely LOVES people, attention and, of course, cuddles. 🥰
Bramble is currently only working in small group sessions, Alternative Provision and with adults with learning disabilities, where she is building some really lovely bonds with the people she works with.
She absolutely loves tricks and agility, and watching clients take her around the agility course is brilliant. She is always ready to show off her skills… especially if there might be a treat involved! 😂🐾
We should also talk about her teeth! 🦷 😂
She has the cutest set of pearly whites and loves to show them off!

For such a tiny dog, she has the BIGGEST heart. ❤️















🐾❤️

05/10/2026

🐾 Let’s re-introduce Nelly… 🐾

Nelly is the whole reason Hey Doggie began — and ultimately the reason it has grown into Dorset Animal Pathways. ❤️
Nelly is a fox red Labrador who was originally bred to be a gun dog. She started her training, but it quickly became clear that it wasn’t something she enjoyed, so she came to live with me.
She started coming with me to visit my parents, who were both living in care homes at the time. Nelly naturally interacted with the residents and staff, and it was so obvious that she loved being there — and they loved having her too. 🐾
That got me thinking about how Nelly could help other people, so I completed a course with her at PAWS Therapy & Assistance Dog Training and we became a professional team.
These days, Nelly and I mainly work within Alternative Provision, where her real strength is working 1-to-1 with young people.
She is brilliant at calm but fun activities, helping young people build confidence, learn real dog training skills and simply enjoy spending time with a dog. ❤️
Over the last few months Nelly has been poorly with a bad back, so she has been taking things much easier and working on light duties. Thankfully, she seems so much brighter and more like herself again. 🥰
Nelly is so much more than my therapy dog.
She is the reason this business exists.
She has changed my life, opened doors I never imagined and introduced me to so many incredible people.

I will be forever grateful for this very special girl. ❤️🐾

02/10/2026

🫏 MEET PEACHES ❤️
Last and certainly not least, meet the baby of the Dorset Animal Pathways family!
At just 1 year old, Peaches is our youngest team member — and she is super cute, curious and becoming more cuddly each day 🥰
Peaches could have ended up spending her life doing donkey rides on a beach, so I am incredibly grateful that she came to us instead.

Understandably, Peaches can be a little nervous at times. She is only a baby and has experienced a huge change in her life, but she is doing so well.
Every day we are seeing little signs that her confidence is growing, and it’s lovely to watch her beginning to discover the world around her. 🌿🫏

And then there are THOSE EARS! 😂

They are absolutely enormous, wonderfully hairy and completely gorgeous.
I have a feeling those ears are going to be the talk of the clients! ❤️

🫏 Peaches’ role at Dorset Animal Pathways-

Just like Elsa, we are taking things slowly with Peaches.

As she is still so young , it’s our priority is giving her the time and space she needs to mature, learn, develop and build confidence.
Literally baby steps is our plan right now but every new experience we have shown her she has surpassed our expectations!
It’s all about setting her up for success 😊

But now, she gets to be a baby donkey, explore her new home, make friends, learn about the world and enjoy life.
I have every confidence that, in time, Peaches is going to be a huge asset to our wonderful team.

I can’t wait to see the donkey she grows into. 🥹❤️🫏

And that brings us to the end of our Meet the Animals series!

I hope you have all enjoyed the our introductions this week,
Next week I thought it would be good to re-introduce the dogs and an update on what they are up to, and also a little bit about our work and how we can support you ❤️🐴🐾

01/10/2026

🫏 MEET ELSA ❤️

Today it’s time to introduce one of our new girls at Dorset Animal Pathways!

Meet Elsa, a beautiful 10-year-old donkey who came down to us from the Midlands just a few weeks ago. 🫏❤️

We are still getting to know Elsa and discovering all about her personality, but it is already very clear that she is super friendly and loves attention!
She is very likely to be the first to greet you at the gate and loves nothing more than to follow us around the field.
She is already comfortable being groomed and handled by us, and one of our favourite things she does is gently rest her head on our shoulders when we sit down. 🥹❤️

For now, we are giving Elsa plenty of time to find her place within the herd and settle into life with her new team.
She absolutely loves exploring our huge field and foraging in the bushes, and she seems to be enjoying coming out on walks with us too. 🌿

But we’re taking everything slowly.

For Elsa, it’s all about building trust, confidence and a relationship with us at her own pace.

🫏 Elsa’s role at Dorset Animal Pathways

Only time will tell exactly what Elsa’s role will look like — and that’s part of the fun!

But already, I think her calm and friendly nature could make her wonderful for helping our clients build confidence and feel comfortable around animals.
We’re not rushing her. We want Elsa to have time to settle, learn, explore and simply be herself.

I can’t wait to see how this beautiful girl blossoms in our care. 🌿🫏❤️

And this is only the beginning of Elsa’s journey…

Tomorrow is all about our baby Peaches 🫏❤️

30/09/2026

🐴 MEET ALFIE ❤️

Where do we even start with Alfie?! 😂

Also known as Alfie Small Boy, Alfonzo or Lord Farquaad… 👑
He is a mini Shetland and is on loan to us from a close friend so we have known him a long time and he joined us last April,
Alfie is the smallest member of the Dorset Animal Pathways team — but quite possibly has the biggest personality!
He absolutely LOVES his food (possibly a little too much if we’re being honest! 😂) and he also loves human attention, scratches, cuddles and generally being fussed over all day long.

And Alfie has a rather unusual party trick…

When he has finished his feed, he likes to roll around on his feed bucket to make sure everyone knows that dinner is officially finished! 😂
He is also quite happy to head out onto the forest with the dogs… and often confuses people as they have never seen a pony so small!

❤️ Alfie’s role at Dorset Animal Pathways
His size and friendly personality make him perfect for younger children who want to spend time learning about horses in a fun and relaxed way, but he is also equally happy spending time with adults.
There will be opportunities for grooming, leading and working together to navigate an obstacle course, helping children to build confidence, communication and a connection with their little four-legged friend.

And of course, Alfie will be very happy to supervise any snack-related activities… 😂

Small horse. HUGE personality. ❤️🐴

Tomorrow is all about meet Elsa! 🫏