A 'home away from home' for local sausage dogs is fundraising after Tier 4 saw Christmas cancellations.

So far, £1,158 has been raised for West Berkshire's Sausage Dog Hotel, a premier choice for locals during difficult times.

A Go Fund Me Page set up by owner Phil Curtis reads: "Well here we are just a few days from Christmas, a time when we are always at full capacity, and only a week ago were looking all set to be once again. "But then, as I am sure you have all seen on the news, Covid had other plans, with a newly discovered variant spreading faster than ever, causing the government to order an emergency lockdown in many areas of the UK, including ours.

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"Almost everyone has now had their plans changed at the last minute, and for us as a business, the timing literally could not have been worse - if it had happened earlier, those cancelled plans would have enabled others on the waiting list who live in unaffected areas to use those spaces and head off on their holidays, and if it had happened just a few days later, everyone would already be where they were heading for, including the sausages being all checked in with us for their holidays.

"We do still have a handful of Christmas guests already with us, but these next few weeks were supposed to be our return to normality with a full hotel, for the first time since the brief period we enjoyed in the summer, and as a result of these developments and the uncertainty ahead into the first few months of 2021, we are under more financial strain than ever before."

At the dog hotel, sausage dogs who can't be at home for a period can spend the days socialising and having the best holiday in an idyllic location.

But the shock Tier 4 announcement has had a big impact on the business over Christmas.

"Of course, there is cause for hope, with the vaccinations having already begun and millions more on the way," Phil added.

"And all signs are that by the spring things will look much more positive for life in general, and the possibility of holiday travel returning as an option.

"Our booking calendar from around Easter onwards is at even higher levels than a normal year, and almost the entire summer is fully booked.

"So we simply must still be here and operational then so we can welcome all our guests and enable their families to finally get their holidays on the other side of all this, after in some cases, multiple postponements and cancellations.

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"Since the new restrictions this past weekend, many of you have reached out to me directly to ask how you can help, so I have put together this fund-raiser where all donations will go directly towards our operating costs to get us through the next few months.

"As always, we truly appreciate your support in these continuing challenging times...

2Happy Christmas from all of us here at Sausage Dog Hotel, and let's look forward to a much, much better 2021!"

To view or donate to the fundraiser, click here.