Classic Cottages Donates £500 to Cornwall Search Dogs

When two Jack Russells went missing and ended up trapped in a rabbit warren, it took a specialist team and the fire brigade to get them out. That team was Cornwall Search Dogs, and a new donation is helping them reach more lost pets and people across the Duchy.

A £500 donation from holiday letting company Classic Cottages is supporting the charity, which finds lost people and dogs across Cornwall.

The money has gone to Cornwall Search Dogs, founded in 2020 by former members of mountain and lowland rescue teams and retired police dog handlers. They use their expertise in search techniques and dog training to track down missing people and animals across the county, responding to around 60 call-outs a year.

Tracking down the lost

Their success stories include those two missing Jack Russells, traced to the rabbit warren where they had got stuck and needing fire brigade help to free them. In another case, the team traced a family pet after isolating the dog’s scent from its owner’s car.

Dogs and their handlers are spread across Cornwall to make sure the whole county is covered. There are currently six operational dogs and three in training, and the charity is looking to recruit and train more.

Where the money goes

The Classic Cottages donation will help fund key parts of the charity’s work. That includes professional training, making sure every team member has a thermal imaging camera that can pick up a missing dog in a field or hedgerow, and publicising its services, especially through leaflets placed in pet-friendly holiday cottages.

Founder member Tracy Simpson, who works with her two spaniels Holly and Freda, said the support means a great deal to a small charity.

“This donation is fabulous. As handlers, we all give our time for free, so we’re very grateful. Being a small charity, fundraising can be a challenge, so support like this really makes a difference to what we can do. It helps us continue training our teams, investing in equipment and reaching more people and pets when they need us most,” Tracy said.

Lesley Black, West Cornwall Area Manager for Classic Cottages, explained why the company chose to back the charity.

“Cornwall Search Dogs do a brilliant job helping to find missing loved ones across Cornwall, whether they are pets or people, which is why we are supporting their work. A lot of our visitors also bring their dogs on holiday with them. They are important family members and if they go missing a long way from home, it can be very stressful,” Lesley said.

Classic Cottages is part of Sapphire Holidays, the Cornwall-based group of self-catering holiday letting agencies that also includes Aspects Holidays, Boutique Retreats, Unique Hideaways and Island Escapes.

Established in 1977, Classic Cottages is the UK’s largest independent holiday letting specialist, marketing a portfolio of properties across the UK that are exclusive to the company. Which? has named it a Recommended Provider for UK Holiday Cottages for six years running, and it won silver for Best UK Holiday Home Rentals at the 2025 British Travel Awards.

📷Photo Credit: Paul Richards