A FLINTSHIRE dog lover has turned her notebooks full of pet-friendly places into an online directory during lockdown.

After rescuing eight-month-old Collie, Milo, when he was found abandoned under a caravan, Lauren Jones - from Mold - never wanted him to feel alone again.

The former PE teacher has since spent eight years researching dog friendly places to stay, eat and go - taking Milo on adventures all across the UK.

The 34-year-old said: “Milo is such an important part of our family. Ever since my husband and I adopted him at 8-months-old, he has accompanied us everywhere.

“We’ve taken him on days out, weekends away, on holiday - where we go, Milo goes. He even came to our wedding!”

During lockdown, with the help of sister-in-law Rachel Southern, Lauren decided to turn her many scribbled-in notebooks into an online searchable directory - Dog Friendly Destinations.

The mum-of-two wanted to share her handpicked finds with other discerning dog owners looking for places to go where dogs are not just permitted but thoroughly welcomed.

She continued: ““The idea for the website came to me after filling yet another notebook with ideas for places to stay, eat and go with Milo. I love to plan new adventures and I’m always researching holiday properties, hotels and coffee shops to see if they welcome dogs.

“The natural next step was to transfer that knowledge to a website. That’s how Dog Friendly Destinations was born and I’m so proud of how many dog owners it’s helped already.

“We’ve now reached a point of having more holiday queries than available properties so we’re looking forward to continuing with our search for even more dog friendly destinations.”

Dog Friendly Destinations is a searchable online directory that showcases the UK’s best places to stay, places to eat and places to go where dogs are not just permitted but thoroughly welcomed.

Since launching in September 2020, despite the impact of the pandemic on the travel and hospitality industry, the site has gone from strength to strength with Lauren and Rachel’s recommendations helping thousands of dog owners each month to book and plan future holidays and days out suitable for their four-legged family members.

The website also picked up an award at the recent Corporate Live Wire Awards winning the Specialist Holiday Service of the Year category for the North West area.

The online guide has plenty of dog-friendly ideas to see, do and go to in Cheshire and Snowdonia. There are also plenty of options for other parts of Wales too.

To find out more, go to https://dogfriendlydestinations.com/.