Greenhead Bark Park

19/06/2024

🔨🪛Joiner/Builder Required 🪚👷🏻

We are looking to have some conversion works carried out in our modular buildings.

Would appreciate any recommendations for joiners/builders?

24/12/2023

🎄 ☔️ Weather Conditions ☔️ 🎄

Good morning from a very grey and wet Bark Park this Christmas Eve.

The relentless rainfall over the past week has left the ground conditions in the park really wet and slippery underfoot. Whilst the addition of the path has helped, we appreciate that many visitors would prefer not to attend when it’s so wet and muddy.

If you would like us to reschedule your appointment then please just get in touch and we will be happy to do so.

Have a wonderful Christmas Eve 🐾

09/12/2023

🐶 🐱 🎁 Can you Help? 🎁 🐹 🎄

It’s that time of year when we ask if any of our visitors would like to help Flynn and Ace () with their mission to help make sure more families across Ayrshire can spoil their beloved pets this festive season.

They are looking for donations of the following items:

🦴 Dog food and treats
🍗 Cat food and treats
⚽️ Toys and Enrichment items
🐁 Small animal food, bedding and treats
🧺 Blankets

All donations will be forwarded to Ayrshire Food Bank as sadly, our local SSPCA branch has now closed.

If you would like to help, please leave donations in our coffee cabin for collection.

🐾 Thank you 🎄

02/12/2023

❄️ ⚠️ Road Conditions ⚠️ ❄️

Good Morning from a very snowy Bark Park!

The snow on our access road is currently compacted making access to and from the car park difficult. We already have one car unable to get out of the car park.

We are working to clear the road but it will take some time.

We are happy to reschedule any session if you would prefer not to attend today. If you’d still like to come to your appointment, we recommend visitors park at the golf course and walk down.

Thank you for your understanding. 🐾

05/09/2023

⛔️ ☀️ Weather Warning ☀️ ⛔️

Temperatures are forecast to reach the mid 20s this afternoon.

As always, we are happy to reschedule anyone who has booked in to these times but would prefer not to attend.

If in doubt, please reach out as we do not want any dog becoming uncomfortable or overheating.

Take care and enjoy the sunshine ☀️

16/06/2023

⚠️ Road Closure ⚠️

The fire station road is closed for maintenance today, diversion signs are in place and we are still open.

The closure should be for today only.

If anyone needs help, please call 07305 121 795.

Again, if the hot weather is an issue for you then please get in touch to reschedule. We recommend visiting early in the morning or later in the evening and enjoying our shaded areas.

04/06/2023

⏰ Cancellation ⏰

We have had a 30 minute morning slot open up today, pop over to our booking page if you’d like to come along:

https://www.greenheadbarkpark.co.uk/book-online

31/05/2023

☀️ It’s a Hot One ☀️

The sun is shining here at the Bark Park!

We are fully booking out every day at the moment and the dogs (and humans) have been enjoying these lovely conditions.

As always, our number one priority is the safety of our visitors so, as we have done in previous years, if you feel the temperatures are just a little too much for your dog on the day of your visit then we are happy to reschedule your session to another time that suits.

Just get in touch… and be safe. 🐾

19/01/2023

💚 🐾 Hot Drinks 🐾 💚

Our little cabin has been out of commission for a while so we decided to give it a little makeover and get it back up and running.

The water is boiled and we have a selection of teas, coffee, hot chocolate and cuppa soups. There’s fresh milk in the jug too.

If you’re planning a visit, pop in and help yourself to a hot drink to warm up ☕️

15/01/2023

💚 🐾. FEEDBACK 🐾 💚

Over the past two and half years we have always tried to be proactive when it comes to feedback - we welcome it and act on it where we see there may be a benefit for the majority of our end users.

This comment raises a great point about the more nervous dogs who use our facility - we have many dogs who don’t deal well with other dogs, humans or, in some cases, both.

Our new booking system has now been up and running for just over a week and we hope you are finding it easy enough to navigate. As we developed the system, we made the decision to trial a 15 minute gap between appointments in the hope of eradicating the issue of nervous dogs encountering other people and/or dogs and make their visit a little less stressful.

