Dogdean SANG, is one of the newer, lesser well know SANG’s. The SANG was created from land released when Bloor Homes built the Wimborne Chase housing development. The sites is not visible from the road and, together with the scant information online, this SANG is lightly used. The plan indicates a carpark. However, as of November 2023, this hasn’t been built nor is showing any signs of becoming available in the near future.
How to Find Dogdean SANG
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Head out of Wimborne on the B3078 Cranborne Road, crossing over the River Allen and head up the slight hill. There are new housing developments on the left and right. Turn to the right and park on one of the residential roads and walk through to the SANG. Some of smaller side roads are private and there are reports of residents getting cross with dogwalkers parking in them. The main roads (with street lights and normal tarmac) are all public highways and free to park on. There is also a layby on Cranbourne Road, but you would need to cross the road to get to the SANG.
What Is it Like
The SANG has a network of hard, gravelled pathways that probably extend as far as 1km, if you take a looping kind of route, that join together 5 or 6 distinct fields. There are boggy areas in one or two of the fields when the weather is wet but it is generally fairly dry. There are a couple of benches but no picnic table or, significantly, poo bins. The fields are separated by kissing gates which can make access with a wheelchair, mobility scooter or pushchair difficult. Having said that, the gradients are gentle and the path surfaces smooth and accessible. The SANG is rich in wildlife, which will be further helped by the recent planting of hedgerows by the Trees for Wimborne group.
This SANG is a good recall training spot best suited to dogs who have already mastered more enclosed areas. Whilst the SANG is fenced, there are areas where dogs could directly access a roadway should they fail to recall. Choosing the right field to practice in largely overcomes this issue, however. With the layout of the pathways and the relatively light usage, the SANG is an excellent spot to practice desensitisation and counter conditioning with lead reactive dogs. It is also a favourite place to practice more advanced retrieving with the gundog breeds.
Facilities
The lack of poo bins and easy parking makes this SANG one of the less well equipped SANGS. However, the light use and the accessibility in wet weather, when compared to Canford SANG, make it a really good alternative. Dogdean SANG is one of the main Activdogs training areas.
