Old Coach House, Shrawardine

Old Coach House sits at the end of a quiet no-through road in Shrawardine, a scattering of houses, farms and a church on the Shropshire bank of the Severn, and it suits dogs largely because there is so little around it to worry about. The owners live adjacent and keep a spaniel and a horse of their own, which sets the tone: this is a working rural spot where a dog underfoot is entirely normal. It earns a 4.6/5 paw rating.

Up to two dogs can stay. No pet fee is published, so confirm the charge when you book. Inside, the house is roomy enough for six and has been restored carefully, with a log burner, a ground-floor bedroom and en suite, and enough space that dogs are not living on top of anyone.

The walking is the real draw. A field sits a couple of minutes from the door, which guests with dogs use for a proper run, and there are footpaths along the Severn and a disused railway line within a five-minute stroll. Shrewsbury, Ironbridge, Oswestry and Chirk are all comfortable drives. The trade-off is that the village has no shop and no pub, so the car comes out for everything, and the owners are usually happy to point guests at the better local routes.

One caveat comes up often enough to plan around: the garden gate. More than one party has arrived to find the gatepost broken and a gap at the bottom, and a smaller dog got through it. Others describe the garden as only relatively dog proof rather than sealed. It is worth walking the boundary before letting an escape-prone dog off the lead, and mentioning it to the owners, who are on hand and quick to respond. A couple of guests have also reported small housekeeping lapses, such as crumbs left under the sofa.

Best suited to a family or group with one or two steady dogs who want a genuinely quiet rural base, plenty of indoor space and open countryside from the doorstep, and who do not mind driving to the shops.