This should also mean that the park is free when you arrive for your appointment every time.

With the gaps in place, we will have an average of 3 hours less availability each day so we would still ask that you try to arrive for your appointment as close to your start time as possible and finish at your allocated end time as we will be using the gaps between appointments for cleaning and maintenance.

We hope this is a welcome addition to your time here.

Thank you 🐾

06/01/2023

⬇️ 💚 🐾 BOOK NOW 🐾 💚 ⬇️

05/01/2023

💚 🐾 Updated Booking Tool 🐾 💚

Introducing our new website…

www.greenheadbarkpark.co.uk

Another little online space to find out all about our facility and where you’ll find answers to all of our most commonly asked questions.

If you have a nosey, do let us know what you think!

We have also decided to transfer our booking system to be an integrated part of the website, we hope that this will streamline the experience for our users:

✅ Once registered you can log back in to your account to manage your bookings.

✅ A straightforward way to monitor where you are with your block bookings.

✅ We are now accepting online payments.

✅ We have also introduced the option of a 45 minute session for those who would prefer it (45 min blocks also available).

We hope this will be a positive change for everyone but are also aware that technology is not always our friend - so we would appreciate your patience as we navigate any bumps in the road whilst we get things up and running.

Thank you so much 😊

05/01/2023

04/01/2023

💚 🐾 New Booking System 🐾 💚

Happy New Year everyone!

We have a few changes upcoming - all positive and all helping us to deliver the best possible service.

We will be switching over to a new booking system on Friday so our current system will no longer be available after midnight tonight.

Don’t worry… if you already have appointments booked in, those will all be good to go. Look out for an update tomorrow on what we hope some of the benefits of the changeover will be, as well as guidance on using the new system.

🐾 Pupdate: Rhoda is doing grand! We are pleased to confirm it’s true what they say - labradors DO eat EVERYTHING! 👅

31/12/2022

💜 Ending 2022 on a positive note….💜

The gates have closed on the park for the final guests of this year - we are tremendously grateful to everyone who has crossed them over the past 365 days.

It was particularly lovely to see so many of you bringing your dogs for a Christmas Day walk 🎄

Whilst the end of our year has brought some sorrow, we can’t forget the many blessings our family has had throughout 2022 and wanted to end the year by sharing a most recent one with our community.

Introducing our newest addition…

💜 Rhoda Danger Gillespie💜

This little love has been a part of our family for the past five weeks and has settled in beautifully. Keep your eyes peeled for her zooming around the park!

We are excited to see what 2023 holds for all of us and look forward to welcoming back all of our favourite paws, tails and noses, and maybe even a few new ones.🐾

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year!

Cameron & Louise 💚

22/12/2022

🐾 Sincerest Apologies 🐾

Following the sudden, unexpected death of a close family member we have not managed to carry out all of the lovely festive plans we had for the park and our visitors this week.

We had hoped to catch up with many of you to offer festive best wishes but haven’t managed to be around as much as we had planned to be.

Thank you so much to those who have left cards and gifts - we feel so loved and appreciated and thank you for your understanding at this time.

Things will be a little slower in the meantime but we are here and continue to be ever grateful to all of you for sticking with us. 🐾

💚Cameron & Louise💚

10/11/2022

🌧 ☔️ Reopening Tomorrow ☔️ 🌧

Thank you for your patience whilst we have been closed to carry out some maintenance work.

We have had M&H Fencing & Groundworks in this week who have helped us with a few upgrades to the park in preparation for our winter season. Thank you so much guys. 😊

We have installed a path around the perimeter of the park - handy for humans and a bonus sensory experience for dogs! Poo bag dispensers and bins have also been relocated to the edge of the path for your convenience.

We have had our road resurfaced and some drainage solutions added to help us deal with the glorious Scottish rainfall that we are so often blessed with! ☔️

As always, we hope that this can contribute to the enjoyment of your visit to our little space and we hope to bring a few more upgrades over the coming months.

We look forward to welcoming everyone back through our gates from tomorrow onwards 🐾

06/11/2022

🛑 CLOSING FOR MAINTENANCE 🛑

We will be closed to carry out some essential maintenance works from Tuesday 8th November until Thursday 10th November.

We hope to be back up and running on Friday 11th November but will update on our social channels if this changes.

Thank you for your patience 🐾

22/09/2022

We are aware of an issue with our booking system at the moment. We have reached out to tech support and they are working on resolving the matter.

In the meantime, you can follow this link to book:

Book an Appointment with Greenhead Bark Park
https://greenheadbarkpark.setmore.com

We are a two acre secure dog run in Stevenston, Ayrshire where your dog can run and play off lead in a fun, safe and secure environment.

01/09/2022

🐩 🐕 Social Skills Club 🦮 🐕‍🦺

Would you like to find other dogs for yours to mix and meet with in a safe and controlled environment while learning what good social skills look like around other dogs?

We are looking for participants to take part in a trial run of our Social Skills Club.

What’s involved?

🐾 4 week programme
🐾 Maximum of 6 dogs per group
🐾 Guidance from a trainer on good social skills
🐾 Opportunity to meet with members of your group
for future play dates at the park
🐾 Final cost to be determined

With the support of Canine Pawtential we are hoping to establish an ongoing service to allow some of our visitors to find suitable playmates.

Safety is paramount for us when delivering this facility so it’s important that you are confident that your dog can cope within a group environment.

If interested, comment below with your dogs age and breed 🐶

05/08/2022

🚨 👀 New Equipment Alert 👀 🚨

30/07/2022

🧁 🎉 WE ARE 2 YEARS OLD 🎉 🧁

A birthday can only mean one thing… new toys! ⚽️

We have put out lots of new toys for your dogs to enjoy (please do share any pictures you might snap over the weekend 📸)

We also have little party bags for our visitors as a small token of thanks for your continued support of our family business.

The tea and coffee facilities are in the cabin for you to enjoy a wee drink with your human treat too.🧁 ☕️

On a personal note, we have had another amazing year and are so thankful we get to do what we do - we love meeting you and your dogs and sharing our space with you.

We are privileged to hear the stories of your human and dog families and appreciate all of the support for our own. ❤️

We are grateful that we can offer so much to so many - a safe space for those dogs who need a little more reassurance whilst building their confidence as well as a fun space for those who are celebrating special occasions with friends.

We strive every day to make the park enjoyable for every dog and human who crosses our gate, we appreciate that there are other places you can take your dogs so we are always delighted when you choose to come to ours.

As always, there are plans in the pipeline to continue to build on and improve what we have established but for now, we look forward to sharing our celebration with everyone this weekend.

Keep an eye out for a birthday giveaway 👀

27/07/2022

🎂 🎉 EXCITING WEEKEND AHEAD… 🎉 🎂

It’s our second birthday this weekend!! Who will be joining us to celebrate?? 🤔

18/07/2022

🌡 ☀️ Happy Monday ☀️ 🌡

The sun is well and truly out today!

We have closed off the booking system for the majority of the afternoon, we will continue to check the weather and consider releasing some later slots if the temperature cools later.

Take care ☀️ 🐶 💦

🔥🔥 If in doubt, don't go out! 🔥🔥

Most people know that dogs suffer heatstroke when left in hot cars (which is fatal in far too many cases), but are you aware that more than 10 times that number of dogs are seen for heat-related illnesses after being walked in hotter weather?*

It can take dogs weeks to acclimatise to hotter weather so it's particularly dangerous for our dogs, due to the unpredictability of the UK weather. When a heatwave is forecast, we make plans to enjoy the outdoors and the sunshine, and often take our dogs along too. Days out to the beach, walks in fields and parks, or just being out for picnics and barbecues and not thinking to make sure there is shade for the dogs are all factors. Dogs can become heat-distressed in a very short time.

You can help to minimise the dangers at home by having a paddling pool for your dog or making frozen treats for them, to keep them entertained if you are concerned about them missing exercise whilst it is hot. Never take a dog on a long walk in the heat, and keep any walking to early in the day or later in the evening, when it is cooler.

** All breeds of dog are vulnerable, but if your dog has an underlying health condition, especially one which affects their breathing; as well as overweight dogs, dogs with double coats, and brachycephalic (flat-faced) breeds, they will overheat more easily. Dogs cool down by panting, so any dogs who struggle to pant efficiently are more at risk.

Signs of heat-related distress in dogs:

- Excessive panting in dogs which doesn't stop when the dog rests
- Difficulty breathing, especially if there is unusual noise, or a blue-grey tinge to gums or tongue
- Unusual tiredness - becoming tired more quickly
Changes in behaviour - lying down more frequently or stumbling
- Less keen to play

If you see these signs:

-Stop them from exercising
- Move them into the shade
- Lay them in water and/or pour water over them
- Call the vet if you are concerned

Another thing to remember is that it's not just overheating which is an issue in hotter weather. Pavements can get hot quickly in warm weather and can burn the paws of your dog. If you can't comfortably keep your hand on the pavement/ground for 5 seconds, it's too hot for your dog. Some dog breeds are also susceptible to sunburn, and may need a suitable sun cream applied.

We are still advocating for dogs to never be left in hot cars, but we want to raise awareness that this is not the only danger in warmer periods and that exercising dogs on hot days is just as dangerous - more so due to the number of people who don't realise this, and therefore the number of dogs affected by it.

NEVER leave a dog in a hot car.
If you see a distressed dog in a hot car and feel it is an emergency, it's best to dial 999 and report it to the police. The SSPCA//RSPCA have no powers to enter a vehicle and will have to wait for police, so it is quicker to call the police directly.

When it comes to walks, "If in doubt, don't go out!" is the takeaway message.

*information and statistics taken directly from BVA/RSPCA pages

17/07/2022

☀️ ⛔️ HOT WEATHER ⛔️ ☀️

As the temperatures are predicted to increase over the next few days, we will be closely monitoring the weather and will close the park during peak sunshine hours to avoid any issues with dogs overheating.

As always, the safety of your dogs is paramount to us and we simply won’t take any potential risks.

We will continue to offer early morning and later evening sessions so there will still be an opportunity to visit.

Please check our social media pages to stay up to date.

Thanks 😊

12/07/2022

Canine Pawtential are returning with a brand new Beginners Class starting tomorrow - perfect for those dogs 6 months and older who are returning to training or just starting out.

There are a few spaces remaining - follow the link to book:

https://www.caninepawtential.co.uk/service-page/beginners-class-6-months-level-1-5?referral=service_list_widget

Calling all the older dogs out there 📢

We have a Beginners Class starting at Greenhead Bark Park on Wednesday 13th July at 7.15pm and you DO NOT want to miss it 🤩

This class is perfect for all those dogs who've either taken a break from training for a while and want to get back into it OR older dogs just starting out in their training journey 🐕

Learn lots of basic, useful life skills, how to walk nicely on the lead, come when called, fun tricks and SO MUCH MORE 🥳

Come and join us, learn new skills with your dog and have fun! 🌟

Link in the comments to get booked in ⬇️

28/06/2022

💚 TIA 💚

Today is a truly heartbreaking day for our family.

We said goodbye to our beautiful wee Maltese Tia.

We were privileged to share her life with her for the past 17 years but it never quite feels like enough.

Our home feels emptier and our hearts a little more hollow.

Rest Easy Tia 🥰

08/06/2022

🌵 🐾 NEW SAND PIT 🐾 🌵

We know that not all dogs enjoy playing in the same way so it’s important for us to try to offer as much variety to our visitors as possible.

Many of your dogs enjoy a good dig and we wanted to provide another all important sensory outlet for them to enjoy here… so we have created a sand pit for all of their digging needs! 🤎

We have opted to locate it under the shade of our trees so as not to over exert any dogs in the heat of the sunshine we have been experiencing recently.

With this in mind, we would ask that you please direct visitors who do love to dig over to this dedicated area to avoid digging in other parts of the field.

We have used play sand which meets British Standards meaning it has been thoroughly cleaned and iron oxide removed. ✅

Let us know if your dog tries it out when you visit 📷